A Strategy Consultation is different from an ongoing coaching relationship in one important way: it exists to work through one specific problem or plan, not to be the first of many. Structured well, it feels focused and worth the price. Structured loosely, it feels like a coaching session that forgot to introduce itself.
Scope it before the call
Ask two questions at booking: what problem they are trying to solve, and what they have already tried. That is enough to arrive already oriented, and it is the same discipline that makes a good discovery call work, applied one rung further up the ladder.
Forty-five minutes is enough for one problem
Longer than an intro call, shorter than a full coaching hour, because the scope is genuinely narrower: one problem, one plan, not an open-ended relationship. If a client consistently needs more time than that, the honest fix is a longer session type, not letting this one quietly stretch.
End with a deliverable
The difference between a consultation that felt valuable and one that felt like a nice chat is usually what happens in the five minutes after the call. A short written summary or next-step list, sent the same day, is what makes the price feel earned in hindsight. Set your consultation up and pair it with a lighter free option ahead of it for new visitors.