TL;DR
That buyer you just called? They answered your questions to ChatGPT three days ago. Every generic question screams: I didn't bother to learn anything about you. Replace basic questions with ones that prove you invested time. Show up prepared, move past the basics, and jump straight to how you can help. The sellers who win aren't the ones with the best pitch. They're the ones so prepared the buyer thinks: Finally, someone who gets it.
The Scene That Plays Out Every Day
Picture this. A seller hops on a discovery call with a new prospect. They open their notebook, pull up their 20-question checklist, and start from the top:
"So, tell me about your company."
"What challenges are you facing?"
"What does your current process look like?"
The buyer sighs. Responses are short. The meeting ends with a polite "we'll be in touch."
Here's what actually happened: that buyer spent 45 minutes answering questions they already answered to ChatGPT three days ago. Questions the seller could have answered themselves with 15 minutes of research. Questions that screamed: I didn't bother to learn anything about you before this call.
The buyer hung up thinking one thing: This person has nothing to offer me.
What Changed & Why It Matters
Five years ago, sellers controlled the information. Buyers needed you to explain how things worked. They relied on your demos, your case studies, your comparisons. Discovery calls existed because they allowed sellers to create enough pain to drive action through problem identification and urgency creation. It was about the seller's agenda, not the buyer's needs.
That world is gone. What used to take months now takes hours, sometimes minutes.
Think about what this means. Before your first call, your buyer has probably:
Asked ChatGPT to compare you to your top three competitors. Read your G2 reviews. Watched your product videos. Built their own evaluation criteria. Drafted questions specifically to test whether you're worth their time.
They arrive at your meeting in late evaluation mode. You show up with your "101 briefing." No wonder deals stall.
The Old Way vs. The New Way
Let's make this concrete. Here's what basic discovery looks like versus what buyer-focused discovery looks like:
Old Way - Seller Focused
Tell me about your company.
I didn't Google you.
None
What are your biggest challenges?
I have no idea what your industry struggles with.
None
New Way - Buyer Focused
I saw you're expanding into three new markets this year. I imagine that might be stretching your team's capacity significantly. How does that land with you?
This person actually researched us.
Based on what we've seen with similar companies, I'd hypothesize you might be experiencing X. Does that resonate?
They understand our world.
I believe you're using [competitor tool]. We've heard some companies struggle with [specific issue]. How does that match your experience?
They're not afraid of honest conversation.
What would success look like for you personally in this project?
They care about me, not just my company.
What have you already learned about solutions like ours?
They respect the work I've already done.
Why "Know Your Buyer" Changes Everything
Here's the secret: the best discovery happens before the call ever starts.
The book dedicates an entire chapter to this called "Know Your Buyer." The idea is simple but powerful: when you deeply research your audience before you meet them, you show up as someone worth talking to.
Think of it as five layers of homework:
Ecosystem Trends
What's happening in their industry? What forces are shaping their market? If you sell to healthcare companies, do you know about the regulatory changes keeping executives up at night? If you sell to retail, do you understand the supply chain pressures they face?
Company Strategy
What did their CEO say in the last earnings call? What's on their "About Us" page? What did their recent press releases announce? A 15-minute search can tell you their priorities, their growth plans, their challenges.
Business Unit & Team Objectives
Who specifically are you meeting with? What does their department care about? A VP of Operations cares about efficiency and cost. A VP of Customer Success cares about retention and satisfaction. Same company, different worlds.
Individual Backgrounds
What's this person's LinkedIn story? Did they just get promoted? Did they come from a competitor? Have they written any posts about their priorities? People love when you notice them.
Social Proof That Fits
Do you have customers in their industry? Similar use cases? Relevant results? Showing up with proof that matters to them specifically beats generic case studies every time.
The Payoff: You Become Worth Talking To
Here's what happens when you do this homework:
Your credibility skyrockets
When you reference their specific situation, they think: "This person gets it." That trust is hard to earn and easy to lose. Starting prepared is starting ahead.
You move past the basics
Nobody wants to spend 30 minutes giving you background you could have found yourself. When you show up with a prepared mind and hypothesis, you can move past basic questions to substantive dialogue that validates and builds on your point of view.
You become memorable
Most sellers ask the same generic questions. You stand out simply by proving you cared enough to prepare.
Workbook: The Pre-Call Audit
Before your next discovery call, run each question through this filter to ensure you are asking buyer-focused questions:
Ask Yourself
If No, Then...
Could the buyer answer my question with a 5-second Google search?
Rephrase as a hypothesis that proves you researched them
Does this question prove I did my homework, or expose that I did not?
Add specific context from their company, industry, or role
Am I asking for my benefit or for theirs?
Reframe to validate or expand on what they already know
Would I be annoyed if someone asked me this question?
Transform it into an insight they have not considered
Have I asked what they have already learned about solutions like ours?
Respect their AI research and build on it
Do I have a hypothesis to test rather than a blank slate to fill?
Prepare a point of view based on similar companies
The Bottom Line
Discovery is not dead, it has evolved. The old discovery was about learning from buyers. The new discovery is about proving you already understand their world. Buyers do not need you to educate them on your product because they have already done that research. What they need is someone who can validate what they have learned, fill the gaps AI could not, help them think through their specific situation, and make them look smart to their boss.
The sellers who win are not the ones with the best pitch. They are the ones who show up so prepared that the buyer thinks: Finally, someone who gets it. That starts before the call with building meaning for your buyer. Research gives you credibility, and the next phase shows you how to translate that credibility into trust, the currency that actually closes deals.