An early discovery call can lose its value before the demo starts.

The founder asks a few broad questions, hears that the product is interesting, then spends the remaining 20 minutes explaining features.

The call ends with: “Send me some information.”

That is not a bad conversation, but it is an incomplete one.

Before you show the product, aim to understand five things:

1. Current workflow: How is the problem handled today? Are there any gaps? 2. Cost: What does that create in time, money, risk or missed revenue? 3. Priority: Why is this worth changing now, if at all? 4. Decision: Who else would need to care before anything changes? 5. Next move: What would a sensible next step need to prove?

The practical difference is stark.

“That is interesting” tells you the buyer is polite.

“Our service director has asked us to reduce this before the next renewal cycle, and they need to see whether it integrates with the current workflow” tells you what to do next.

For the next five calls, write down your hypothesis before the conversation: who has the problem, why it matters and what you expect the next step to be.

Afterwards, record what the buyer actually confirmed, challenged or changed.

That turns discovery into a learning process rather than a succession of demos.

Which part of a first call is hardest for your team: getting past the current workflow, establishing impact, finding the decision owner or agreeing the next move?