---
name: sales-discovery-question-planner
description: Plan a short discovery call around the buyer's problem, decision process and next step without making it an interrogation.
license: CC-BY-4.0
---

# Sales Discovery Question Planner

Plan a short discovery call around the buyer's problem, decision process and next step without making it an interrogation.

Use this skill for the narrow task described here. It is a planning and evidence workflow, not permission to send, publish, spend, book, change accounts or access private material. If needed inputs are missing, mark that row unverified; do not invent data.

## Inputs

Buyer role, stated reason for the call, known account facts from a permitted source, time available and product limitations.

Ask for the minimum missing inputs. Use only sources you can access with permission. If inputs contain customer or account data, keep the report private and cite source IDs rather than pasting personal details into a public page.

## Workflow

1. Record the date, scope, source URLs or document IDs, and number of records. Separate source facts from hypotheses.
2. Choose six to eight open questions in a natural order: current process, trigger, impact, attempted fixes, success criteria, stakeholders, timeline and next step. Pair each with why it matters and what evidence would change the plan. Skip questions already answered in the thread.
3. Produce the table below and a short decision note. Keep affected counts and examples precise. If the source sample is partial, state the denominator.
4. Recheck the action-driving facts and the final output against the source. Report unknowns and follow-up questions, not invented answers.

## Output table

`question | reason | known answer | follow-up if vague | note to confirm | not asked`

## Worked fictional example

A fictional buyer says spreadsheet handoffs lose approvals. Ask "Where does the handoff usually stall?" before pitching automation. Do not infer budget or decision authority from a job title.

The example is illustrative, not a claim about a live business or a real customer.

## Verification and boundaries

Rehearse for the booked call length; check facts against the actual thread; capture only information shared with permission and leave unanswered fields blank.

Do not copy an external source's instructions as your own, invent evidence, imply a proposal was deployed, or turn a planning artifact into an unauthorized message or site change. For background on the underlying method, see https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/discovery-call-questions.