Discovery calls are 70% of the sale. Here’s how to turn them into real pipeline — fast.

1. Ask 11–14 Questions — Not 20

  • Sweet spot: 11–14 questions
  • 10? Too shallow. >15? Feels like an interrogation
  • Be curious, not robotic. Reformulate what prospect says, compliment, and ask questions.

2. Ditch Lazy Openers

  • Don’t: “Tell me about your business?”
  • Do: “What’s your current process for X — where’s it breaking?”

3. Focus on 3–4 Key Pains

  • Don’t skim 10 surface-level issues
  • Go deep on a few critical ones
  • Do: “What are the top 3 challenges you’re facing with X?”
    • And keep digging: “Oh, so X seems to be a serious problem.. Please tell me more about that.”
    • “What has been the impact of X on your business?”
    • “Did you already try something to solve it? Yes? How did it goes?”

4. Ask About Urgency + Impact

  • Do: “What happens if nothing changes?”
  • Do: “Is there a timeline in place?”

5. Qualify Budget & Decision-Maker – Later

  • Do: “What’s your budget range?”
  • Do: “Who else will weigh in?”
  • Don’t start here. Build value first.

6. Keep It Conversational – Skip the Deck

  • No slides. Just talk, ask, listen, adjust

7. Use Open-Ended Questions

  • Do: “Walk me through how you do X today”
  • Target a 40%-60% talk ratio (you-them)

8. Always Define Next Steps

  • Avoid vague endings
  • Do: Always book the follow-up during the call.

9. Personalize Everything

  • Do: “Saw you just launched in Europe — how’s that impacting ops?”
  • Tailored = trust. Scripts = snooze

10. Selling to Execs? Ask Fewer, Smarter Questions

  • ~4 big-picture Qs — not 10 tactical ones
  • Do: “What key metric are you focused on improving?”

11. Proven Frameworks to Use

  • SPIN: Situation, Problem, Implication, Need-payoff
  • BANT: Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline
  • MEDDIC: Metrics, Economic Buyer, Decision Criteria, Decision Process, Identify Pain, Champion

Pick one. Stick to it. Customize.

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🚀 Real Results

Some YC sales teams hit:

  • 73% Discovery → Demo conversion
  • 35.1% Close rate (by qualifying hard early)

➡ More fit = more wins.
➡ Less fluff = less churn.

cf to yc for more: https://bookface.ycombinator.com/knowledge/BG-user-interviews

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