I reviewed 15 Discovery recordings this week from a client. Average rep talk
time: 72%. Average prospect engagement: "Low/Polite." Conversion to Demo:
24%.
The Diagnosis I sent to the VP: Your reps are acting like
journalists. They ask, "What keeps you up at night?" and "Can you tell me more
about that?"
In 2026, prospects don't want to teach us their business. They want us to tell
them where they are bleeding. If the prospect isn't uncomfortable by minute 10,
the deal is already dead.
The Directive: Move from "Interrogation" to "The Negative
Hypothesis."
We ran a 48-hour pilot using the Hypothesis Strike method.
Pilot Result: Discovery-to-Demo conversion jumped from
24% to 61%.
1. The "Negative assumption" Opener: Stop asking "How do you
do X?" Assume they are doing it wrong and state the consequence.
-
The Script: "Based on your team size and the tech you're
running, I'm assuming your data sync is lagging by at least 3 hours. Usually,
that means your AEs are calling leads that have already been touched by
marketing. Am I far off, or is that the current bottleneck?"
2. The "Loss-Aversion" Pivot: Stop selling the "Gain." Sell
the "Leak."
-
The Script: "If we don't plug that 3-hour lag, you’re
looking at a 15% drop in speed-to-lead. In your market, that’s roughly $40k
in lost pipeline every month. Is the team okay with that 'tax' for now?"
3. The "Conflict" Qualifier: If they say "It's not a big
deal," don't move to a demo. End the call.
-
The Script: "If that $40k leak isn't a priority to fix
this quarter, a demo of our sync tool would be a waste of your time. Should
we reconnect when the stakes are higher?"
The Transformation: One rep used this "Negative assumption"
yesterday. The prospect stopped leaning back and started sketching their
internal workflow on the screen share to prove the rep was right.
The "Discovery" turned into a "Strategy Session."
The Bottom Line: Discovery isn't about finding "pain." It’s
about creating tension between where they are and where they
should be.
Stop asking questions. Start making bets.
Want this installed in your team? Let’s talk.
Alan "Modern Seller" Ruchtein.
