If you’ve been listening to the podcast for a while you have heard me encourage you to book a discovery call with me quite a number of times. And if you’re new to the podcast, you may be wondering why you should book one and when you should do so.

So today I’m going to explain why a discovery call with me is not the usual sales screening call you’re used to and hopefully by the end of the episode, you will be ready to go ahead and take action.

Discovery call, it’s a term you have heard many times. Some may call it a consultation, fitting call or something similar. Discovery calls are usually used to figure out if the person is a good match for your services.

And if you've ever found yourself on one of these types of calls, you'll totally relate to what I'm about to say. More often than not, these calls end up being less about the person you booked the call with getting a good understanding about your needs and if they have a service that will help you get over a hurdle. It ends up being more about them trying to reuse your words against you to close the deal!

But there is one thing you need to understand about discovery calls, they are NOT consulting calls or an opportunity for you to pick my brain. This hyper focused call is for me to gather information to determine the right level of service for you and make a final determination as to whether we are a great fit to work together at this point in your entrepreneurial journey.

I also want you to know up front that a discovery call with me will not be a high pressure call so that I can just close the deal. But in order for you to get a return on the investment of working with me, you need to have been in business for at least one year and have a solid business concept. Let me explain why.

I intentionally steer clear of startups because I'm all about helping purpose driven women who dream of taking their business to the next level, which is usually hitting the six-figure mark! Now if you're currently drowning in a sea of manual tasks, lacking the six core systems every business needs, and feeling like you're chained to your inbox and the daily business grind, then you and I need to talk.

To learn more about those six core systems, check out episode 123 of the podcast. I will put a link to that in the show notes.

Now I want you to u derstand one thing, I'm not here to strong-arm anyone into working with me. My goal is to help you escape the daily grind. I know you’re yearning for freedom to do more of what you love, like rocking the stage with paid public speaking gigs to skyrocket your revenue.

But here's the deal - for this to work, you've got to be willing to invest, not just in your business, but in yourself. I need you to trust me and my proven methods. I also need you to roll up your sleeves, because we're diving in together, and your active participation is key to unlocking the success you desire and deserve!

If this resonates with you, then booking a discovery call is the first step you need to take to break free from what’s blocking your business journey! When you click the link to book a call you will need to answer a series of questions. I want to make sure I am the right person to help you and make sure this is the right time for this type of project.

In addition to the standard contact information, I want to get a bird’s eye view of your business and what you’re having difficulty with right in your business right now that prompted you to reach out to me.

I also ask for your revenue level, and what frustrations you are experiencing that you want relief from. I also want to know your work style, whether you are hands on, a DIYer or like to hand things off to someone and be kept in the loop. I also want to know why you decided to take action now and how committed you are to improving your business operations.

After you answer those questions on the intake form, you can pick a day and time that works for both of us for your call. You will get a confirmation email from my scheduler right away. I need you to open that email and add the call to your calendar. But you will also get a reminder email 24 hours before our call.

You will also receive a separate email from me with a copy of my Biz Ops checklist you can use to do a quick audit of your current operations. The results will provide you with valuable insights into your business's current state and it only takes a few minutes. And I will ask for your results on the discovery call because you probably have more processes and systems in place than you realize. But this checklist is a great tool to help you start this process.

Time permitting, I will do some research on your business and make some notes based on your intake form responses. And the day of your Discovery Call, I will call you on the number provided on the intake form. And because I respect your time, I will ask you a series of questions (friendly fire style) to get an idea of your goals and learn more about your challenges. The more I can understand about your business, the more I can understand if I can be helpful or if I know someone else who can or what your next steps might be. I promise that I will not invite you to work with me if I do not fell you are ready.

And if that's the case, I will outline for you what I recommend you do first or do instead. I also will not invite you to become a client if it is clear that you will not be able to make the investment of money and time to successfully complete my program. Why would I take your money and waste your time and mine if I knew ahead of time that you are not in a position to contribute what is needed to complete my part. And I understand this can be because you can't afford my services right now or you have too many things going on in your life right now. And because I work with a limited number of clients at any given time, I'm not going to put you in a slot that you will not be able to fulfill.

And if it becomes evident that your expectations just aren’t realistic or your goals are unattainable given the timeframe of the engagement, then I won;t suggest we move forward at that time. While we may have a conversation about your goals and expectations, if I know we can’t reach your desired goals in the timeframe you have in mind, I'm not gonna invite you to work with me. That's a setup for failure for both of us.

I realize my approach may be a bit different than what you’re used to but I’m known for going against the grain. Most people are trying to close the deal on the discovery call. But I’ve felt duped by people who convinced me to enrool in programs that didn't deliver. And for a while, I wouldn’t invest in the help I needed because I was afraid of being burned again.

Do you feel that way? If you do, I understand. But the truth is, you cannot move forward without the help of an expert. I had to accept that to. And last year I faced my fear and paid two experts to make some major changes in my business. And I am so glad I did! I’m not going to go into the entire thing today, but let me pre-face this by saying I made strategic investments. So I knew what I wanted to happen in the long run and then I chose two fabulous women I trusted to helo me get specific pieces of my business in order to reach those goals. If you want to hear ll of the details, be sure to check out episode 120 of the podcast where I share my lessons learned after launching three things at once. I’ll put a link to that in the show notes.

So if bad experiences are holding you back from getting the helo you need, just know that you do not need to stay stuck where you are. Consuming content with taking action is never going to move the needle forward in your business or life. Honestly, there's nothing wrong with listening to podcasts, attending free webinars, downloading checklists and swipe files. But these are just things, not a strategy. It’s time for a strategy that allows you to look at your business from the 30,000 foot level and you can’t do that without help.

Any tool or tactic you use needs to fit into your overall strategy to help you reach your goals. You also need some kind of accountability so that you actually learn and implement your strategy. Otherwise, you are wasting your time and other valuable resources. So the goal of the discovery call is to make sure that I am the right person for you because our personalities will work well together, that I have the right training and the right skills so that you get the desired results and have a positive experience.

I strongly believe you have to have the right mindset to succeed because being an entrepreneurs is hard. So you know that sometimes things will fail, but you keep going. And no one can successfully navigate this journey on their own. You have a certain skill set and so do I. And we need to collaborate with others to achieve sustainable success because we need to put our skills together to make things work. You don’t know what you don’t know and no one person knows everything.

And if you’ve been listening to this podcast for a while then you know I am a no fluff type of girl. If I can help you I will let you know up front and explain how I can do that. And if I can’t, I’ll let you know that up front too and if I know someone who can help you, I will connect the two of you together. And if you decide to partner with me to get your back office in order, we must have a free-flowing dialogue. We will determine how often we will meet and identify the best way to communicate between those calls. From the first day to the last, I employ an open book approach to where we are in the plan and what we are doing together.

I work one-on-one with a limited number of clients which allows me to enjoy the lifestyle freedom I desire. Whether we work together on a VIP Day or on a project, I adapt they way I work with you where I can to provide what you need, want, and respond well to. All of our brains work differently which is why there is no cookie cutter solution to streamlining your back office operations.

Some people work well when I give them worksheets but others don’t. Some of my clients needed daily accountability, which I can provide via the Voxer walkie-talkie app. And other people just need a weekly call with me. In other words, my approach is customized for you individually. And believe it or not, I can get a good feel for that in a 15 minute call with you. But I also do my homework before our call including looking at your social media accounts.

And at the end of the discovery call, if we're not a good fit for each other, you will still benefit from our chat? How? Because I will point you in the direction that fits you where you are. And if I know someone who would be just right to work with you, I will refer them to you.

Now if I feel we are a good fit for each other and you are at the right place in your journey to benefit from my services, then we can move forward with the next step which is a Solo POWER Assessment. It's a 2-hour recorded call that identifies areas of improvement and creates a customized action plan to improve your business operations. By streamlining your workflows and optimizing your systems, you can increase productivity and profitability. The assessment also helps identify any roadblocks or obstacles that may be holding you back from achieving your goals. With a personalized plan and a clear roadmap, you can take your business to the next level and achieve the success you've been dreaming of.

If you would like to learn more about that, go to theshannonbaker.com/assessment and check that out. You can also listen to episode 127: What Happens During a Back Office Assessment. Similar to this episode I walk you through the process of what you can expect when you book this assessment with me.

And if you need time to digest the things we discussed on the discovery call, we can schedule a circle back call while we’re on the phone. That phone call is a great opportunity for you to ask any additional questions you may have about the back office assessment or anything else we discussed.

So I hope this episode gives you some insight into what you can expect when you book a discovery call with me. If you clearly understand what it does and does not include, then I have achieved my goal for this episode.

Now if you have a question that I didn’t cover, please seel free to send me an email. My email address is in the show notes. You can also feel free to send them to me in a DM on Instagram @the_shannonbaker.

Now, if after this episode you feel I’m the right person for you and this is the right time for you to move forward with streamlining your back office, then make sure you go ahead and book a discovery call today. A link to my calendar is in the show notes.

I hope to see your name on my calendar in the very near future. Bit in the meantime, I will keep delivering value on this podcast every week. However, just consuming the content on this podcast or any other way is not enough.

You need to pick one thing I talked abot today and take action on it. If it’s not booking a discovery call, then be sure to tune into the episode where I talk about the six core systems every small business needs.

I want to thank you for joining me this week! If you have questions, feel free to reach out to me to get them answered.

If you found this episode valuable, please go to ratethispodcast.com/mindyourtime and leave a rating and review. Social proof matters and I need your help to reach more women entrepreneurs like yourself. And don't forget to share this episode with the amazing women in your community that would benefit from this message. Take a screenshot and post in on Instagram stories and tag me @the_shannonbaker.

I look forward to you joining me back here next week. And until then, keep calm and streamline!