Key Takeaway
- Use these discovery questions to uncover prospect needs and drive deals forward
- Revenuegrid can automate the capture of these insights in your CRM
- Top-performing reps ask 39% more questions during discovery calls
- Effective discovery questions improve win rates by 20-30%
- Always end discovery calls with clear next steps and follow-up plans
For B2B sales teams and revenue operations leaders, having the right questions is critical to improving pipeline visibility, CRM adoption, and forecasting accuracy. These questions are tailored for teams navigating complex sales cycles and large buying committees.
What Are Sales Discovery Questions?
Sales discovery questions are open-ended inquiries specifically designed to uncover a prospect’s pain points, goals, challenges, decision-making processes, and organizational dynamics during initial sales conversations. These strategic questions help you understand your prospect’s situation, identify opportunities, and position your solution effectively.
Discovery questions serve as the foundation of successful B2B sales conversations. They enable you to move beyond surface-level discussions and uncover the deeper insights needed to create compelling, personalised proposals that resonate with your prospect’s specific needs.
Why Are Discovery Calls Important?
With 96% of prospects conducting independent research before ever engaging with a sales representative, and 71% of prospects actually preferring independent research over conversations with sales professionals, the opening moments of a discovery call represent one of the few opportunities for you to demonstrate genuine differentiation.
Discovery calls are your chance to:
- Build rapport and establish trust with new prospects
- Identify pain points and business challenges
- Understand decision-making processes and stakeholders
- Qualify opportunities and prioritise your time
- Position your solution as the ideal fit
Types of Sales Discovery Questions
Research demonstrates that teams employing open-ended questions consistently achieve win rates 20-30% higher than those relying on closed-ended approaches, because open questions uncover priorities, emotional drivers, and decision criteria that simple yes-or-no questions completely miss.
Here are the main types of discovery questions you should use:
| Question Type | Purpose | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Open-ended | Encourage detailed responses and uncover insights | “How is your business performing this year?” |
| Probing | Dig deeper into specific areas of interest | “What’s holding you back from reaching your goals?” |
| Qualifying | Determine fit and decision-making authority | “What kind of budget are you working with?” |
| Situational | Understand current state and context | “Can you describe your working process?” |
Every B2B sales professional needs to have a comprehensive repertoire of questions to ask customers throughout the sales process.
Well-researched questions consistently accelerate deal cycles and improve conversion rates. This applies especially to new customers you engage with.
You should always be questioning the questions that you want to use to discover which work best. The best questions will work in any sales environment and we have our favourites just like any other business team.
Rapport-Building Questions
How is your business doing at the moment?
Times are tough right now and people appreciate empathy. Use this to your advantage and ask this question to build rapport with your target. Not only will you engage with them on a personal level, thus building trust, you may also discover information that you can use to your advantage during further negotiations.
Can you describe your business in your own words?
Similarly to the previous question you should use this technique to put your prospect at ease, so use it at the start of your negotiation. People love to talk about themselves and their work. Make sure you’re taking notes about what they say that you can use to your advantage down the sales pipeline.
Problem Identification Questions
Why is your current product not working for you?
If a customer comes to you to replace a product ask them why it’s not working for them. It’s important to understand what they’ve been accustomed to and what they’ll expect from your product in turn. Should you use this question just don’t come across as too negative and criticise your competitor overmuch.
What’s holding you back from reaching your goals?
Once you know your customer’s targets you can inquire about whether or not they’re meeting them. If not, find out why, and consider how you can either offer a different product or tweak your current offering to help them reach their goal. Be ready to offer a tailor made solution to any issue they might have.
What are your biggest pain points right now?
Everybody working in sales knows about pain points. We all know that people need products because of them and that salespeople are always looking to identify them. Therefore be upfront and ask your prospects what theirs are, you might be surprised by just how much people appreciate honesty.
Process Understanding Questions
Can you describe your working process?
This is a good question to ask as not only will it make your current negotiation easier it will also potentially identify other pain points you can exploit. Questioning your prospect about their process should unveil areas you can potentially offer products for. Remember, always think about your next sale during each and every negotiation.
What targets or metrics do you work towards?
Most people working in direct B2B sales have targets to meet or metrics to work under so ask your prospect what theirs are. For B2B sales teams, capturing these metrics is essential for accurate forecasting. With Revenuegrid’s Activity Capture, your team can log and analyse these details automatically, ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.
Budget and Authority Questions
What kind of budget are you working with?
You should be careful asking this question but it’s also a good way to gauge whether the negotiation should go further. Your prospect might not be able to afford your product at all, so why waste your valuable time? Alternatively, you might be able to offer a discount based on their budget.
What is your decision-making process?
Everyone has their own way of coming to a decision so this is a good question to ask. Remember, most people make the decision to buy a product based on emotional not logical impulses. This question helps to expose the emotional impulses that compel them to make a sales decision.
Priority and Urgency Questions
Why is this your priority right now?
This question might appear open-ended but don’t be fooled, this is a good question to ask specifically about your product. By asking why your product is a priority you seize the initiative. What’s more, your product might be such a priority to your prospect that you can consider increasing the price.
Why is this a low priority right now?
If your prospect responds and says that your product is actually a low priority then don’t despair. Use this to your advantage, by asking this question you can discover how you can make compromises to secure a sale. Be direct and don’t be afraid of pushing a little here.
Competitive Intelligence Questions
Are you speaking with any of our competitors right now?
This is certainly a bold question to ask your prospect but it’s very effective. If they answer that they’re not you can push a little harder with your discussion to secure a sale faster. If they tell you the competitors they’re talking with then alter your pitch to compensate, just don’t trash talk too much.
Relationship Building Questions
Are you attending any events this year?
This question helps you understand your prospect’s networking activities and industry involvement. Learning about the events your prospect attends gives you insight you can use to your benefit and potential opportunities for future engagement.
Next Steps and Follow-up Questions
What needs to be your next step?
When you’re wrapping up your first sales call with a prospect ask them what they expect the next step to be. Customers like to feel that they control the sales process, this question allows them to direct it. If they’re not ready to move forward this question also gives you more information to use to counteract their decision.
Is there anything we haven’t covered that you’d like to discuss?
At the end of your first negotiation with a new customer always ask them this question. Nobody’s perfect, it’s possible that you missed something during your discussion. Asking this question gives you a chance to close a deal when you might have missed it and sets you up well for a return call.
How to Use Sales Discovery Questions Effectively
Research shows top-performing representatives ask 39% more questions than their peers during discovery calls, and these calls average 76% longer than average calls. Here’s how to maximise your discovery effectiveness:
- Prepare thoroughly: Research your prospect’s company, industry, and recent news before the call
- Listen actively: Focus on understanding, not just waiting for your turn to speak
- Ask follow-up questions: Dig deeper when you hear something interesting or concerning
- Take detailed notes: Capture insights that will inform your proposal and future conversations
Sequence strategically: Start with rapport-building questions before moving to more direct inquiries
Best Practices for Sales Discovery Calls
To maximise the effectiveness of your discovery calls, follow these proven best practices:
- Set clear expectations: Let prospects know the call’s purpose and duration upfront
- Create a comfortable environment: Build rapport before diving into business questions
- Use the 80/20 rule: Listen 80% of the time, speak 20%
- Avoid leading questions: Let prospects share their perspective without bias
- Confirm understanding: Summarise what you’ve heard to ensure accuracy
- End with clear next steps: Always establish what happens after the call
All of these questions will significantly improve your closing rate and boost your bottom line. If we can add one more piece of advice it would be to always be bold. Don’t be afraid of being direct with your prospect and don’t be afraid of taking risks either.
Remember the old Latin proverb ‘audentes Fortuna iuvat’, which means ‘fortune favours the bold.’ Be bold enough to try new techniques and to push the envelope whenever you’re engaged in a new sales negotiation. Also, be as personable and empathetic as possible, so when you’re engaged in your first negotiation with a new customer take notes for the next conversation and learn as much about them as possible.
What are the 5 W questions in sales?
The 5 W questions in sales are: Who (decision makers), What (needs and challenges), When (timeline and urgency), Where (location and scope), and Why (motivations and pain points). These fundamental questions help you gather comprehensive information about your prospect’s situation and requirements.
What are the 4 phases of customer discovery?
The 4 phases of customer discovery are: 1) Preparation (researching the prospect and planning questions), 2) Rapport building (establishing trust and connection), 3) Information gathering (asking discovery questions and listening actively), and 4) Qualification (determining fit and next steps). Each phase builds upon the previous one to create a comprehensive understanding of your prospect.
How long should a discovery call last?
A typical discovery call should last 45-60 minutes for complex B2B sales. This allows sufficient time to build rapport, ask comprehensive questions, and qualify the opportunity thoroughly. However, the length may vary based on the complexity of your solution and the prospect’s availability.
When should I schedule a discovery call?
Schedule a discovery call after initial contact but before presenting your solution. It typically occurs after a prospect has shown interest through marketing activities, referrals, or cold outreach, but before you invest time in creating a detailed proposal or demonstration.
Want to see how these questions work in practice and how Revenuegrid can help you capture insights automatically?
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