Every call in the offers we run has a meeting note filled in before it starts. That note is where a call review begins.
Most coaching businesses review calls by feel, if at all. A better test is what happens after the call. Did the client leave knowing exactly what to do, and did they reach the next milestone on time?
What makes a coaching call good?
A clear next step the client acts on. A call can feel great and still leave the client unsure what to do next. The quality shows on the client board, in whether that client is on track at the next milestone.
Three things sink calls more often than coaching skill. The coach does not fully understand the offer and the client path. The coach makes things complicated, or promises something the offer does not include.
How do I review my coaches' calls?
Record the calls, then pick a few per coach each month to score. Include calls with overdue clients, because those show how a coach handles a client who is stuck. Use the same checklist for every coach.
- Prep: was the meeting note filled in, with the client's milestone and the goal for the call?
- Goal: did the coach know what this call had to achieve, and did it?
- Framing: did the coach tie the advice to the client's stage and the time left for it?
- Simplicity: did the client get a short list of actions, with links, instead of a lecture?
- Promises: did the coach stay inside what the offer includes, with nothing extra done for the client?
- Next step: did the client say back what they will do, and by when?
- Energy: did the client leave the call positive?
Score each line yes or no. Two reviewers agree on a yes or no faster than on a score out of ten, and a no points straight at what to train.
Note. Tell clients their calls are recorded, and check the consent rules where your clients live. This is not legal advice.
Every meeting has a meeting note that gets filled in beforehand, so it is never a random call. I hate random calls.
Why read call scores next to client numbers?
Because a coach can run good calls and still lose clients. Put each coach's scores next to their clients' on-track rate and the refund requests from those clients. Where the two disagree, you have found something.
| What you see | What it usually points to | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Good calls, clients on track | The coach and the stage both work | Use those recordings in team training |
| Good calls, clients overdue | The stage or its training | Rebuild the stage before you blame the coach |
| Weak calls, clients overdue | The coach | Retrain on the checklist lines that failed |
| Weak calls, refund requests | Promises or framing | Check what was said against what the offer includes |
Promises deserve extra care. One small done-for-you item said on a call makes clients think everything is done for them. Then delivery falls apart, and refund requests follow.
Who should review the calls?
Someone who knows the offer and the client path, and is not the coach on the call. In a small team that is the founder. In the delivery teams we structure, a coaching lead owns call quality from about 150 active clients.
Bring the board numbers into every review, so the talk is about clients and not taste. Keep it regular. A review that only happens after a complaint teaches coaches that recordings are for blame.
How do I give coaches feedback on their calls?
As training for the whole team, with real recordings. The best calls become examples, and the most common no becomes the next training session. Regular trainings are how coaches learn the offer and the client path.
Be straightforward without being disrespectful. Point at the checklist line, play the moment, and agree on what changes on the next call.
Give new coaches time. No KPIs in the first month; every person has a learning curve, and early scores are pressure for no reason. Start scoring in month two.
Further reading: When your coaching team is the problem · Live coaching calls that clients actually attend
Diego Miescher
