How to screen a new client before you accept a booking
Screening is the process of deciding whether an enquiry deserves your time, before that time is spent. A workable process has three parts: a fixed set of questions, at least one check the other person has to act on, and a clear point where you stop. Everything else is conversation.
Key facts
- Screening answers one question: will this person follow through?
- Checks that cost the enquirer something filter far better than checks that cost them nothing.
- A written screening policy is faster to enforce than a case-by-case decision.
- You never need someone's legal identity to establish that they are serious.
Step 1 — Use the same opening every time
Improvised screening is slow and inconsistent. Write four or five questions once and send the same block to every new enquiry: what they are looking for, when, how they found you, and how they prefer to be contacted. The content of the answers matters less than whether they answer at all.
People who intend to book answer a list. People who are collecting attention will argue with the list, answer two of five questions, or immediately change the subject.
Step 2 — Ask for one thing that takes effort
The centre of any screening process is a single request that requires action rather than typing. Historically that has meant references from other providers, a work email, or a deposit. Each of these works because it is inconvenient for someone who is not serious.
A short paid video call belongs in the same category, and it has one advantage over the others: it puts a face and a voice in front of you, in real time, and it pays you for the time you spend checking.
Step 3 — Decide before you invest more time
- Answered the questions plainly and completed the check — proceed.
- Answered but refused the check — offer the check once more, then close.
- Negotiating your screening rules before discussing anything else — close.
- Pushing for immediate contact off-platform before any check — close.
Step 4 — Keep your own record
Keep a simple private note of who screened successfully, who did not, and why. Over a few months this becomes the most useful screening tool you own: repeat enquirers under new handles become obvious, and you stop re-litigating the same decision.
Store notes somewhere only you can reach, and keep them factual. Notes are for your own decisions, not for publishing.
Common questions
How long should screening take?
For most enquiries, under ten minutes of your attention. If a conversation has taken an hour and nothing has been verified, the process has failed, not the client.
Is it rude to have screening rules?
Serious clients expect them. A stated policy is usually reassuring — it signals that you work in an organised way, and it removes the impression that you are singling anyone out.
What if someone refuses every check?
That is the answer. Refusing all verification while asking for your time is itself the screening result.
Make one screening step pay for itself
Set a price for a short verification call, share your link, and only continue with people who show up.
Set up a verification call