The discovery call is THE most important sales call.
Use these 35 questions to help improve your call effectiveness and outcomes.
Preparing for the call
Per research by Salesforce, 85% of prospects report being dissatisfied with the discovery call. Additionally, 40% of sales reps say they don't have enough information before making the call. To maximize your call time, use this checklist to prepare for the conversation.
Company background:
Recent news - announcements, events
About Us - leadership, and story
Careers page - related open positions, skills needed
Potential customer overlap
Board members or investors - any mutual?
Competitive analysis
Contact background:
Professional background
Mutual connections
Job descriptions & responsibilities
Recent activity - promotion or job change
Review LinkedIn profile-
Opinions, Interests, Hobbies
Education
Groups/Organizations
Kicking off the call - conversation starters
People buy from those they know, like, and trust. Start your discovery call by building the relationship and getting the buyer engaged with one of these conversation starters.
Conversation starters:
Is it true what they say about living in [city/state]?
I see you live in [city/state], have you ever tried [restaurant/local attraction]?
I’m actually thinking about visiting [city/state] soon, what are your top recommendations?
I noticed you went to [college/university], I actually have a friend who went there, they said it was really [x]. How did you like it?
I noticed on LinkedIn you participated in [sport/hobby], I used to play as well, what position were you?
In your LinkedIn summary, you mentioned you love [x]. How long have you been doing that?
Understanding the prospect and team
Only 13% of buyers believe a salesperson understands their needs. Gaining a good understanding of your prospect, their team responsibilities, and the need for your solution provides information to populate the problem statement in your sales proposal. By effectively restating the prospect's challenges and vision, you build trust in your abilities to solve their problem.
Understanding current processes:
Walk me through your typical day-to-day activities in your role
What metrics are you responsible for?
What are the different roles on your team and how many are in each position?
What does your team’s current process look like?
What’s holding your team back from achieving your goals?
Understanding the need for your solution:
What is your [or your team’s] process for X?
Why do you do X this way?
Is there a budget in place for X?
How much time have you spent doing X this way?
How much budget do you have assigned to X?
How much of an impact does X have on your business?
Understanding the competition you're facing
On average, buyers are talking to 3-5 different vendors. Your goal is to stand out from your competitors but also to gain information to develop a time-sensitive timeline in your sales proposal. Understanding when your buyer wants to be up and running with a new solution is essential.
Competitive questions:
What other solutions are you evaluating?
How far are you in your evaluation process?
How do you feel we compare to the other solutions you’re looking at?
What is your timeline for getting a new solution in place?
Discussing next steps
Never leave a call without discussing what's next. Your post-call follow-up communicates more to buyers than the actual call itself. If you say you're going to send a proposal by end of day or call back on Tuesday then do it-- your responsiveness and how well you keep your word during the sales process is an indicator of what it might be like working with your company should they choose you.
Follow-up:
Proposal
Next call
Other deliverables discussed
Actioning your discovery call insights
"The purpose of information is not knowledge; it's being able to take the right action." - Peter Drucker
With all the valuable insights gained from your conversation, it's now time to leverage the information and send a proposal that not only grabs attention, but builds deal momentum.
Developing your problem statement
You've discussed your prospect’s specific challenges and use case applications in the discovery process; failing to address them in a marketing (or sales) proposal is a mistake that often results in lost business. Writing a problem statement allows you to break down the problem in a holistic summary and set the stage for how your solution meets your client's challenges.
What does your team’s current process look like?
What’s holding your team back from achieving your goals?
How much time have you spent doing X this way?
Visualizing solution impact
While it’s true humans make decisions primarily based on emotions, it’s also true that we use logic to justify our actions to ourselves and to others. You've gathered information about current processes and the business impact; now provide visual and tangible evidence of why purchasing your software makes good business sense. An interactive ROI calculator in your proposal does exactly that.
How much time have you spent doing X this way?
How much of an impact does X have on your business?
What an ROI calculator looks like in your proposal:
(time savings shown; financial percentage, resources, sunk costs, and create your own ROI calculators are also possible)
Price is always a sensitive topic. Hopefully, in your discovery call, you gained a sense of the prospect's budget. Rather than presenting a static price, using an interactive pricing table allows you to show the prospect several options and allow them to choose the solution that best fits their needs. Sometimes, their choices will reflect the budget amount they quoted; but other times, when they see what's possible, they may be able to find additional budget money, increasing your sale.
According to DemandGen Report, the timeliness of a vendor's sales response is often the determining factor in winning the deal. Create a personalized proposal in minutes by integrating Qwilr with your CRM.
Summary
Your discovery call is more than an event; it's part of a comprehensive sales process.
Success in the process is the sum of improvements you make, from the discovery call to how you leverage the insights and how you present your pitch.
There's no better way to present a winning message than with Qwilr. Seal every deal with proposals that stand out, deliver world-class buyer experiences, and compel buyers to take action.
