Our founder used to over prepare or under prepare. Forty minutes reading LinkedIn and old emails, or nothing at all because the day got away from her. Neither worked.
Here is what she does now.
The Routine
- 5 minutes: the brief. Every morning she gets a short brief for each meeting. Who she is meeting. What she should know. One thing to do. One thing to avoid. That last line is the one that saves deals. “Do not open with the product. She processes decisions through her team, so lead with adoption.”
- 5 more minutes, only for high stakes calls: rehearse. She role plays the hardest part of the conversation against an AI version of the buyer. Usually it is the price objection or the “we already have a tool for this” moment. She runs it twice and tries a different answer the second time.
- After the call: review, do not write. The follow up is drafted for her. She edits it and sends it. No blank page.
- Fridays: 15 minutes on objections. She looks at the new objections from the week and decides whether her answer or the playbook needs to change.
Less to Read, Not More
David Bush of BDR.ai asked the right question when our founder joined him on his podcast, Turn More Conversations Into Customers: AI Coaching for Modern Sales Teams: does all this AI just create more stuff to read? It does if you let it. The rule is that every output has to change her next move. If it does not, she does not need it.
Try this: for your next three high value calls, cap prep at ten minutes. Five to read, five to rehearse. Then judge the calls, not the prep.
Read the full story in Why Sales Teams Lose Deals They Were Close to Winning.
Learn more about Dextego, Influence Coaching for sales teams, at dextego.com. Explore AI powered prospecting and business development with David Bush at BDR.ai.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long should a sales rep prepare for a call?
For important calls, about ten minutes: five to read a short buyer brief and five to rehearse the hardest moment of the conversation.
What should a pre call buyer brief include?
Who you are meeting, what you should know, one thing to do, and one thing to avoid. Keep it short enough to read in five minutes.