How Do You Screen New Matchmaking Clients?

A screening answers two questions:

• Can you find this person a match?
• Do you want to take them on as a client?

How you get there depends on your firm. Some matchmakers do a 15-minute call to check fit, and others spend 90 minutes with every new client, in person or on video. Pick the depth that fits your service, then use the same questions every time so you can compare clients fairly.

Decide How Deep to Go

• Fit call (15 to 20 minutes). A short call to decide whether someone is worth a full screening. Useful when you get a lot of inquiries.
• Full screening (45 to 90 minutes). Relationship history, family, goals and deal-breakers, for clients you're likely to take on.
• Both. A fit call first, then a full screening once the client signs.

The more personal and higher-priced your service, the deeper the screening should go.

What to Cover

In a fit call:

• What made you decide to work with a matchmaker now?
• What are you looking for in a partner?
• How much time can you give to dating over the next few months?

In a full screening, add:

• Tell me about your last relationship. Why did it end?
• What does a good weekend look like for you?
• How involved is your family in who you date?
• Which of your must-haves would you give up for the right person?
• Do you want children?

Listen for readiness. A client who's just out of a divorce, or who brings up an ex in every answer, may need a few months before you can help.

Collect the Details Your Way

You need the facts you'll search on: age, location, faith, education, whether they want children, and what they're looking for. Get them in whichever way suits you:

• An intake form before the call, so the call can go to the things a form can't capture.
• The conversation itself, with no form at all, if you'd rather talk than send paperwork.
• Both, with a short form for the basics and the screening for everything else.

Record the Screening Instead of Taking Notes

With Audio Screenings in HoneyBee Match, you start a recording from the client's profile and stay present on the call. It works for Zoom, Google Meet, phone calls on speaker, and meetings in person. Let the client know you're recording.

When the call ends, HoneyBee gives you:

• playback of the call
• a full transcript
• a summary that pulls out relationship history, dating preferences, next steps and action items
• a sentiment score across the conversation
• profile answers it found in the call, for you to review and save to the profile
• any tasks you need to complete are automatically added to remind you

Summaries can be edited and regenerated when needed. If you screen without a form, the profile answers from the call fill in most of the profile for you. Audio Screenings are available on the Growth plan and above.

Decide If You Can Help

Before you take a client on, answer three questions honestly:

• Do you have, or can you find, people this client would say yes to?
• Are their expectations realistic for their age, location and what they offer?
• Would you be comfortable introducing them to someone you care about?

If the answer is no, tell them now. Refer them to another matchmaker, or tell them what would need to change first.

How to Spot Red Flags

Red flags usually show up as a pattern across a screening. To spot them:

• Compare what you hear with what you already know. Check the call against the information in their profile, and ask about anything that changed. HoneyBee automatically flags profile updates from the call transcript to help.
• Ask follow-up questions. A second question about a past relationship or a deal-breaker shows you more than the first answer does. Sometimes asking "Why?" is enough.
• Ask about expectations directly. Ask what they want in a partner, then what they offer in return, and note where the two don't line up.
• Ask how they'd measure success. A client who wants a guarantee, or a fixed number of dates, needs a clear conversation about how your service works and the work involved in matching to their distinct characteristics.
• Listen to the whole conversation. Tone across the call says more than any one remark. The sentiment score in Audio Screenings gives you a second read on the call.
• Review the recording afterwards. It's easier to notice patterns when you aren't also running the conversation. HoneyBee gives you transcript-level playbacks and summaries to assist you in reviews.

If you see the same concern more than once, talk it through with the client before you take them on.

Book a demo to see Audio Screenings in HoneyBee Match.