Discovery Call Script (30 minutes)

Goal: understand the problem, its cost, the current process, who decides and what would make them say yes; leave with enough to write a proposal in 20 minutes. Not the goal: demoing every feature or quoting on the spot.

Bring: the Qualification Framework (next file), a notes doc with the headings below, the demo ready but closed.

0. Before the call (10 min)

Look at their website, forms, booking, reviews, social; note 2 observations.
Guess the top two automations from the catalog; keep them to yourself until section 4.
Prepare the ROI sketch (Bonus 7) with placeholders for their numbers.

1. Open (2 min)

"Thanks for making time. Here's how I'd like to use the 30 minutes: first I'd like to understand how {area} works at {business} today and what it costs you when it doesn't. Then I'll show you one thing that's relevant, and we'll decide together whether a proposal makes sense. Sound OK?"

Agreement to the agenda makes the rest easy.

2. Situation (5 min) — "how does it work today?"

"Walk me through what happens when a new {enquiry/ticket/invoice} arrives. From the moment it lands to the moment it's handled."
"Who touches it? How many times a day/week?"
"What tools are involved? (inbox, form, CRM, calendar, spreadsheet, accounting, phone system)"
"Where do things fall through the cracks?"

Draw the process as they speak (Module 11, process mapping). Repeat it back: "So: form → inbox → Dana reads it in the afternoon → replies if it looks serious → adds to a sheet sometimes. Right?"

3. Pain and cost (7 min) — "what does it cost?"

"How many {leads/tickets/invoices} a week, roughly?"
"How long does each take? Who does it, and what's their hourly cost, loaded?"
"What's a {new customer/lost customer/late payment} worth?"
"How many do you think you lose or delay because of this? Gut feel is fine."
"What happens if this stays the same for another year?"
"What have you tried already? Why didn't it stick?"

Do the maths out loud: "So 25 a week × 15 minutes = about 6 hours; at $35 loaded that's around $210 a week, $900 a month, before we count the ones you lose." Let them correct you. Their numbers, corrected by them, are the proposal.

4. Show one thing (6 min)

Pick the single most relevant demo (Module 16). Narrate it in their terms:

"Here's what this would look like for {business}. This is your form. I submit as a customer at 9pm. Within a minute they get this reply in your voice, with your booking link. You get this alert on your phone with the score and why. And here's the sheet with every one logged."

Then ask: "What would you change about that reply?" (They co-design; it becomes theirs.)

5. Decision and constraints (5 min)

"If we did this, who else would need to be involved in the decision?"
"Any tools we'd need access to, and who controls them?"
"Anything that must not happen — e.g. AI never quoting prices, never replying to existing customers?"
"Timeline: is there a reason to have it live before a date?"
"Budget: setups for this are typically in the {range} range plus a monthly fee for {monitoring, tuning, reporting}. Is that within what you'd consider, if the numbers we did hold?"

Asking about budget with a range is respectful and saves both of you a wasted proposal.

6. Close (5 min)

"Here's what I'd propose: I write up exactly what we discussed — the problem, the numbers you gave me, what we'd build, what it costs, and how we make sure nothing goes to your customers without your approval at first. You'll have it by {tomorrow}. If it looks right, we start with a kickoff call and you're live in about {2 weeks}. Does that work?"

Confirm the next step, the date, and who receives the proposal. Book the follow-up call now ("Let's put 15 minutes on {date} to go through it").

7. After the call (30 min)

Fill the Qualification Framework score.
Write the proposal (Module 12 template) using their words and numbers.
Send a 5-line recap email the same day: problem, numbers, what you'll propose, when, next step.

Phrases that help

"Tell me more about that."
"What does that cost you, roughly?"
"If that were solved, what would you do with the time?"
"What would make this a no?"
"I don't know — I'll test it and tell you."