Book a One-on-One Meeting With Me via Intro
Last year I offered something I called Design Mom Office Hours. Anyone could book a one-on-one video call with me to talk about whatever they wanted. It was terrific! I really enjoy talking to people, so for me, it was wonderful getting to have so many interesting conversations. And for the people who booked a meeting with me, I was glad to be able to offer tips and advice and encouragement.
Last June, as my book publication neared and I needed to dedicate more time to that, I discontinued Office Hours. And I’ve missed them.
Then, a few weeks ago, I received an Instagram message from a follower who told me about a new app called Intro — which allows people to book meetings with experts across a range of topics. She said it was a lot like my Office Hours program and suggested I give it a try. My schedule had calmed down a bit, so I looked into it and thought: why not?
I set up my Intro profile this weekend, and I’m happy to announce that once again, I’m officially available for one-on-one meetings with anyone who wants to talk with me. You can see my availability and book a meeting through Intro.
Here Are Some of the Specific Things People Want to Discuss With Me
If you’re curious, here are some of things people discussed with me during Office Hours calls:
-Parents with young children looking for advice on how to build a family culture where everyone pitches in and works together.
-People who are thinking about moving abroad and looking for advice on how to make that happen and what to consider when making that decision.
-People launching a new business and looking for tips on how to build a community.
-People who have a specific design challenge in their house and are looking for guidance.
-People planning a trip to Normandy and the D-Day beaches and needing advice on an itinerary.
-People who want to discuss how current events or politics are affecting their life — what it’s like having an anti-vax friend, or a spouse who is anti-feminist, or how my book changed their perspective.
-People who are interested in buying an old house in Europe and renovating it and want to learn how to find worthwhile properties here and what the real estate buying process is like.
-People who have been following along for so long they consider me a friend (and even though we don’t know each other in real life, I love that I can be a friendly face on the internet for them!). They just want to have a little chat and don’t need any particular advice or even have a particular topic they want to discuss.
A Note On Pricing
With Office Hours, I found pricing quite challenging. I offered one flat rate, but it didn’t always make sense. Sometimes I would have a call with a well-funded start-up founder, looking for a business consultation. Sometimes I would get a call from someone hoping I could solve a big interior design dilemma. And sometimes I would get a call from someone who just wanted to meet me, and didn’t need advice or expertise at all. Those three types of calls require different types of knowledge and response from me, and ideally they would be priced differently.
I’m going to have the same pricing issue with Intro — there’s just one flat rate at the moment — but I’m hopeful there will be improved or more flexible pricing options as the app grows.
Intro offers meetings for 15 mins, 30 mins, 45 mins, or an hour. If people have something big they need help with, they can book a longer amount of time.
A Few FAQs
Are there other meeting times available? Yes! There’s an option where you can request another time that works better for you. If I’m not available at the time you request, we can go back and forth until we find a time that works for both of us.
Worried that the call will be stressful or have lots of awkward pauses? Don’t be. Again, I enjoy talking to people and am happy to keep the conversation going. I’ve done a ton of these calls and it’s never awkward. It will be great, I promise.
Can I gift a meeting to someone? Yes! Intro offers a gifting option. There’s a little box you can click that says: “tap to send this as a gift”.
Are you needing life advice from me? Or you want me to tell you how to treat your depression? I better make clear: I’m not a life coach, I’m not a therapist, I’m not a doctor, I’m not a lawyer. There are things you might want to talk about with me, and I am not qualified to answer. For example, if you want to talk to me about mental health, I’m more than happy to share my experiences, and what has worked for me, but I can’t advise you on your own medical journey.
Don’t have budget for the listed rates? Need a no-fee meeting? You got it. Every time 10 meetings are booked, I make one Scholarship Meeting available. If you’d like to put your name on the Scholarship Meeting waitlist, please email designmom@designmom.com and put “Scholarship Meeting” in the subject line and let me know what you’d like to discuss. This worked quite well during the Office Hours program, and I hope it will work just as well via Intro.
We’ll see how this goes! If Intro is working well, we can stick with this. If not, maybe we’ll go back to the Office Hours program.
I hope you’re having a lovely Monday.
kisses,
Gabrielle
Just a note to share appreciation for creating scholarship meetings and making reaching you more equitable for all.
Congrats! I discussed a home design project and have finally completed the room you helped me on! When I found the final piece (the perfect rug) I thanked you in my mind for all the advice you gave. Highly recommend - the 30 mins goes by so fast, and was so helpful.