Breaking Down the First Appointment (face-to-face or phone)

Situation: Use your preset discovery questions to understand
their current situation.

Problem: Use your preset discovery questions to understand their
current challenges. Dig deep. Keep asking “why” (in various ways). See
“Digging Deep” module.

Implication: Ask them to explain the magnitude of their need to
their business. What if they did nothing? So what?

Need: Ask them to define their view of their need. Have a
discussion and challenge them. Are they defining a need or a symptom of
a bigger problem? See “Digging Deep” module.

Ideas: Begin to kick around some ideas. You are NOT offering a
firm solution yet.

Timing: Ask them their timing. If they have a firm answer – great
but try to understand why. If not, be a consultant to help them
determine their timing by reverse engineering their timeline.

Hurdles: Probe about the hurdles that may stand in the way.
Budget? Board approval? Other priorities? Other options they have? What
else? This is a critical step that cannot be missed.

55%
15%
15%

Re-state their needs and your ideas. Get their

c

onfirmation that you two organizations conceptually “fit”.
Establish and commit to definitive next actions
All will have a when (date/time), what and who