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Plan BANT discovery questions as a 3-column table

  • For Sales and customer success
  • You practice Asking for a format you can use
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Intermediate

About this exercise

Before your discovery call with Ridgeline Roofing, plan your questions with BANT. Make a markdown table with columns Field, What we know, Question to ask, and exactly 4 rows: Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline. Where your notes say nothing, write "Nothing yet" in the middle column. Every question must be open-ended (not starting with Do, Does, Is, Are, Can or Will). Under 130 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Getting a long question list. The AI writes 15 questions under headings instead of one sharp question per field. Try: Give the shape: "A table with columns Field, What we know, Question to ask, 4 rows: Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline."
  • Guessing the budget. The AI fills gaps with assumptions like "small business, likely tight budget". Try: Add: "If the notes say nothing, write Nothing yet."
  • Yes/no questions. "Do you have a budget?" gets a one-word answer, and AI writes questions like that by default. Try: Add: "Open-ended questions only. None starts with Do, Is, Are, Can or Will."
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and runs long when you only give a total like 130 words. Try: Cap each part instead, like "each cell under 15 words," so the total lands well under 130.

What a strong prompt includes

  • Asks for a table
  • Names BANT
  • Handles gaps
  • Asks for open questions
  • Sets a size

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