The 7-Step Formula to Take Control of the Discovery Meeting

Most discovery meetings are completely out of your control.

You walk in with good intentions, maybe even a loose agenda. But within minutes, the prospect is driving the conversation, and by the time you leave you have no idea if you actually have a shot at winning the business.

Here’s what I’ve learned after years of coaching insurance professionals: The second you let the prospect control the discovery meeting, you’ve already lost.

And it’s not just the meeting itself. It’s what comes after. The proposal you spent hours crafting? It’s missing the mark entirely.

The 7 P’s: Your Formula for Controlling Every Discovery Meeting

1. Promise – Set expectations right away. What’s the agenda? What’s your sales process? You’re establishing yourself as the guide from minute one.

2. Players – Who’s actually making this decision? If you leave without knowing who the decision makers are, you’re setting yourself up to get ghosted.

3. Power Four – Ask the right questions:

• What’s your #1 goal right now?
• What would it mean if you could achieve it?
• What’s your biggest challenge keeping you from it?
• How is that affecting you? These aren’t surface-level questions. They get the prospect talking about what actually matters to them.

4. Process – Teach them what you believe. Explain your process in a way that connects directly to their challenges and goals. This is how you stand apart.

5. Proof – Share case studies. Give examples of clients who’ve had success working with you. Social proof matters.

6. Proceed – Before you leave, book the next step. Always book a meeting from a meeting. No next step locked in? That’s why prospects go dark.

7. Pivot – The step most people skip, and it’s costing them deals. Ask: “If we can help you overcome these challenges and achieve your goals, is there any reason you couldn’t do business with us?”

Get the objections out now. Not three weeks later when you find out they’ve had a 29-year relationship they never mentioned.

Bonus: Post-call follow-up – I use Fathom to record every discovery meeting (with permission). It lets me stay 100% present in the conversation, and I can have a solid follow-up email written in 60 seconds.

What You Can Do Right Now

Audit your last three discovery meetings. Did you follow a process, or did the prospect run the show?

Look at your last proposal. How much time did you spend making it pretty vs. nailing the message?

Get access to AI tools. Start using them to make your process faster and more effective.

Your time should be spent in front of prospects, not buried in slide decks.

AI isn’t the thought leader. It’s the thought partner. You’re the thought leader.

If you want help building a process that actually works, hit me up. Let’s go create an effective sales process and make it a hell of a lot faster and easier.