Guiding questions for business insights.
15 min
- The Discovery Script is a guide for understanding business needs and decision-making processes during research conversations. - It includes various questions categorized into Introduction, Workflow, Pain & Urgency, Buying, and BANT Framework to facilitate discussions. - The goal is to uncover insights that help tailor solutions to the client's specific challenges and urgency.
1. Small Business Owner 2. IT Manager 3. Marketing Director
Discovery Script / Questions Playbook
💡 This is not a checklist; the questions below are designed to guide conversations toward understanding the business impact. Your goal is to uncover critical insights about their needs, urgency, and decision-making process. Use unscripted follow-up questions as needed to clarify the following points:
- Why are they considering a change? (What’s the true problem with their current setup?)
- Why are they solving it now? (Why is it urgent?)
- How are they doing things currently? (What’s their current workflow or solution?)
- How will they evaluate a solution? (What are their criteria for success?)
Introduction Questions
🚦 “I’m with the business team here. My job today is to understand why you are exploring solutions and how we might be able to help solve your business challenge. If it makes sense, we’ll schedule a technical demo after our conversation. But first, could you walk me through your current situation and what has driven your interest in making a change?”
🚦 “Can you share what brought you to explore this solution?”
🚦 “How did you hear about us, and what prompted you to reach out?”
🚦 “I have two questions to start: 1. Why did you reach out to us? 2. How are you currently managing this problem?”
🚦 “What’s happening at your company that has you exploring a solution like this?”
🚦 “When someone books a meeting with me, they usually fall into one of two categories: they either have a clear challenge and know exactly how they want to solve it, or they have a challenge but are open to different approaches. Which one sounds more like you?”
Workflow Questions
👨💻 “Which [tech stack] are you currently using?”
👨💻 “What [category] tools management systems are you using?”
👨💻 “Can you walk me through the teams involved in managing your [task] and how they collaborate?”
👨💻 “What’s your experience with the tools you're currently using, and how does that compare with the rest of your team?”
Pain & Urgency Questions
🤕 “What’s wrong with how things are currently being done?”
🤕 “This seems like it’s been an issue for a while. Why are you looking to solve it now?”
🤕 “Is this a directive from leadership to find a solution, or is it based on your own research?”
🤕 “What’s your deadline for resolving this problem? Why is that timeframe important?”
🤕 “I want to ensure we’re aligned on urgency—by when do you need a solution in place, and why?”
🤕 “You just mentioned [specific pain point]. Why is that a top priority?”
🤕 “Who else within your company is experiencing this pain?”
Buying Questions
💸 “How does this solution align with what’s important to your leadership or team right now?”
💸 “Do you foresee any resistance from colleagues or leadership when proposing this solution?”
💸 “Given today’s scrutiny around purchases, how can we tie this solution to one of your company’s top priorities? Which company priority does this align with, and who’s responsible for its success?”
💸 “Where are you currently in the evaluation process?”
BANT Framework
✅ 1. Need
- Why are you considering a change?
- Why are you evaluating this particular solution?
- Dig deeper into:
- Greenfield or Brownfield: Are you starting from scratch, or are you migrating from existing infrastructure?
- Are you visualizing existing infrastructure or building something new?
- Are you looking at other solutions right now?
✅ 2. Authority
- What’s your role in the decision-making process?
- Who will be the primary users of this solution?
- Who will sign off on this decision, and from which department?
✅ 3. Timeline
- Why is this change needed now?
- What’s your target timeline for implementation—this quarter, next, or later?
✅ 4. Budget
- How are budgets typically approved for purchases like this?
- Do you have an existing budget for tools, or will you need to request approval? Who should approve it, and how?
Handling Objections
🚫 Technical Questions
- Response: “That’s a great question! I’ll take note of all your technical questions and ensure we cover them in the technical demo. Are there any others?”
- When they’re satisfied, shift back to a business question from above.
🚫 “I Just Want to See the Product”
- Response: “No problem, we can do that. I’m not technical, but I can provide a high-level walkthrough of the solution and save your technical questions for a deeper dive. Can I ask what specific workflow you’re hoping to improve with this solution?”
- From here, you can give a short, 5-10 minute demo, incorporating discovery questions throughout the session.