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A new lead books a call. You open with "So, tell me about your business", they talk for 20 minutes, and you hang up without a budget, a deadline or any idea who signs off. Then you write a proposal anyway and hope for the best.
Good discovery call questions fix that. They help you learn what the client needs, what success looks like to them, and whether you can help, before you put a price on anything. This guide gives you 40 discovery call questions to ask, grouped by what you need to leave the call knowing. You also get swaps for coaches, virtual assistants and agencies, the questions to skip, and a free call script and question bank to download.
What a discovery call is for#
A discovery call is the first real conversation with a potential client. It isn't a pitch. You ask, listen and decide together whether the work is a fit.
You should leave every call knowing five things:
| Goal | What you need to know by the end | One question that gets you there |
|---|---|---|
| The problem | What's wrong today and why it matters now | "What made you reach out now?" |
| Success | What "worked" looks like to them | "How will you know it worked?" |
| Budget | A rough range, and how they pay | "Have you set a budget for this, even a rough range?" |
| Timeline | When they want to start and what drives the date | "Is there a date this has to be done by?" |
| The decision | Who decides, and what they need to see | "Who else will be part of this decision?" |
If one of those is still blank when you hang up, your proposal is a guess.
You won't ask all 40 questions on one call, and you shouldn't. Gong, a company that records and analyzes sales calls, says that "asking between 11-14 discovery call questions during the course of the call correlates with the greatest success", based on "519,000 recorded discovery calls" (Gong, discovery call techniques, published July 2017, updated March 2026, accessed 28 October 2026). It's a correlation from one vendor's data, not a rule. But it's a useful nudge: pick a short list, then let the conversation lead.
Send a short form before the call#
The easiest way to keep the call short is to collect the basics first. A short discovery call questionnaire, sent when someone asks to talk, gets you their name, company, role and the problem in their own words. Then you spend the call on the questions that need a real conversation.
Our client intake form template covers services, budget and timing for freelancers and agencies. If you coach, a coaching application form sorts good fits before anyone gets a slot.
40 discovery call questions to ask, by goal#
Pick eight to 14 of these discovery call questions before each call. Start with the problem, and leave budget until you've earned some trust.
The problem#
- What made you reach out now?
- What's happening today that you want to change?
- How long has this been a problem?
- What have you already tried, and how did it go?
- What happens if nothing changes in the next six months?
- Who else feels this problem, on your team or among your customers?
- What are you using today, and what do you like about it?
- If you could fix only one part of this, which part would it be?
What success looks like#
- Picture six months from now, and this went well. What has changed?
- How will you know it worked? What would you measure?
- What would make this feel worth every penny?
- Have you worked with someone like me before? What worked, and what didn't?
- What would make this a letdown, even if it arrived on time?
- How involved do you want to be week to week?
- Is there anything you definitely don't want?
- What does a great partner look like to you?
Budget#
- Have you set a budget for this, even a rough range?
- How did you arrive at that number?
- Is the budget for this project only, or for ongoing work too?
- Do you prefer a fixed price, a monthly retainer or paying by the hour?
- What else is competing for this budget?
- If the right option costs more than you planned, what happens then?
- How do you usually pay: up front, in stages or at the end?
- What would a good return on this look like for you?
Timeline#
- When would you like to start?
- Is there a date this has to be done by? What's behind that date?
- What happens if it slips by a month?
- Are there busy seasons, launches or holidays we should plan around?
- How quickly can you usually give feedback?
- What needs to happen on your side before we can start?
- Are you talking to anyone else about this, and when do you plan to decide?
- When would you like a proposal from me?
The decision#
- Who else will be part of this decision?
- Who would I work with day to day?
- How have you made decisions like this before?
- What would you need to see in a proposal to say yes?
- What concerns might someone on your team raise?
- Is there anything that could stop this from going ahead?
- What questions do you have for me?
- What would be a good next step for you?
Question 5 does a lot of quiet work. If the answer is "nothing much", the project probably isn't urgent, and your timeline should reflect that. Question 40 hands the next step to the client, which feels a lot better than "So, shall I send a proposal?"
Questions for coaches, VAs and agencies#
The 40 questions above work for most service businesses. These swaps fit them to your niche.
Coaching discovery call questions#
- What made now the right time to get support?
- What have you tried on your own so far?
- How much time can you give this each week between sessions?
Virtual assistant discovery call questions#
- Which tasks take the hours you'd most like back?
- Which tools would I need access to?
- How do you like updates: a daily message, a weekly summary or only when something's done?
Agency discovery call questions#
- Who will give feedback, and who has the final say?
- What do you already have: brand guidelines, copy, photos, logins?
- Which past project, yours or someone else's, do you love, and why?
Bookkeeping and social media#
- Bookkeeping: which software holds your books today, and how up to date are they?
- Social media: which platforms do your customers actually use?
- Social media: who checks posts before they go live?
The free question bank below has all 40 core questions and 15 niche questions, including three more for bookkeepers and social media managers. Each one carries a goal and a niche, so you can filter to your own list in a minute.
Questions to skip#
Some questions waste the call or make people defensive. Here's what to ask instead.
| Skip this | Why | Ask this instead |
|---|---|---|
| "Do you have a budget?" | Invites a flat yes or no, and people often say no to protect themselves | "Have you set a budget for this, even a rough range?" |
| "Are you the decision-maker?" | Sounds like you want to talk to their boss | "Who else will be part of this decision?" |
| "Wouldn't it be great if...?" | A leading question gets a polite yes, not information | "What would make this feel worth every penny?" |
| Three questions in one breath | They answer the last one and you lose the other two | One question, then wait |
| Anything the form already answered | Tells them you didn't read it | "You mentioned X in your form. Can you tell me more?" |
Also leave out personal questions that have nothing to do with the work. If a coaching client needs to share something personal, that belongs in a proper intake after they sign, not on a first call.
Book the call from the same form#
Once someone fills in your discovery call questionnaire, the next step is a time on your calendar. You can do both in one form.
HornetForms has a ready-made "Sales discovery call" template. You'll find it in the template gallery, or at forms.hornetforms.com/templates/sales-discovery-call. It has two short pages:
- Let's find out if we're a fit: full name, work email, company, their role and company size.
- What you're working on: the problem they want to solve, what they use today, when they need a decision, whether they have budget approval and when they're usually free for a call.
If someone picks "Just researching for now", an extra question appears: "What would make this a priority?" That one answer tells you whether to book a call now or check back next quarter.
To book the call in the same form, add a scheduling question at the end and paste your Calendly or Cal.com link. It works on every plan, and it can fill in the person's name and email from the Full name and Work email questions, so they don't type them twice. Two more touches help:
- Only offer a slot to people who are ready. Add a show rule so the booking question appears when "When do you need a decision?" is not "Just researching for now". Our conditional logic guide shows how rules like this work.
- Update the thank-you message. The template says you'll email some times within one business day. If the form books the call, change it to "See you on the call".
Turn on an email to yourself for each new response, or send new leads to Slack or Google Sheets from the integrations page. The scheduling question is one of HornetForms' 20+ question types, and every plan includes unlimited responses.
After the call: notes to proposal#
Write up your notes within the hour. Use the five goals as headings: problem, success, budget, timeline and the decision. Any heading with nothing under it is your first follow-up email.
Then turn the notes into a proposal:
- Open with their words. Quote the problem the way they described it. It shows you listened.
- Tie the price to their success measure. "You said 20 more enquiries a month would make this worth it" beats a list of deliverables.
- Answer the concerns from question 37 before anyone raises them.
If you price from a set of answers, a quote request form template can show an estimate before the call. Selling software instead? The demo request form template covers that flow.
Two free downloads help:
- Discovery call script. All 40 questions grouped by goal, with room for notes, an opening, a close and the niche swaps. Get the PDF, US Letter, the PDF, A4 or the Word file to edit.
- Discovery question bank. The Excel question bank lists all 55 questions with their goal, niche and why each one matters. Mark the ones you'll ask, and the sheet counts your picks by goal so you can see the gaps. There's also a CSV version for Google Sheets.
Try it before your next call#
Pick your 12 discovery call questions, send the form before the call and keep the script open while you talk. HornetForms is free forever on the Free plan, and the features page has the full tour. Sign up for free and send your first discovery call form this week.