Targeting strategy ideas
Use this skill when a rep names a prospect or a sector and needs a sharper reason to call than "introduce ourselves". Produces 3 to 4 commercially provocative idea angles, each with the angle, the consequence of doing nothing, and a 2 to 3 sentence phone opener to secure a 15-minute diagnostic call, grounded only in services the firm actually sells. Also use for "give me an angle on X", "ideas for approaching the Y sector", "what do I say to get the meeting", "targeting ideas", "phone opener for a prospect".
Tony DowlingDirector, CONVRGApplies the moment a rep has a name or a sector and no reason to ring that would make the prospect curious. Produces three or four idea angles, each tied to a service on the firm's own menu and each ending in a phone opener whose only job is to book Call 1, the 15-minute diagnostic.
The play
- Parse the request. Did the rep name a specific company or person, or a sector? The two branches differ at step 2 only.
- Build the picture.
- Named prospect: look it up in HubSpot. Company record, associated contacts, deal stage, recent notes and activity. Not found: proceed from the sector and the menu alone, and say that is what happened.
- Sector only: pick 2 to 3 representative target companies or sub-segments worth pursuing and work from those.
- Open the client's Menu for Sale (the service manifest in the client brain). Every idea must anchor to a service listed there. If the menu is missing or unreadable, flag it and stop short of inventing services.
- Cross-reference call notes and meeting transcripts for the target. Has this company or persona been pitched before? Note prior objections, angles that landed and angles that fell flat. An idea the notes show was rejected is dropped, not re-skinned.
- Name the likely commercial pain for this target and tie it to one specific service on the menu. Pain first, service second; a service looking for a pain reads as a feature list.
- Write 3 to 4 ideas using the layout in references/idea-template.md. For each: The Angle (why this matters to this business or persona right now), The Provocation (the commercial or liability cost of doing nothing), and the Phone Opener Script (2 to 3 sentences that ask for 15 minutes and nothing else).
- Close with the Pillar 2 Guardrail, word for word: do not pitch features or pricing on this call; the only objective is to secure the 15-minute Call 1.
What good looks like
- First thing I check that most people skip: whether the angle is tied to a line on the Menu for Sale or is a capability dressed up as an idea. If the firm cannot deliver it, the idea is a liability, not a lead.
- Second tell: whether this persona has already heard the angle. The notes usually say so, and a repeated angle tells the prospect the rep did not do the reading.
- The mediocre version: four openers that start "we help companies like you with", a list of services with a question tacked on the end, and a pitch where the ask for 15 minutes should be.
- I know the output is right when each opener, read aloud, would make a busy decision maker curious enough to give 15 minutes, and asks for nothing more than that.
- Red flag: the provocation is generic ("you could be losing money"). A real provocation names the specific consequence for this kind of business: the fine, the lost contract, the audit failure, the margin leak.
Rules
- MUST anchor every idea to a real service on the Menu for Sale.
- MUST check prior contact in the notes before suggesting an angle.
- MUST close every output with the Pillar 2 Guardrail.
- NEVER pitch features or pricing in the opener. The only objective is Call 1.
- NEVER invent services when the menu is missing. Flag it and stop.
- NEVER repeat an angle the notes show was rejected.
references/idea-template.md
Idea template and worked example
Output is chat-friendly and scannable on a phone. No preamble.
Layout
Lead line. Name the target. If found in HubSpot, add deal stage and most recent activity. If call notes show prior contact, add one line on what was pitched and how it landed.
Then 3 to 4 numbered ideas:
Idea [N]: [Idea name]
• The Angle: why this matters to this specific business or persona right now.
• The Provocation: the commercial or liability consequence of doing nothing.
• Phone Opener Script: 2 to 3 sentences to secure a 15-minute diagnostic call.
Finish, every time:
⚠️ Pillar 2 Guardrail: Do not pitch features or pricing on this call. Your only objective is to secure the 15-minute Call 1.
What each part must do
| Part | Must | Must not |
|---|---|---|
| Idea name | Name the commercial situation, 3 to 6 words | Name the service |
| The Angle | Tie a current pressure on this persona to one menu service | Describe the service |
| The Provocation | Name a specific cost of inaction: fine, lost tender, audit failure, churn, margin leak | Say "you could be losing money" |
| Phone Opener | Ask for 15 minutes and stop. Spoken rhythm, no jargon | Mention price, scope, or a feature |
Worked example
Context: health and safety consultancy. Target: a regional construction contractor, 80 staff, bidding for main-contractor frameworks. Menu service used: retained competent-person support and pre-tender compliance review. Prior contact: none in the notes.
Idea 1: The framework pre-qualification gap
• The Angle: Main contractors are now scoring subcontractor safety management at pre-qualification, not just on site. A contractor of this size usually has the practice but not the evidence pack.
• The Provocation: Falling at pre-qualification does not show up as a lost deal. It shows up as a tender that never arrived, and nobody tells you why.
• Phone Opener Script: "I work with contractors your size who keep passing site audits and keep missing framework shortlists. There is usually one gap in the evidence pack causing it. Could I take 15 minutes to show you where it tends to be?"
Two or three more ideas follow the same shape, each anchored to a different menu line. Then the Guardrail.
When the lookup fails
- Prospect not in HubSpot: say "Not found in HubSpot; angles built from the sector and the Menu for Sale." Then proceed.
- Menu missing: say "Menu for Sale not found in the client brain. Ideas withheld until it is located, because every angle must map to a sellable service." Do not produce ideas.
- Notes show an angle already rejected: drop it, and name the replacement angle as new.