LKNConnect Operating System™ Appendix H-2 — Discovery Meeting Notes

LKNConnect Operating System

PURPOSE

The Discovery Meeting is the Strategist’s first substantive conversation with a prospective client after the business has been Cleared to Proceed through the CRM Prospect Verification process.

The purpose of the meeting is to understand the business, the business owner’s goals, current challenges and desired future position.

The Discovery Meeting is not a sales presentation and is not intended to duplicate information that will subsequently be collected through the Automated Client Intake Form.

The Strategist’s primary responsibility is to listen, understand and determine whether moving forward to Intake and the Visibility Audit makes sense.


1. MEETING INFORMATION

Business Name: ______________________________________

Primary Contact: ____________________________________

Strategist: _________________________________________

Meeting Date: _______________________________________

Meeting Location / Method: ___________________________

CRM Clearance Confirmed: Yes / No


2. START THE CONVERSATION

Tell me about your business.

Use this opening to allow the business owner to describe the business in their own words.

Strategist Notes:





3. WHAT’S IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW?

What are you most focused on in your business right now?

Listen for:

  • Growth
  • New customers
  • Increased awareness
  • Revenue
  • New products or services
  • New locations
  • Events
  • Staffing
  • Competition
  • Community recognition
  • Operational challenges
  • Other priorities

Strategist Notes:




4. WHERE DO YOU WANT TO GO?

If things were going really well over the next 6–12 months, what would be different?

The purpose is to begin identifying the business owner’s desired future position.

Strategist Notes:





5. CURRENT VISIBILITY

How are people finding out about your business today?

Allow the owner to describe what they currently believe is generating awareness and customers.

Possible areas may include:

  • Referrals
  • Networking
  • Website
  • Google
  • Social media
  • Advertising
  • Events
  • Sponsorships
  • Community involvement
  • Video
  • Print
  • LKNConnect
  • Other sources

Strategist Notes:




6. WHAT SEEMS TO BE WORKING?

What do you believe is working particularly well for you right now?

The Strategist should listen carefully to the owner’s perception of the business’s current strengths.

Strategist Notes:




7. WHAT ISN’T WORKING?

Where do you feel you’re not getting the results you would like?

Listen for potential gaps involving:

  • Awareness
  • Lead generation
  • Customer traffic
  • Market recognition
  • Community presence
  • Follow-up
  • Customer communication
  • CRM
  • Technology
  • Automation
  • Internal processes

Do not attempt to diagnose or solve the problem during this portion of the conversation.

Strategist Notes:





8. CURRENT LKNCONNECT RELATIONSHIP

When applicable, acknowledge what LKNConnect has already done with or for the business.

This may include:

  • Articles
  • Videos
  • Interviews
  • Guide inclusion
  • Event coverage
  • Featured Business or Restaurant coverage
  • Sponsorship
  • Other visibility

Discussion Notes



The Strategist should enter the meeting already familiar with this information from H-1 — CRM Prospect Verification.


9. BUSINESS SYSTEMS & OPERATIONS

The purpose of this conversation is simply to listen for potential operational issues that may warrant further exploration through the Intake Form or T2.

Is there anything inside the business that makes growth more difficult than it should be?

Listen for comments involving:

  • Lead follow-up
  • CRM
  • Customer databases
  • Repetitive administrative work
  • Disconnected software
  • Sales processes
  • Customer communications
  • Reporting
  • Technology
  • Automation
  • AI
  • Workflow
  • Organizational systems

Strategist Notes:



Possible T2 Opportunity Identified: Yes / No / Too Early to Determine

No T2 recommendation should be made solely from this preliminary conversation.


10. WHY NOW?

What prompted you to have this conversation now?

This question helps the Strategist understand the prospect’s motivation, urgency and expectations.

Strategist Notes:




11. STRATEGIST’S CURSORY QUALIFICATION

Following the conversation, the Strategist makes a preliminary determination.

Consider:

  • Does the business appear to fit the LKNConnect market and business model?
  • Is there an identifiable business objective?
  • Does there appear to be a potential visibility need?
  • Is the business owner genuinely interested in improving the current situation?
  • Does proceeding to Intake and Audit appear worthwhile?
  • Are there potential systems or operational issues that should be explored further?

Preliminary Determination

  • Proceed to Automated Client Intake
  • Additional Conversation Needed
  • Follow Up Later
  • Not an Appropriate Fit at This Time

Reason / Notes:




12. EXPLAIN THE NEXT STEP

If the prospect is moving forward, the Strategist briefly explains:

Automated Client Intake

The prospect will receive an online Intake Form that gathers the factual information needed to complete the client record and prepare for the Visibility Audit.

Visibility Audit

Following Intake verification, the automated Visibility Audit independently evaluates the business’s public visibility and produces an objective Audit Score.

Follow-Up Meeting

The Strategist will review the Intake and Audit results and schedule a follow-up conversation to discuss the findings and determine the business’s Visibility Gap.


13. NEXT ACTION

Automated Intake to Be Sent: Yes / No

Intake Sent Date: ___________________________________

Follow-Up Required: Yes / No

Next Action: ________________________________________

Next Action Date: ___________________________________

CRM Updated: Yes / No


OPERATING PRINCIPLE

The Discovery Meeting should feel like a business conversation, not an application process.

The Strategist should not attempt to collect every piece of factual information during the meeting.

Detailed information belongs in the Automated Client Intake Form.

The Discovery Meeting answers a simpler set of questions:

Who is this business?

Where do they want to go?

What do they believe is happening today?

What appears to be getting in the way?

Does it make sense to continue the process?

If the answer to the final question is yes, the prospect moves to the Automated Client Intake Form.

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