Verify before a booking: a practical checklist

This is the short version of a screening process you can apply to every enquiry without thinking about it: observe cheap signals, require a paid verification call, then decide. Total unpaid time spent per enquiry: about a minute.

Key facts

Step 1 — Read the first message, once

  • Is it specific about what they want, or generic and copyable?
  • Is there manufactured urgency ('right now', 'tonight only')?
  • Are they negotiating price before establishing anything else?
  • Have they asked for anything free already?

Step 2 — Reply with your process, not a conversation

Send the same short reply every time: what you offer, that a paid verification call comes first, the price, and the link. Do not explain, justify or negotiate. A standard reply costs you nothing per enquiry and removes the emotional labour of judging each one individually.

Step 3 — Let the payment decide

If they book and pay, you have a verified, paying contact and you were compensated for the screening itself. If they do not, the process ends there with no further cost to you. Either outcome is fine, which is what makes the system sustainable.

Step 4 — Use the call to confirm, not to sell

  • Confirm the person matches how they presented themselves.
  • State boundaries plainly and observe the response.
  • Agree next steps only if the call went well.
  • End at the booked time.

Common questions

Isn't requiring payment to talk off-putting?

To serious clients it reads as professional and is common in consulting, legal and medical contexts. To non-serious contacts it is off-putting by design.

How long should the verification call be?

Long enough to hear how someone speaks — often a few minutes is sufficient.

Require a verification call before you commit

Set a price and duration, share your link, and only talk to people who show up and pay.

Set up verification calls

Related reading