Why Everyone’s Looking at the Wrong End of the Grill
NOTES FROM NORTHWOOD
You know what I love about Texas pitmasters?
Everyone thinks their secret is in some magical sauce recipe passed down through generations.
But watch a real pitmaster work. They’ll spend 14 hours smoking a brisket, and maybe 30 seconds applying sauce at the end.
The real work happens before anything hits the grill.
They know something most people don’t: you can’t save bad meat with great sauce. If you didn’t select the right cut, trim it properly, and apply the perfect rub, all the sauce in the world won’t matter.
That’s when it hit me.
Most sales managers are obsessing over the sauce while completely ignoring the prep work.
Everyone Wants the Secret Sauce
In 20 years of working with sales organizations, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this:
“Our reps just can’t close. They get to the end of the conversation and prospects won’t pull the trigger. What closing techniques should we teach them?”
This sounds so familiar…
Here’s what I’ve learned after seeing this play out with 150+ companies:
Your closing problems aren’t closing problems.
They’re discovery problems.
The Real Pitmaster Method
Think about what a real pitmaster does:
- Selects the right cut of meat (Are you talking to qualified prospects?)
- Trims away the fat and waste (Do you know what they actually need?)
- Applies the perfect rub (Have you identified what’s really at stake?)
- Controls temperature and timing (Are you managing the process or just winging it?)
By the time that brisket comes off the smoker, there’s no “closing” required. People are already lined up with their plates.
The same thing happens in sales when you do discovery right.
What Great Discovery Actually Looks Like
Last month, I listened to a call from one of my clients. Here’s what happened:
The rep spent 45 minutes asking questions.
Not talking about their solution. Not pitching features. Just asking questions.
By the end of that call, she knew:
- Exactly what problem they were trying to solve
- How much it was costing them every month they didn’t fix it ($47K, to be specific)
- Who else was involved in the decision (CFO had final approval)
- What happened with their last vendor (project went 6 months over timeline)
- Why they needed to solve it this quarter (busy season starts in Q2)
- What their budget process looked like (needed three quotes, decision by month-end)
- What “success” meant to each stakeholder
- What would happen if they did nothing (lose two major contracts)
When she finally presented the proposal two weeks later, there was no “closing” conversation.
The prospect said: “This is exactly what we need. When can we start?”
That’s what happens when you do the prep work.
Here’s the key: she didn’t just collect information. She helped them see the full scope of their problem. By the end of that call, they understood their situation better than when it started.
The 4 Questions That Change Everything
Here’s what most reps get wrong: they think discovery is about gathering information.
It’s not.
Real discovery is about helping prospects understand their own situation better than they did before they talked to you.
Here are the four categories of questions that actually matter:
1. The Current State questions
“Walk me through what’s happening now…”
“How are you handling this today?”
“What’s working? What isn’t?”
Ask for specifics.
“How long does that take?”
“How many people are involved?”
“What does that cost you?”
2. The Impact questions
“What happens if this doesn’t get solved?”
“How is this affecting other parts of your business?”
“What’s this costing you?”
Most prospects have never quantified the real cost of their problem. Help them do the math. A $5K monthly solution becomes easy to justify when they realize the problem costs them $20K monthly.
3. The Decision questions
“Who else is involved in solving this?”
“How do you typically make decisions like this?”
“What happened the last time you bought something like this?”
If you’re not talking to the real decision maker, you’re wasting everyone’s time. Find out now, not later.
4. The Vision questions
“What would success look like?”
“If we could solve this completely, what would that mean for you?”
“What would have to be true for this to be a home run?”
When prospects paint their own picture of success, they’re selling themselves. Your job becomes matching their vision.
When you can answer all four categories with specifics, there’s nothing left to “close.”
The Biggest Mistake I See (And How Much It’s Costing You)
I was reviewing calls for a client last week. Five different reps, same company, similar prospects.
Rep 1: Spent 60% of the call talking about their solution. Lost the deal to a competitor who was 15% higher.
Rep 2: Asked surface-level questions for 10 minutes, then jumped into a demo. Prospect “needed to think about it.”
Rep 3: Followed our discovery framework. Asked 40+ questions. Barely talked about their solution at all.
Guess who closed the deal?
The rep who did the prep work.
Here’s what this costs you: Rep 1 and Rep 2 represent about 80% of sales reps. They’re burning through qualified leads because they skip the foundation work.
If you’re generating 100 qualified leads per month and closing 20%, better discovery could get you to 35%+ (I’ve seen it happen). That’s 15 extra deals per month.
What’s that worth to your business?
Why This Matters More Than Ever
Here’s what’s changed in the last five years:
Your prospects are more informed than ever. They’ve done their research. They know their options.
They don’t need you to tell them about your features.
What they need is someone who can help them think through their situation better than they can on their own.
That’s what great discovery does.
It positions you as the advisor, not just another vendor with a pitch.
The Action Plan
If you want to fix your “closing” problems, stop focusing on the end of the process.
Here’s what to do this week:
- Record three discovery calls (with permission)
- Count how many questions your rep asked vs. how much they talked about your solution
- If it’s not at least 60% questions, you found your problem
Then start training your team on the four question categories above.
Give them 50+ specific questions they can ask.
Make them practice until asking great questions becomes as natural as breathing.
The real work happens in role-playing.
I know it feels awkward, but if investment bankers roleplay $75 million transactions, you can roleplay a sales call.
Wrapping This Up
Great BBQ isn’t made at the sauce station.
It’s made during the 12 hours of prep work that nobody sees.
Great sales aren’t made during the “close.”
They’re made during the discovery conversation when you help prospects understand their situation better than anyone else can.
Stop obsessing over closing techniques.
Start perfecting your prep work.
