PLANNER AND GUIDE

Meeting and call planner

Prepare for a sales conversation that matters. A form to fill in before the meeting, a short guide to completing it, and a worked example.  

 Free ·  A 3-page Word planner and a 15-page PDF guide, sent to your inbox

The question you think of on the way out

Most of us have left a meeting and only then thought of the question we should have asked. Or the person who said little turned out to hold the budget. Or the meeting ended pleasantly, and nobody agreed what happens next.

The planner puts your preparation on paper before the meeting: what you want from it, how you will get there, and where each person in the room stands. It takes 20 to 30 minutes for a first meeting with an account, and about 10 for a follow-up.

What is in it

  • Your objective at 3 levels. Best case, minimum acceptable and worst case, so you know in the room when to push and when to settle for the next step.
  • Expectations, agenda and approach. What the customer wants from the meeting, an agenda they have seen in advance, and who leads each part.
  • Weak points and pitfalls. Where a competitor is stronger, with an honest answer ready, and the mistakes that cost you ground in the meeting.
  • Strengths and points to draw out. The questions that let the customer see the value of your strengths for themselves.
  • The people. One row for each attendee: supporter, neutral or blocker, the problem they need solved, their likely objections, and who asks them what.
  • The guide. Field-by-field instructions, a check for the day before, and a worked example for a fictitious Finnish company.

Who is it for

Three readers with the same problem and different constraints.

The solopreneur

You lead every meeting yourself, and nobody checks your preparation. The planner does that job for you. 

The founder

You still lead the important meetings, and colleagues not attend with you. The planner gives everyone in the room the same brief. 

The sales leader

Ask the team to complete a planner before key meetings, then use it in deal reviews and 1:1s. 

The quota carrier

You have a target and a full calendar. The planner helps you decide which meetings need preparation, and keeps that preparation short. 

An important meeting coming up?

If you would like a second view of your planner before a meeting that matters, send it to me and we will look at it together.