How to Prepare for an Online Consultation

To prepare for a consultation, you need three things ready before it starts: a clear question, the documents that question depends on, and a setup that works. Fifteen minutes of preparation routinely doubles what you get from a 30-minute session, because the consultant spends the time advising rather than gathering context. This guide covers what to do the day before, the hour before and in the first two minutes. It is part of our wider guide to how to get expert advice online.

Start with the outcome, not the topic

Write one sentence: "By the end of this session I want to know ___." Compare these two:

• Weak: "I want to talk about my business finances."
• Strong: "I want to know whether to register for VAT now or wait until I cross the threshold, given that I expect £78,000 of turnover this year."

The second version tells the consultant what to prepare, what to ask you and when the session is finished. Under it, list no more than three sub-questions. If you have six, book a 60-minute session or split them across two sessions with different specialists.

Gather what the consultant will ask for

Consultants ask for the same things over and over. Save the first ten minutes by having them ready.

Type of session	Have ready
Career or CV	Current CV, two or three job adverts you are targeting, your LinkedIn URL
Business or finance	Last 12 months of figures, a one-page summary of the business, the specific contract or email at issue
HR or workplace problem	A dated timeline of events, copies of letters, your employment contract
Tech or product	Screenshots, exact error messages, a link to the thing itself
Wellbeing or lifestyle	What you have already tried, for how long, and what changed

Send documents through the booking chat before the session so the consultant can read them before the clock starts. Name files sensibly: "CV_Oct2026.pdf" rather than "final_v3_new.pdf".

Write a one-paragraph brief

Sixty to a hundred words covering who you are, your situation, what you have already tried and what you want. Paste it as your first message. For example:

"I'm a freelance graphic designer, three years in, turning over about £52,000. I've been quoting by the hour and keep losing larger projects to agencies. I've read about value-based pricing but don't know how to apply it to my work. I'd like to leave this session with a pricing structure I can use on the two proposals I'm writing this week."

That paragraph took two minutes to write and saves the consultant from asking five opening questions.

Decide what you will not cover

When you prepare for a consultation, decide what is out of scope too. Scope creep is the main reason sessions run out of time. A 30-minute session comfortably covers one main issue and one follow-up question. If you find yourself writing "and also" more than once, cut it. You can book another session, and the second one will be better because you will have acted on the first.

Choose the format to match the question. A quick, factual question with documents to share often suits chat; a sensitive or complex conversation often suits video. Our comparison of chat vs video consultation goes into the trade-offs.

Check your setup the hour before

For video:

• Test your camera and microphone in the browser you will actually use.
• Plug in headphones; they remove echo and make you easier to hear.
• Sit facing a window or lamp, not with one behind you.
• Use a wired connection or sit close to the router. If you are on a phone, prop it up rather than holding it.

For chat:

• Use a keyboard, not a phone. You will type three times faster.
• Have your documents open in a second window so you can copy figures quickly.

For both: join two or three minutes early. The booked slot starts at the booked time whether or not you are there, and the first message you send should be your brief, not an apology.

Questions worth asking in any session

Beyond your specific questions, four questions reliably draw out the most useful advice:

1. "What would you do in my position?"
2. "What am I not asking that I should be?"
3. "What are the next three steps, in order?"
4. "What would make you change this advice?"

Our guide to questions to ask a consultant has more, organised by topic.

Know where the consultant's advice stops

A consultant on a general platform can explain options, challenge your thinking and help you prepare. They are not your solicitor, accountant or regulated financial adviser unless they say so and you have checked. For problems involving debt, benefits, housing or consumer rights, read the relevant Citizens Advice page first, so you arrive knowing the basics and can spend the session on your specific situation rather than the general rules.

On ConsultChat you pay when you book, the platform holds the payment until the session is delivered, and if something goes wrong the platform team reviews it. Check the current terms for how disputes work before you book.

After the session

Within ten minutes, while it is fresh, write down the three actions you agreed. If it was a chat session, save the transcript. Set a date for each action. Book a follow-up only when you have a specific next question, not out of habit.

Leave a review. On ConsultChat reviews come only from completed, paid sessions, so yours helps the next person choose well.

The short version

To prepare for a consultation well: one sentence on the outcome, the documents from the table above, a 60-word brief sent ahead, a tested setup and a notebook. Do that and a 30-minute session feels like an hour. For the full picture of choosing the right expert and format, go back to our guide on how to get expert advice online. When you are ready, create a free ConsultChat account and book a session that fits around your day.