Builds a structured pre-call brief from manually provided account context. Produces talking points, questions to ask, risks to address, and a clear call objective. Use when asked to prepare for a customer call, build talking points, create a pre-meeting brief, structure a call agenda, or when a CSM has a call in 30 minutes and needs to walk in prepared. Also triggers for questions about call preparation, meeting readiness, talking point development, or structuring a productive customer conversation.
Builds a structured brief for any customer call. The 10 minutes you spend preparing determine whether the call advances the relationship or wastes everyone's time.
Provide whatever you know:
For routine calls, the skill produces a 5-minute brief:
## Pre-Call Brief: [Account Name]
**Date:** [date] | **Type:** [type] | **Duration:** [expected]
### Call Objective
[One sentence: what does success look like when this call ends?]
### Context (30-Second Refresh)
[Account name] | EUR [ARR] | [Health] | [Renewal: date]
Last touch: [date, what happened]
Open items: [any commitments pending from either side]
### Talking Points (In Priority Order)
1. [Most important topic -- the one you must cover even if the call runs short]
2. [Second priority]
3. [Third priority -- cover if time allows]
### Questions to Ask
- [Question 1 -- genuine information-gathering, not leading]
- [Question 2]
### Watch For
- [Signal to listen for -- competitive mention, sentiment shift, new information]
### Do Not Forget
- [Open item to close, commitment to confirm, or follow-up to mention]
| Element | Content |
|---|---|
| Objective | Maintain the relationship. Surface any changes. Offer value |
| Lead with | Something specific to their account (usage observation, upcoming event, open item status) |
| Ask about | Their priorities this quarter, any changes, any concerns |
| Avoid | Running through a generic checklist. If you have nothing specific, reconsider whether this call should happen |
| Element | Content |
|---|---|
| Objective | Demonstrate value. Align on direction. Identify expansion or risk |
| Lead with | Value evidence (the headline number they should take away) |
| Prepare | Deck or data (from qbr-content-assembler), discussion questions, strategic recommendation |
| Avoid | Data dump without narrative. QBR is a conversation, not a presentation |
| Element | Content |
|---|---|
| Objective | Show accountability. Provide an update. Confirm resolution path |
| Lead with | The update -- what has been done since the last conversation. Do not make them ask |
| Prepare | Timeline, resolution status, next steps, any asks of the customer |
| Avoid | Defensive language. Do not explain why the issue is hard. Explain what is being done |
| Element | Content |
|---|---|
| Objective | Confirm value. Initiate the commercial conversation. Understand their position |
| Lead with | Value delivered (use the value-narrative-builder output) |
| Prepare | Renewal pricing, objection responses (from pricing-conversation-framework), competitive readiness |
| Avoid | Jumping to the commercial discussion before establishing value. Value first, then pricing |
| Element | Content |
|---|---|
| Objective | Build the relationship. Understand their priorities. Establish credibility |
| Lead with | A brief introduction and a genuine question about their priorities |
| Prepare | Research on their role and likely concerns (from stakeholder-research-prep) |
| Avoid | Presenting. First meetings should be 70% listening, 30% responding |
Before every call, write one sentence: "This call is successful if [specific outcome]."
| Good Objectives | Bad Objectives |
|---|---|
| "Confirm Tom supports the renewal and identify any blockers" | "Discuss the renewal" |
| "Understand Lisa's priorities for Q2 and identify one way our product supports them" | "Check in with Lisa" |
| "Get agreement to schedule a QBR for April" | "Talk about doing a QBR" |
| "Confirm the escalation is resolved from the customer's perspective" | "Follow up on the issue" |
If you cannot write a specific objective, either (a) you need more preparation or (b) the call does not need to happen.
The skill produces: