Advisory calls are paid one-to-one sessions with an expert. Booking is a three-step flow that ends with a confirmation email and a manage link. Almost everything afterward, including rescheduling and cancelling, is done from that manage link.
Booking a call
Each expert who offers advisory calls has one or more packages on their profile, each with a fixed price and duration. Clicking a package starts the booking flow.
The three steps are, in order:
- Details. The customer enters name, email, and an optional context message to give the expert a heads up about what to discuss. A discount code, if the expert issued one, is entered here too.
- Pay. Stripe Checkout opens. The customer enters card details and confirms the price. The card is charged at this step.
- Schedule. Once payment succeeds, a live calendar from the expert's Cal.com account opens inline. The customer picks an available slot, and the calendar invite goes out.
Payment comes before scheduling on purpose: the calendar invite is only sent once the call is paid for, so an expert never receives an invite for an unpaid call. If the customer pays but closes the tab before picking a slot, the booking sits paid and unscheduled; returning to the booking link reopens the scheduling step with no second charge.
No ConsultEarth account is required to book. The booking is tied to the email address the customer entered.
After booking
A payment receipt is sent when the card is charged. The booking-confirmation email — with the call time, the expert's name, the calendar invite, and the manage link — is sent once the customer picks a slot at the Schedule step, since the call time does not exist until then.
The manage link is the single source of truth for the booking. Bookmark it. It does not require login, only the unique token in the URL. Anyone with the link can manage the booking, so the customer should treat it like a receipt and not share it publicly.
Rescheduling
A booking can be rescheduled from the manage link up to 24 hours before the scheduled call. Each booking allows up to 3 reschedules.
Rescheduling does not change the price or trigger a new payment. The same slot release rules apply to the new time.
If the call is less than 24 hours away or the reschedule limit has been hit, the manage page hides the reschedule action. In those cases the only options are to attend the call or to cancel under the rules below.
Cancelling and refunds
A booking can be cancelled from the manage link up to 72 hours before the call. Cancelling within this window triggers a full refund automatically.
Refunds are issued through Stripe and typically arrive in 5 to 10 business days, depending on the card issuer.
Inside 72 hours, the manage page hides the cancel action. The customer can still contact support, but a refund is not guaranteed and is reviewed case by case. If the expert fails to attend the call or the platform fails to deliver the session, a full refund is always issued regardless of timing.
After the call
After the scheduled call time, the manage link offers two actions: confirm the call took place, and submit a review.
Confirmation triggers payout to the expert. If the customer does not confirm within a 24-hour cooling-off window, the call auto-confirms and payout proceeds automatically. If something went wrong with the session, the customer can open a dispute from the same page before that auto-confirm fires, which pauses payout and routes the case to manual review.
Reviews are optional and are written and submitted in one step from the manage page. They are shown on the expert's public profile.
Discount codes
Some experts issue discount codes that reduce the call price. Codes are entered on the Details step before checkout opens. The discounted price is shown live before the customer continues to payment.
A code is validated when it is applied and rechecked at payment time. If a code has hit its usage cap or expired between the two checks, the payment fails clearly and the customer can remove the code and continue at the regular price.
Related
- Refund policy: /help/refund-policy
- Reporting a user or content: /help/reporting