DISCOVERY CALL FRAMEWORK
The Pain Funnel · Transformation vs. Service Gate · Qualification · Documentation
THE PURPOSE OF DISCOVERY
Discovery has two objectives:
- Qualify the opportunity: Is this a real deal with budget, authority, need, and timeline? Or is this a fishing expedition?
- Position ORIGIN: By the time discovery ends, the prospect should understand that their cause for change requires integration — not another vendor. Discovery is not an interrogation. It’s a strategic conversation that reveals pain and positions the solution simultaneously.
THE PAIN FUNNEL
Every discovery conversation should drill from surface-level symptoms to root causes:
Level 1 · Surface Problem
What the prospect says they need. Usually a symptom, not the real problem.
EXAMPLE
“We need a new website.” / “We need to rebrand.” / “Our marketing isn’t working.”
Ask: “What’s driving the need for this right now? What changed?”
Level 2 · Business Impact
How the surface problem affects business outcomes. This is where real pain lives.
EXAMPLE
“We’re losing deals to competitors who look more professional.” / “Our sales team has no qualified leads.” / “Investors aren’t confident in our brand.”
Ask: “What is this costing you? Revenue? Market share? Time?”
Level 3 · Root Cause
The structural reason behind the business impact. This is what ORIGIN fixes.
EXAMPLE
“Our brand, marketing, and technology are managed by three different vendors who don’t talk to each other.” / “We had a consultant deliver a strategy two years ago but nobody executed it.”
Ask: “Who owns the end-to-end outcome today? Strategy, brand, and digital — who connects them?”
Level 4 · Urgency
EXAMPLE
“We’re launching a new project in 4 months.” / “We’re preparing for IPO by Q3.” / “The board is asking for a transformation roadmap.”
Ask: “What happens if this doesn’t get solved in the next 6 months?”
Level 5 · Budget & Authority
Who makes the decision and is the money committed?
Ask: “Who else needs to be part of this decision?” and “Is there an allocated budget for this initiative, or is that part of what we’d need to help build the case for?”
DECISION GATE: TRANSFORMATION OR SERVICE?
After the Pain Funnel, determine the route before qualifying further:
Route to Transformation if:
- Root cause reveals multiple interconnected problems (brand + digital + CRM + marketing)
- Client has no internal capability or it’s fundamentally broken
- The cause for change is structural (corporatization, IPO, national mandate)
- Budget signals Growth Tier ($60K+)
- Client describes outcomes, not deliverables (“we need to grow” vs. “we need a website”)
Route to Service if:
- Root cause is a single identifiable problem (website, brand, CRM)
- Client has internal capability or an agency handling other functions
- Budget is project-specific and bounded
- Client describes a deliverable, not an outcome
- Timeline is short (3–6 months)
THE BRIDGE
Once the route is determined, bridge to ORIGIN’s value: “Based on what you’ve described, the core challenge is [restate root cause]. What we’ve found with organizations in a similar position — NHC, Dar wa Emaar — is that the gap isn’t any single vendor’s failure. It’s the absence of integration. That’s exactly what ORIGIN does. Let me explain how we’d approach this for you specifically.”
KEY DISCOVERY QUESTIONS BY ICP
Real Estate
- “How many projects do you currently have and how are you managing brand consistency across them?”
- “What does your sales and marketing infrastructure look like? CRM? Lead generation? Attribution?”
- “Where do you want the company to be in three years? Is there a capital markets moment in that picture, an IPO, a merger, an acquisition?”
- “Who’s currently handling branding and digital? Internal team? Agency? Multiple vendors?”
- “What’s the gap between your development speed and your marketing speed?”
ICT
- “How do your target customers currently understand your product? Is the value proposition landing?”
- “How are you educating your market? Do your clients understand what digital transformation or AI means for their business?”
- “What does your growth engine look like today? Organic? Paid? Partner-driven?”
- “What’s the one metric that keeps your leadership up at night?”
Public Sector
- “How are you translating the national vision into public-facing communications across initiatives?”
- “How many agencies or teams are creating content on your behalf? How do you maintain consistency?”
- “What does your governance structure look like for marketing and communications?”
- “Is there a consultant who delivered the strategy? Who’s executing it?”
Consultancy
- “You’ve delivered the strategy — who’s executing it for the client?”
- “Are you seeing execution drift from your original strategic intent?”
- “Would it help to have a partner who translates your strategy into execution-ready briefs and governs quality on your behalf?”
QUALIFICATION: ADVANCE OR WALK AWAY
Qualify against these criteria:
- Transformation mandate: Is the organization undergoing real change, or maintaining status quo?
- Executive sponsor: Is there a C-level or VP-level champion who can make decisions and allocate budget?
- Budget reality: Is there committed or allocable budget that matches ORIGIN’s engagement level?
- Timeline pressure: Is there urgency (IPO, project launch, board mandate), or is this exploratory?
- Clear vision: Does the organization know where it wants to go, even if it doesn’t know how to get there?
- Execution gap: Are they currently fragmented across vendors, or struggling with strategy-to-execution translation?
THE RULE
If the Pain Funnel reached Level 3 with the root cause named, budget and authority are surfaced at Level 5, and the qualification score is 70 percent or more → Advance to proposal. If 2–3 are met → Nurture (stay in touch). If 0–1 are met → Walk away. Not every conversation is a deal.
MEETING DOCUMENTATION & CLIENT BRIEF
Every discovery call or meeting must be documented. This is non-negotiable.
Step 1: Meeting Recording
- All meetings (virtual and physical): Loom Notetaker is the standard recording tool. Every meeting must be recorded via Loom Notetaker. Loom link saved to the relevant Asana task.
Step 2: ORIGIN Client Brief Preparation
After discovery, prepare the ORIGIN Client Brief. This is a client-facing document that:
- Summarizes the cause for change, challenges, and ambitions discussed
- Confirms the engagement model recommendation
- Includes scope of work checklist
- Captures budget range and timeline
- References all meeting recordings
- Includes a “What Success Looks Like” section — the client’s own success criteria and KPIs confirmed in writing
The Client Brief is shared with the client alongside the meeting recordings as a recap and summary. The client reviews and signs off to confirm mutual understanding before the proposal is built.
Step 3: Proposal Building Handover
Once the Client Brief is signed by the client, it is handed to Operations with all supporting details for proposal building:
- Signed Client Brief (OneDrive link)
- All Loom Notetaker recording links
- Pipedrive deal link updated with current stage
- All supporting documents (RFP, client deck, brand assets, references)
- Growth Team rationale for recommended engagement model
Operations reviews the handover package. Ops has authority to reject incomplete briefs. Incomplete handovers delay proposals and risk losing the client.
Step 4: Deal Won — Growth Team to OS Team handover
Once the client signs the proposal and the deal is won, a comprehensive BD to Operations Handover Debrief is completed. This is an extended model of the Client Brief but with all internal details:
- Everything from the Client Brief PLUS:
- Internal politics and dynamics BD picked up
- Client tone and energy assessment
- Competitive intelligence (who else pitched)
- Full stakeholder map with decision-making dynamics
- Any commitments or promises made during the sales process
- Budget details and phasing preferences
- Recommended POD composition and Team Lead notes
IMPORTANT
This document is CONFIDENTIAL and internal only. It is never shared with the client. It ensures Operations can hit the ground running without re-asking questions BD already answered.
→ Next: Section 03
Objection Handling