The (Real) Secret to Value Selling: Discovery Done Right

At Minoa we often speak about Value Realization - after a deal is signed, how is the value delivered and tracked?

But what happens before all that?

It starts in the first conversation - with Discovery. And today, too many teams are getting it wrong.

Let’s fix that.

Because poor discovery and qualification ruins win rates - you end up pushing through weak opportunities or dropping before deals close.

🤔 Why Discovery Is Broken (and What That Costs You)

Discovery is often rushed, robotic, or reactive. The result? Reps surface shallow “pain points” but fail to quantify value. That leads to:

• Weak business cases, focussing on the wrong use case and weak quantification of the expected outcome
• Endless deal cycles - as the business initiative a purchase might be tied to is not communicated clear enough to create urgency
• “No decision” as a closed lost reason
  

In today's environment - where CFOs scrutinize every spend - this isn't just a sales issue. It's a growth blocker. Bad discovery can ruin deals 5 calls later if the seller and prospect never discussed the real problem or the expected outcome.

🔑 Value Selling Starts With Value-Driven Discovery

Great discovery doesn't just uncover problems. It exposes prioritized, quantifiable, and solvable business outcomes. Why does that matter?

Because when discovery is rooted in value:

✅ Your follow-up decks write themselves

✅ Building a business case that can convince a buying committee takes hours, not weeks

✅ Champions get the internal buy-in they need as they can communicate outcomes of the initiative more clearly

And most importantly: you win deals your competitors can’t.

🎯 The 3 Core Elements of Value-Driven Discovery

1. Strong Preparation

Go in knowing their industry trends, company goals, and role-based challenges. Go in knowing your own value propositions and have an idea of how they could align with the prospect’s needs. Show up with insights, not just questions.

→ See how Minoa AI can help you build a value driven discovery brief

2. Genuine Curiosity on the Call

Don’t rush the process. Start with priorities, understand current workflows, identify blockers—and always ask “So what?” until you uncover business impact. Set value hooks early during the call, ensuring the prospect is aware of the outcomes your solution could provide for their business.

3. Value-Focused Follow-Ups

After the call, send a summary tied to quantified outcomes. Once the deal is qualified and use cases are clear, share a crisp hypothesis of value case to move fast, create urgency and enable your champion to win internal buy-in fast.

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🧠 The #1 Trait of Great Discovery: Natural Curiosity

Forget rigid scripts. Great discovery feels like a thoughtful business conversation.

The best sellers approach every call with genuine curiosity. They listen with intention. They ask smart follow-ups. They dig deep to find out:

• What’s really blocking progress?
• What’s that costing the business?
• What does success look like, and how will it be measured?

Great sellers don’t stop too soon. They go below the surface.

🚀 Why This Matters Now

B2B buyers are tired of generic discovery. They expect vendors to show up informed, ask smart questions, and quickly connect the dots to business value.

The good news? Doing this well doesn’t take hours. Just 20–30 minutes of prep and real curiosity can change the trajectory of a deal.

Or, if 20-30 minutes is too much to ask, at Minoa we’ve built a tool that can seriously reduce the time for value-focussed discovery.

As one Minoa customer said:

“When we rooted our discovery in value, the rest of our sales process collapsed in the best way. Faster cycles. Bigger deals. Less ghosting.”

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