Individual Checklist Free

Discovery Call Checklist

Every question to ask, and every qualifier to confirm, before a discovery call ends — so deals don't stall three weeks later on something nobody asked about.

What's inside

Pre-call prep checklist (company research, role research, hypothesis, objective, agenda)
Opening checklist: agenda confirmation, time box, notes permission, stakeholder check
Pain & impact questions: cost of inaction, quantified impact, who else feels it
Priority & urgency questions: ranking against other initiatives, trigger deadlines
Decision process questions: stakeholders, evaluation steps, realistic timeline
Budget questions: existence, ownership, internal justification path
Competition / alternatives questions including "doing nothing"
Closing-the-call checklist: recap, mutual next step, date/time locked in
Post-call checklist: CRM log, recap email, risk flags on missing qualifiers

Everything to prep, ask, and confirm before a discovery call ends — so the deal doesn't stall three weeks from now on a qualifier nobody asked about. Print this and check it live, on the call.

Before the Call (Prep — 10 minutes)

Reviewed prospect's company: size, industry, recent news/trigger event
Reviewed prospect's role: title, likely KPIs, likely reporting line
Reviewed any prior touches (emails sent, call notes, marketing engagement)
Have a working hypothesis of their pain, written down before the call
Call objective set: qualify only / qualify + book next step / qualify + get access to stakeholders
Agenda for the call prepared and ready to state in the first 2 minutes

Opening (First 5 Minutes)

Stated the agenda and asked for confirmation ("Here's what I'd like to cover — does that work, or is there something more pressing for you?")
Set the time box out loud ("We've got 30 minutes, I'll leave 5 at the end for next steps")
Asked permission to take notes
Confirmed who else, if anyone, should be part of this conversation

Situation Questions (Confirm, Don't Re-Discover)

Confirmed current process/tool/approach for the problem area
Confirmed team size / structure relevant to the problem
Confirmed how long the current approach has been in place

Pain & Impact Questions

Asked what's prompting them to look at this now (why not 6 months ago, why not in 6 months)
Asked what happens if nothing changes (cost of inaction, stated in their words)
Quantified the impact — a number, a percentage, a dollar figure, or a time cost
Identified who else in the business feels this pain besides the person on the call
Asked what they've already tried, and why it didn't fully solve it

Priority & Urgency Questions

Asked where this ranks against their other initiatives this quarter/year
Confirmed a specific trigger or deadline driving urgency (if any)
Asked what happens on their end if this slips another quarter

Decision Process Questions

Identified who else needs to be involved in a decision
Asked how similar decisions have been made at this company before
Asked what the evaluation process typically looks like (trial, pilot, procurement, security review, legal)
Asked about realistic timeline to a decision, not just "when do you want this live"

Budget Questions

Asked whether budget exists for this category, even directionally
Asked who controls that budget if it's not the person on the call
Asked how they'd justify the spend internally (what has to be true for this to get approved)

Competition / Alternatives Questions

Asked what else they're considering, including "doing nothing" or "building it ourselves"
Asked what would make them choose an alternative over you
Asked what's worked or failed with a similar solution in the past

Closing the Call (Last 5 Minutes — Never Skip)

Summarized the pain and impact back to them in their own words and got a verbal "yes, that's right"
Confirmed the mutual next step out loud (not just "I'll follow up")
Put a specific date/time on the next step before hanging up
Confirmed who needs to be on the next call
Asked directly: "Is there anything that would stop this from moving forward that we haven't talked about?"

Immediately After the Call

Logged notes in CRM within 30 minutes, while memory is fresh
Sent a recap email confirming pain, impact, and next step in writing
Flagged any missing qualifier (budget, decision process, timeline) as an open risk, not a "probably fine"
Set a calendar reminder for the agreed next step — don't rely on the prospect to drive it

How to use it

Print it and check items live during the call itself, and never end a discovery call without completing the closing-the-call section, which locks in the next step before you hang up.