Partner discovery call script: branching questions by lease type
The discovery call is where most CAM audit engagements are won or lost. Partners who run a structured 30-minute call with branching question paths convert two to three times the engagements of partners who improvise. The script below is the framework that produces consistent qualification, accurate scoping, and clean engagement close, with branches that adjust to triple net, modified gross, and gross lease structures.
I built CAMAudit because the manual audit alternatives required so much pre-engagement diligence that small-to-mid market tenants got priced out before any analysis could happen. After running detection samples through the engine across many lease types and watching how the same questions consistently produce the same engagement outcomes, I have a working view of the discovery flow that scales. This article translates that into the call script partners actually run.
Discovery call: A structured initial conversation between a prospective client and a partner, typically scheduled for 30 minutes, where the partner qualifies the prospect against the engagement profile, surfaces the lease and reconciliation context, and establishes whether a scoped proposal should follow. Discovery calls precede formal proposals and serve as the gate that filters fit prospects from non-fit prospects.
The three-segment structure
A 30-minute discovery call has three predictable segments. Time discipline matters because each segment has a different goal and the segments do not interchange well.
| Segment | Time | Goal |
|---|---|---|
| Context and situation | 5 to 7 minutes | Surface what prompted the call and the prospect emotional state |
| Lease structure and history | 12 to 15 minutes | Determine viability and shape the engagement scope |
| Engagement scope and close | 8 to 10 minutes | Frame pricing and create the next step |
Partners who blow the timing usually run long on segment one (sympathetic listening to a frustrated tenant) and short on segment three (no clear next step). The fix is hard timing discipline. Set a timer at the 7-minute mark and the 22-minute mark to enforce the segment boundaries.
Segment one: context and situation
Open with: "What prompted you to think about a CAM audit right now?"
This is the most useful single question in the discovery script. The answer surfaces the precipitating event, which tells the partner everything about the prospect's emotional state, urgency, and engagement readiness.
Common answers and what they signal:
"We got a true-up bill that surprised us." Signals high urgency, emotional engagement, recent reconciliation statement available. This prospect is the most ready to engage and the highest closing probability.
"Our CFO flagged the line item." Signals professional review process, lower emotional charge, decision will be analytical. This prospect requires a more data-forward proposal but converts at a high rate when the math is presented clearly.
"A peer told us they recovered money." Signals social proof motivation, expectation of similar outcomes. This prospect is open to engagement but needs accurate expectation setting because peer recoveries are not predictive of their recovery.
"Our lease is up for renewal soon." Signals strategic timing motivation. The audit is part of the renewal preparation. This prospect often wants both the historical recovery and the renewal-leverage value, which can support a higher-priced engagement.
After the opening, ask:
"How long have you been at this property?"
"How many locations do you operate, and are they at similar lease structures?"
"What is your role in deciding on something like a CAM audit?"
The first establishes the lookback window. The second establishes whether the engagement is single-location or portfolio. The third surfaces the decision-maker situation, which prevents the partner from selling the wrong person.
Segment two: lease structure and history
This is the core of the discovery call. The branching starts here based on the prospect's answer to:
"Do you have a triple net lease, a modified gross lease, or a gross lease?"
About 30 percent of small-to-mid market tenants cannot answer this directly. Walk them through it: "Do you pay a single rent number, or do you pay rent plus separate lines for taxes, insurance, and CAM? If you pay separate lines, that is triple net. If you pay a single rent that increases when operating costs go up over a base year, that is modified gross. If you pay a single rent that does not change with operating costs, that is gross."
Triple net branch
If the prospect has a triple net lease, ask:
"What does your annual CAM, taxes, and insurance run combined, per location?"
This is the size filter. Below $25,000 the math typically does not support an engagement. $25,000 to $50,000 works with multi-year lookback. Above $50,000 almost always works.
"Have you received a CAM reconciliation statement for the most recent year?"
Confirms the analysis surface. No reconciliation, no audit.
"How many reconciliation years have you received that have not been independently reviewed?"
Establishes the lookback window. Three or more is the strongest signal.
"Does your lease have a gross-up provision, a controllable expense cap, or a base year for any pass-throughs?"
These are the highest-yield audit categories. A yes on any of them adds engagement value because each is a category where errors compound across years.
"Has the property changed ownership during your tenancy?"
Property sales often trigger reconciliation statement methodology changes that produce findings.
Modified gross branch
If the prospect has a modified gross lease, ask:
"What was your base year, and do you have the original base year operating expense breakdown?"
This is the most important modified gross question. A base year set in an unusual operating year (heavy snow removal, vacancy-heavy, repair-heavy) inflates the base in ways that depress recoveries forever. The base year breakdown is often where the largest findings sit.
"How much have your operating expense pass-throughs grown in the years since the base year?"
Year-over-year growth above 4 to 5 percent compounded for 3 or more years usually has at least one finding when analyzed.
"Is the base year measured on a cash or accrual basis, and has the methodology been consistent?"
Methodology shifts between base and current year are a common finding category.
Gross lease branch
If the prospect has a gross lease, the engagement usually does not exist. Ask:
"Are there any specific operating expense pass-throughs, like utility increases or tax escalations, that the landlord has been billing separately?"
Some leases labeled gross have small pass-through provisions for specific cost categories. These are auditable. Most gross leases have no audit surface.
Confirm the no with:
"It sounds like there is not a reconciliation surface to audit on this lease. The gross lease structure means the landlord absorbs operating cost variability. There are still circumstances where an audit makes sense, like reviewing whether you are being billed correctly for utility separations or for any tax escalation provisions, but the standard CAM audit engagement does not fit your lease structure."
This is a clean disqualification that protects the relationship and may surface a different scope (utility billing review, tax escalation analysis) that does fit.
Segment three: engagement scope and close
After establishing lease structure, history, and viability, transition to engagement framing.
Open with: "Based on what we discussed, here is what I am thinking the engagement looks like."
Frame the scope: number of locations, number of years to look back, whether dispute letter drafts are included, expected timeline.
Frame the pricing as a conditional range: "Engagements in your size and lease type typically run $X to $Y per location depending on lease complexity, the number of years we look back, and whether you want the dispute letter draft included in the scope. I will send you a scoped proposal with a specific number after I review the lease and the most recent reconciliation."
Ask the three closing questions:
"Based on what we discussed, does this seem worth pursuing?"
"What would your decision process look like, and who else needs to weigh in?"
"If I send you a scoped proposal by [date], what is the right next step?"
Close with: "Send me the lease, every amendment, and the most recent three reconciliation statements. I will send the scoped proposal within [timeline]."
The closing move creates a specific commitment from the prospect (sending documents) and a specific commitment from the partner (sending the proposal). A discovery call that ends without both commitments rarely converts.
What to avoid
Three patterns derail discovery calls consistently.
Talking too much. The partner explains the audit process for 15 of the 30 minutes and the prospect leaves feeling pitched. The fix is the 70/30 ratio: 70 percent prospect talking, 30 percent partner talking. If the partner is the one filling silence, the call is going wrong.
Asking the lease type question too early. Partners sometimes lead with "what type of lease do you have?" and lose the prospect who does not know. The opening question (what prompted the call) is more inviting and surfaces the lease information later in segment two when the prospect has had time to settle into the conversation.
Quoting a fixed price during the call. Prospects who hear a fixed price during the discovery call before the partner has reviewed the documents either feel locked in to a price that turns out to be too high (engagement unhappiness) or perceive the partner as imprecise (engagement loss). The conditional range plus scoped proposal is the cleaner pattern.
Calibrating the script over time
The script above is a starting framework. Partners who run 50 to 100 discovery calls iterate the question phrasings to fit their voice and their typical client base. The three-segment structure and the question-density discipline (70/30 talking ratio) hold across iterations. The specific phrasings adapt.
Track conversion by precipitating event over time. Partners typically discover that one or two precipitating events convert at much higher rates than others, which informs both the marketing message and the segment one listening calibration. A partner who sees that "true-up surprise" converts at 60 percent and "peer recovery story" converts at 25 percent learns to adjust their outbound and inbound mix toward the higher-conversion source.
The discovery call is not a sales pitch. It is a structured qualification conversation that protects both sides from a poor-fit engagement. Partners who run it consistently build a more profitable practice with happier clients than partners who improvise.
For a complete overview of how white-label partners scope and price engagements after discovery, see the CAMAudit white-label partner program.