The First Meeting Differentiator: Why Discovery Calls Must Die and Consultations Win Deals (Lee Salz on Mastering Modern Selling)

Salespeople have been told for decades that “discovery calls” are the cornerstone of success. But here’s the harsh truth: discovery meetings are dead.

Your prospect doesn’t want to sit through a session where you pepper them with questions, gather data for your own benefit, and pitch features that sound identical to your competitors. They don’t want to be treated like a science experiment. They don’t want to hear a generic list of what you sell. And they certainly don’t want to waste their time on a meeting that delivers no value for them.

What they want is a consultation.

That was the powerful theme in this week’s episode of Mastering Modern Selling with Tom Burton and special guest Lee Salz, bestselling author of Sales Differentiation, Sell Different, and now The First Meeting Differentiator. Lee has built his career on helping sellers stand out in crowded markets. His message is crystal clear: the first meeting is the deal foundation. If you blow it, the rest of your pipeline is doomed.

Why the First Meeting Matters More Than Anything

Think of the first meeting like a first date.

If you play your cards right, you walk away with momentum—second meetings, new opportunities, and the beginning of trust. If you misstep, you never hear from them again.

Lee points out that thousands of books teach you how to prospect and get a meeting. But before his book, none focused exclusively on what to do when you actually get there. And that’s why so many deals fizzle out after an “interesting” first conversation that goes nowhere.

The goal of the first meeting is simple:

Deliver meaningful value.

Spark enough interest that they want to meet again.

Earn the right to influence the decision.

Discovery vs. Consultation: A Mindset Shift

Discovery meetings typically sound like this: “What I’d like to do today is ask you some questions about your business, and then I’ll tell you about what we offer.”

Sounds harmless. But what did you just communicate? That the meeting is about YOU.

A consultation, by contrast, flips the focus: “For this to be a great use of your time, what do you want to make sure we cover today?”

One question, and suddenly the meeting is about THEM. You’re showing that you care. You’re listening. You’re here to provide meaningful value in exchange for their most precious resource: time.

Why Emotion Wins

Every seller has heard the line: “People buy based on emotion and justify with logic.”

But here’s the problem: almost no one actually practices it.

Most first meetings are a barrage of logical, fact-based questions:

What keeps you up at night?What challenges are you facing?What problems are you solving for?

Those aren’t bad—but they don’t create feeling.

Instead, ask:

“What’s the one thing in your business you absolutely have to figure out right now?”“What do you want your legacy to be in this role?”

Those are emotive questions. They make the prospect pause, reflect, and connect with you on a deeper level. They shift the conversation from facts to feelings, and feelings drive action.

The Target Client Profile (TCP)

Another powerful insight from Lee’s book is the idea of replacing the outdated Ideal Client Profile with the Target Client Profile (TCP).

Why? Because “ideal” lives in your imagination. It’s a lottery ticket, a one-in-a-million prospect.

A Target Client Profile is concrete. It identifies the clients who will perceive the most meaningful value in what you offer. It helps you qualify quickly, invest your time wisely, and avoid chasing deals you’ll never win.

Top sellers don’t waste time—they know that qualifying rigorously in the first meeting saves months of chasing ghost deals.

Storytelling Beats Features Every Time

One of the deadliest sins in sales is showing up to a first meeting armed with features and benefits. Lee calls it “features, benefits, and boredom.”

Prospects don’t remember facts. The forgetting curve tells us they’ll forget 50% within 24 hours and 90% within a week.

But they remember stories.

That’s why sellers need a deal pursuit story portfolio—real, emotive case studies they can share that prove value, show outcomes, and resonate with a prospect’s world.

For example: “What you’ve described reminds me of another executive in your industry. They were struggling with X. We helped them with Y. Here’s the outcome they saw.”

That story is sticky. It makes you credible. And it helps you step into the trusted advisor role.

Consultation Cliffhangers

Here’s another gem: stop giving away everything in the first meeting.

Too many reps throw in demos, compliance experts, executives, product teams—everyone and everything at once. It’s overwhelming and counterproductive.

Instead, create what Lee calls a Consultation Cliffhanger. Think of your favorite TV series ending on a cliffhanger that makes you count the days until the next episode.

That’s exactly how you want your prospect to feel.

Leave them curious. Give them just enough value to want more. And then secure the next meeting on the spot while you still have their attention.

First Meeting Etiquette: Small Things That Matter

Execution details separate amateurs from professionals. Lee highlighted several etiquette rules every seller should practice:

Take notes—but ask permission first. It shows you value what they say.Thank them sincerely. They set aside dozens of priorities to meet with you—acknowledge it.Send a recap the same day. Reinforce the value and keep momentum alive.Always schedule the next step before leaving. Don’t fall into the ghosting trap. If it’s not on the calendar, it won’t happen.

These simple moves compound into massive trust.

The Sales Leader’s Role

It’s not just on sellers. Sales leaders have to embed this culture shift into their teams. That means:

Training reps to ask emotive questions.Equipping them with story portfolios.Building TCP frameworks collaboratively.Coaching them on etiquette and follow-up discipline.

Lee designed The First Meeting Differentiator as more than a book—it’s a practical guide with downloads, exercises, and workshops to help leaders institutionalize this mindset.

Final Thoughts: Differentiate Where It Counts

At the end of the day, the first meeting is where differentiation matters most.

If you show up sounding like every other seller—generic questions, product pitches, feature dumps—you’ll be forgotten. If you show up as a consultant, asking emotive questions, delivering value, telling stories, and focusing on THEM, you’ll be remembered.

The first meeting is the deal foundation. It determines whether there will be a second, a third, or a signed contract.

Discovery meetings must die. Consultations win deals.

And as Lee Salz reminds us in The First Meeting Differentiator—the right approach in those first 30 minutes doesn’t just set you apart. It sets you up to win.