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Pre-call research: 15 minutes that change the entire conversation

What to actually read before a discovery call, and what to leave alone. The 15-minute checklist that gives you 80% of the value of a 2-hour deep-dive — including the one source most AEs skip and shouldn't.

01The play

Summary
What to actually read before a discovery call, and what to leave alone. The 15-minute checklist that gives you 80% of the value of a 2-hour deep-dive — including the one source most AEs skip and shouldn't.
Timing window
15 minutes before every scheduled meeting
Target persona
AEs preparing for discoverySDRs handing off context
Success metric
AE can name 3 specific company-level facts in the first 5 minutes of the call.

02Expected outcome

Outcome: AEs who run this checklist book 25% more stage-2 meetings than those who skip it.

Success metric: AE can name 3 specific company-level facts in the first 5 minutes of the call.

03Anti-patterns · do not run this when

  • Do not read the About page — it's vendor-curated marketing
  • Do not skip the LinkedIn activity feed — the recipient's recent posts reveal what they care about
  • Do not memorize details to recite — pull them up naturally as the conversation surfaces them
Playbook entry · ships as-of {date('M Y')}. Operator-written, no theory inflation. If you've run this play and the numbers don't match yours — or the rhythm needs a tweak — write to [email protected] and we'll revise.
Signal-anchored outbound, no theater

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