A free trial session does not reassure a future client. It postpones her decision. When someone asks you for one, she is not looking for a gift: she is looking for proof that your leadership coaching is worth the commitment. You can give her that proof during the call, without working for free.
Why does she ask for a trial session?
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A free trial session is a coaching session offered before any agreement is signed, meant to let the person "see if it's a good fit". For a leadership coach who launched a few months ago, the request usually comes right after you say your price. That is no coincidence.
Behind "could we do a trial session first?" there is almost always one of three questions: will you understand me? Will this work for me, with my team, my boss, my doubts? Can I afford this without regretting it? None of those questions gets answered by giving away an hour. A free session shows how you work, not the path she will walk with you.
A request for a trial session is a request for safety, not a request for something free.
And there is a trap. Someone who has received a free session then compares your price with what she just got without paying. You have made your coaching harder to sell, not easier.
What do you say without discounting or losing her?
You do not say a flat no, and you do not say yes. You go back to what she is really after.
One way to put it, in your own words: "I get it, you want to be sure before you commit. I don't do trial sessions, because one isolated session wouldn't show you what three months change. But tell me what would make you say yes with confidence, and let's look at that right now."
Then you listen. If she says "I want to see how you work", describe a typical first session using her own words: the situation she named during the call, what you would do together the first time, what she would have in hand by the end of the first month. If she says "I'm not sure it will work for me", go back to what she described: the meeting where she doesn't dare to decide, the role she is aiming for, the team that keeps testing her. Show her you understood her exact situation. That is what she wanted to test.
The proof a leadership coach can offer on a call is a precise understanding of the person's situation, not a free hour.
What if you really want to give her a way in?
Some leadership coaches prefer to offer something. In that case, offer a paid, stand-alone kick-off session with a concrete outcome: a clear picture of her current leadership posture, three priorities, and a plan for the coming weeks. She pays, so she shows up. You work, so you get paid. And if she goes on to the full programme, the price of that session is deducted.
That session is not a trial. It is a first step, useful even if she stops there. The difference changes everything in her mind: she is no longer evaluating a coach, she has started the work.
The other way in, simpler still, is a well-run discovery call. Ask your questions before the call, listen more than you talk, reflect her situation back to her, then present your coaching as an answer to what she said. Someone who has felt understood for forty minutes rarely asks for a trial session.
How do you stop the request coming up on every call?
If the request keeps coming, the problem sits before the call. Look at three places.
- Your page or profile. Does it describe a session or a journey? If she reads "leadership coaching session", she thinks in units and wants to try one. If she reads "a three-month programme to step into your new role with confidence", she thinks about the result.
- Your content. Does it show how you work? A post where you tell a client's story, anonymised, and what you did together does the same proving job as a free session. For everyone, and without your time.
- Your call. Do you state your price before you have reflected her situation back? If so, she hears a number without knowing what it buys, and she looks for a way to check. Reflect first, propose second.
A leadership coach who shows her work in her content no longer needs to give it away in a trial session.
In short
A request for a trial session is not a no. It is an interested person looking for a reason to trust herself. Give her that reason during the call, through your understanding of her situation, and keep your sessions for your clients.
If you want to rework how you run your discovery calls and present your coaching, you can book a call.
