Prepare for a sales call
A practical way to use AI for this job in a small business, with a prompt you can copy.
You've got a meeting with a potential big client tomorrow. You know you should research them, but between jobs you'll probably skim their website in the car park five minutes before.
The prompt
I'm meeting [prospect business name, industry] next week about [what I sell]. Based on this info from their website: [paste], list the likely problems they have, 5 good questions to ask, and 3 objections they might raise with honest answers.
Replace everything in [square brackets] with your own details. Don't paste in anything you wouldn't want stored by the AI provider.
Steps
- Copy key parts of the prospect's website.
- Run the prompt.
- Pick your 3 best questions.
- Have them on a card for the call.
A worked example
A Sunshine Coast accountant has a call with a growing cafe group. She asks Perplexity to summarise what's public: how many locations, recent news, what they post about. Then she uses Claude with the prompt to list likely pain points (multiple sites, payroll, cash flow) and five good questions to ask.
She walks in knowing they've just opened a third site. Her first question is 'How's the new Caloundra site going?' rather than 'So, tell me about your business'. It sets a different tone straight away.
Where it goes wrong
AI research tools sometimes mix up companies with similar names, especially across states. A 'Smith Plumbing' in Perth isn't the one in Hobart. Check the details. It also invents plausible-sounding facts when it can't find much. If something seems too specific, verify it or leave it out.
Time saved
Proper prep can take 30 to 45 minutes. With AI doing the gathering, it's 10 to 15 minutes of reading and thinking. These are my estimates for a typical small business, not measured results.
What it costs (AUD)
Perplexity and the chat tools all have free plans. Paid plans give better research features if you prep for calls often.
The free plans of ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini handle this fine. If you end up using AI every day, the paid plans are roughly: ChatGPT Plus approx. A$30 a month, Claude Pro approx. A$29 a month billed monthly (US$20, or about A$24 a month if you pay yearly), and Google AI Pro approx. A$33 a month through the App Store. Prices approx., October 2026. Some are billed in US dollars, so your bank may add a foreign transaction fee. Check the vendor's pricing page before you buy.
Australian notes
Stick to public information about businesses. Don't go digging into individuals' personal social media; it's creepy and can raise privacy concerns. Check anything AI tells you about a company against the source, especially ABN details. You can check those yourself on the ABN Lookup website.
Privacy: the Privacy Act and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) cover most businesses turning over more than $3 million, plus some smaller ones such as health providers. Even if you're under the threshold, treat customer details with care: strip names, phone numbers and addresses before you paste anything into an AI tool.
My verdict
Great prep. Treat its guesses as guesses until the customer confirms.
Common questions
Can I trust what AI finds about a company?
Treat it as a starting point. Check facts on their website or ABN Lookup before you mention them.
What questions should I ask?
Open questions about their goals and frustrations. AI is good at suggesting these.
How long should prep take?
Ten to fifteen minutes is plenty for most small business calls.
Do this today
Look at your calendar for your next sales conversation. Run the prompt now and write down three questions you'll ask.
More sales use cases
Next: Write a proposal first draft · All sales · Want a bot to do this automatically? See bot setup guides.