How to decline a meeting that should be an email
"Can we hop on a quick call?" Quick calls are never quick. There's the scheduling, the small talk, the call itself, and then the email you send afterward anyway to confirm what was said. For a freelancer billing by the project, that's an unpaid hour, sometimes two.
You don't have to refuse. You just have to answer the question before the call becomes necessary.
The reply
Happy to help with this. So I can give you a proper answer, could you send over the main questions here? I'll reply by end of day tomorrow, and if it still needs a call after that, we'll book one.
Most of the time, once they write the questions down, they realise it's two questions and you answer them in four lines.
Even better: answer first
If you can guess what the call is about, just answer it. "You mentioned a call about the timeline. Here's where things stand: [two lines]. If that covers it, no need to meet. If not, I'm free Thursday at 2."
When a call is the right call
Something emotional, like a project going badly. A negotiation. Anything with five people who all need to agree. Say yes to those. The rest are emails.
Skip the Call is this reply, written so you don't sound difficult. One page, plain text included. $12, instant download.
Or take all thirteen files for $29 once.