The reason your discovery calls end without a next step (and the fix)

Key takeaways

• The opener that works anywhere: “Thanks for your time. I know we have 30 minutes. I thought I’d cover one, two, and share this insight. Is there anything else you want to cover?” Purpose, time, value, check.

• Even coffee with a mate needs intention if there’s a business reason. Set it when you book, not at minute 25.

• Structure isn’t rigidity. It’s not what you say, it’s how you deliver it. Tone and pace carry a framework without making it a script.

• Your buyer often doesn’t buy what you sell very often, so they genuinely don’t know the next step. Guiding them to it is the job, not pushiness.

• The next step doesn’t have to be a proposal. An introduction, a resource, or “I’ll find an answer and come back in a week” all count. It has to be specific and agreed.

• Prepare a handful of relevant open questions in advance. Not a shopping list.

It’s not that they can’t have the conversation or they’re not competent enough. They’re not going in with a plan. They’re not going in with a level of intention.

Luigi Prestinenzi, co-founder, Ricavi

A lot of opportunities fall over because there’s no agreed next step.

Luigi Prestinenzi, co-founder, Ricavi

Where do good conversations go wrong?

At the start. Luigi Prestinenzi has seen this in technology companies, professional services firms, and banks, and Regan Barker confirms it from the inside of one. The problem isn’t ability. It’s that the seller never decided what the conversation was for. Regan gets asked constantly how to turn a coffee with a mate into an opportunity. Her answer is that you decide before you book it, because 25 minutes into a 30-minute catch-up is a terrible time to say “oh, by the way.”

The conference story makes the point bluntly. Asked what to do without time to prepare, the chief executive in the room said not to show up. Regan agrees. If you can’t spend five minutes, you’re wasting two people’s time, and time is the asset you’re asking for.

What does intention sound like?

Simple and honest. Luigi’s opener is a sentence he can say in his sleep. Thank you for the time. Here’s what I’d like to cover in it. Here’s the insight I brought. Is there anything you want to add? Purpose, time, value, and a check. It works for a new relationship and for someone in your inner circle you’re hoping might refer you. The intent for that meeting still gets set when it’s arranged.

People push back that this sounds rigid. Luigi’s response is that delivery is the variable, not the structure. Regan’s example is a young founder worried about being taken seriously without sounding salesy. The answer was to be herself, inside a light frame.

Why is the next step the part everyone drops?

Because it feels like the salesy bit. Luigi’s audits say otherwise: calls with a great conversation and no agreed action are where opportunities quietly die. Buyers who don’t buy this thing often genuinely don’t know what happens next, and guiding them is what a professional does. The next step can be small. Connect them with someone. Send the insight you mentioned. Promise to go away and come back with an answer in a week. What it can’t be is nothing.

Questions this episode answers

How should every sales meeting end?

With a specific next step both sides have agreed to. A date, an action, and an owner, confirmed before anyone hangs up.

How do you set intention at the start of a sales call?

Thank them, name the time available, list the one or two things you’d like to cover, mention the insight you’ve brought, and ask if there’s anything else. Thirty seconds, done.

Does a structured conversation sound salesy?

Only if it’s delivered like a script. Tone, pace, and authenticity carry a light structure, and a prepared seller reads as respectful of the buyer’s time.