Your first meeting isn't for selling a product. It's for agreeing on a problem.

The sales climate is cynical. Educators are facing staff cuts and budget uncertainty, and they see us as "just another vendor." We often make it worse. Out of a misguided respect for their time, we treat the first meeting like it's our one and only bite at the apple, and rush to demo a product. This is diminishing to our own value.

The purpose of a first meeting is not to sell a product. It is to agree on capabilities needed to address a particular challenge. This training is my complete framework for mastering that first, critical conversation.

This training is for...

• Edtech Account Executives who need a repeatable, high-value framework for their first calls.
• Sales Leaders coaching their teams on how to run a truly consultative discovery process.
• Recently Transitioned Teachers who need to shift from a "sympathy" mindset ("I don't want to bother them") to an "empathy" mindset that confidently asserts value.

Key frameworks and takeaways

This is the playbook I teach for running a discovery meeting that sets you up as a partner, not a vendor. You will learn:

• The Consultant Headspace: How to act like a consultant, not a seller, from the first second.
• The "No Budget" Script: How to handle the "I don't have budget" objection by offering mutual awareness—sharing what you're hearing and squaring it with their situation.
• The "No Allergies" Rule: Why you must lead with a point of view and capabilities instead of products and features
• My 4-Quadrant Discovery Model: The exact framework for the interview: 1. Why is this problem happening? 2. Who is impacted? 3. How much does it cost? 4. What capabilities do you need?
• How to Avoid Derailments: The script for handling the "Can I just see your product?" request and other situations that stall the opportunity.
• The Ghosting Fix: How to use confirmations and mutual agreements to get a response.