---
tags: Module 7
---
# Do your homework (new)
:::info
**You're in step 1 of a discovery call:** Plan & Research
:::

There are a couple of concepts we're going to repeat consistently throughout the program.
- One of them is to **always** provide value to your future customers.
- Another one: **always** show up prepared.

One of the worst things that can happen to a salesperson is to spend time during a discovery call asking questions that could have been answered by visiting a person's LinkedIn profile or the company website before the call.

You're expected to know how big their company is, what their main competitors are, how long the person has been in the company etc.

## What should I research?

There are 3 things you should research going into a discovery call: the company, the person, their role.

### Company
- How does your target company make money?
- What are some of the current challenges the company is facing?
- What are the company's short- to midterm strategic goals?
- Who are their main competitors?

### Person (your contact)
- Based on their social media profiles, what kind of person do you have in front of you? A career oriented one (can you possible help them get promoted by fixing a key business challenge with your product / service?), a more emotional or a rather numbers driven one?
- Where are they from and where are they located?
- Where did they work before?
- Any hobbies, topics of interest you share and can use to build rapport?

### Role
- What is your contact person’s job title?
- What activities and responsibilities does it come with?
- What challenges may (s)he be dealing with?
- How long have they been in this role?

:::info
**Practical tip:** The idea is to know the basics, but don't overdo it. Discovery call preparation shouldn’t take you an hour. You can find out a lot of valuable information in **10-15 minutes**.
:::

### Where do I find this information?
You know this one...
- The company website
- The company's social media profiles
- Googling the company to find industry news and press
- Your prospect's social media profiles (especially LinkedIn)

Here is a short lesson giving you some guidance and background information.

{%youtube vI202OV3mN4 %}

::: info
**Practical tip:**
Showing up prepared will already separate you from of majority of mediocre salespeople out there.

**Make sure it shows!**

Come to the meeting with 1 or 2 questions based on the research you've done. This way you'll get additional valuable information and show the prospect you've done your research and value their time.

{%youtube LSGnoDzl9xs %}
:::

## Prepare your discovery call template

Once you have done your pre-call research, put together your discovery call template. It serves as your "game plan" on how to get to your objective - either a successfully booked follow-up meeting or a disqualified prospect.

At the end of this module, we are also asking you to put together a discovery call outline (template) for an upcoming call.

**Here is what this outline should contain:**
* High level structure of how you will lead through the call (e.g. intro, agenda, qualification, next steps)
* 1-2 bullet points of research findings you can use for the call opener (small talk)
* List 1-2 bullet points for your agenda
* Write down what it is you want to find out by the END of the meeting. Then, list questions that you want to ask accordingly.
* Make sure you have a short list of situational, pain and impact questions.

:::danger
**What your outline should NOT be like:** A literal script of everything you want to say. Do NOT! It keeps you from actively listening and focusing on the other person.
:::

Below is an example of the one Dom is using at Hyrise (we will share it with you by the end of the module) 😉 :


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