In the world of sales, few moments are as critical as the discovery call. This first conversation with a potential customer sets the foundation for the entire sales journey. When done right, it’s the springboard to a successful close; done poorly, it can shut the door on opportunity, so the stakes are high. 

This is your company’s chance to uncover needs, build trust, and position your solution as the perfect fit. Fortunately, sales training and dedicated practice can equip anyone with vital skills for effective discovery calls. Read on to learn actionable strategies for excellent calls, and how AI-powered sales training can elevate every sales rep’s discovery call game. 

Common Challenges in Discovery Calls

Here are some of the common challenges that undermine effective discovery calls:

• Lack of preparation: Walking into a call without a clear strategy, full knowledge of the product, or understanding of the prospect’s context.
• Misreading the prospect: Failing to pick up on verbal and non-verbal cues, such as tone, hesitation, or enthusiasm, can derail a conversation.
• Information overload: Overwhelming the prospect with too much information, rather than focusing on uncovering their specific needs.
• Poor soft skills. Having trouble with eye contact, tone of voice, and body language makes it hard to build rapport and establish a trust connection with the prospect.

How to Conduct a Winning Discovery Call: The Do’s and Don’t’s

Mastering a discovery call means balancing preparation, empathy, and strategy. Here’s a guide to the key behaviors that can make or break the discovery call.

The Path to Success: Do:

Research the prospect thoroughly before the call by looking at their social pages and LinkedIn profiles. This way, reps can familiarize themselves with the prospect’s interests, recent posts, and scope of work.

Ask open-ended questions like “What’s the biggest challenge your team is currently facing?” or “How are you currently approaching that issue?” These types of inquiries invite prospects to share their thoughts, priorities, and challenges, which lays the groundwork for demonstrating how your solution can provide value. 

Practice active listening, by paraphrasing their statements and repeating them back, such as “So I understand that your major concern is XYZ.” This not only confirms understanding, but also shows that the sales rep is paying attention.

Use data or examples to build credibility, showcase expertise, and help the sales rep to stand out as a trusted advisor. Backing up points with relevant use cases, specific ROI numbers, and customer success stories helps the pitch resonate with the prospect’s situation

Avoid These Pitfalls: Don’t:

Interrupt or dominate the conversation. Discovery calls are about the prospect, not the company or the rep. 

Deliver generic pitches. A one-size-fits-all pitch is a surefire way to lose interest. 

End the call without a clear call to action like scheduling a follow-up or sending additional resources. Concluding without clearly defining the next steps can leave the prospect uncertain about what comes next. 

AI Training Levels the Playing Field

AI-based training tools (AI role plays) can turbocharge discovery calls by providing timely, personalized feedback that guides sales reps to improve their soft skills and helps them prepare for every eventuality. Detailed reports identify missed opportunities and reveal areas for improvement. Because the evaluation engine is consistent and unbiased, reps are more likely to trust its advice. 

AI-powered role plays allow sales reps to practice discovery calls in a low-pressure environment, as often as they like. By rehearsing realistic conversations, sales reps can refine their ability to read cues, build rapport, and pivot as needed. 

How Second Nature Helps Sales Reps Master Discovery Calls

Role playing is an incredibly effective way to learn, and Second Nature’s AI-powered platform makes them available to your reps at any time, customized to your company’s specific circumstances. Check out these leading features: 

• Quick and easy role play builder. Create realistic role plays in minutes from existing resources, generating a full library in days.
• Comprehensive, objective feedback including total score, skills analysis, and actionable next steps, ensuring consistent training for the entire salesforce. 
• Soft skills coaching. Are your reps making enough eye contact? Moving too much? Personalized feedback guides your reps to improve hard-to-teach soft skills.
• On-demand, always-available training. Reps can practice and learn in a supportive, risk-free environment, anywhere and at any time.
• Customizable role play partners. Sales enablement can choose the role play avatars to fit your scenario, including the language, look, cultural background, and personality, to make each conversation realistic. 

Ready to take your reps’ sales performance to the next level? Try Second Nature’s AI-powered sales training software today.