AlisX Sales Kit
The opening
Thanks for the half hour. I'd like to spend it on your work and where your AI tools help and where they stop, then tell you whether anything of ours fits. If nothing does, I'll say so. Does that suit you?
Say the time you have, not a stock number. A yes, or an agenda of their own: take theirs. If they ask what AlisX is first, give the pitch at the foot of this page, then come back here. Paraphrase the contract and they have agreed to nothing.
Briefly, what's your role?
The title sets the firm type and the seat above: corporate, startup, dev-services, agency, consultancy, or general when unsure; and the verbs say whether they own the budget, the delivery, the technology or the work. Set both toggles now, since every later line reads from them. If the firm did not come with the answer, ask where. If the piece of work they need to deliver did not come with it either, ask what the main thing is right now, then when it is due, one at a time.
What does the company do, and is this work for your own organisation or for clients?
Their own organisation, and a large one: corporate. Building a product of their own: startup. Building for clients: dev services, agency or consultancy, by what they deliver. Otherwise general. The pick swaps in the firm's probes, the door, and the seat labels below; never say the label to them.
Is that yours to deliver, or are you helping someone else with it?
Owns the budget, owns the delivery, owns the technology, or does the work. If it is still unclear: "who signs off on tools for the team?" The pick rewrites the buying questions and how the cost is asked. Jot anyone they name, here or later: the follow-up asks about them by name.
Which AI tools do you and the team use day to day?
The entry point for everything after this. Tap every tool they name, then tap the one they open first a second time: it becomes the primary, and every later line uses its name. "We have Copilot" needs one more question, since Microsoft 365 Copilot and GitHub Copilot have different buyers: ask which. The one they build with matters more than the one the firm bought. Whatever they name, AlisX works with it and nothing here asks them to switch; say so if they wonder whether this is a rival.
Does it work on its own for you, or do you work with it in a chat?
On its own means an agent that runs jobs, writes code or works through files while they do something else. That puts the Build tools in play: the agent needs somewhere to work, and what it builds needs somewhere to run. In a chat keeps the first door at the Skill Store and the Ideate tools. Both is common; ask which one the work they described used.
What's the last thing {ai} did for you?
A job in their words: research, a summary, a draft, code. Then, as its own question, ask what it still left them doing by hand; that answer is usually the metric, the outcome and the mechanism in one. "I checked it by hand" and "it misses the context" point at store; "I pasted it all in" points at projects.
What have you set up with {ai} that stuck?
Something that stuck is a habit worth capturing; what is left by hand is where a door opens. Judgement they hold points to the Skill Store, input they wait on to Alis Ideate Interviews, files it cannot see to Alis Ideate Projects.
What does {ai} still leave you doing by hand?
Something that stuck is a habit worth capturing; what is left by hand is where a door opens. Judgement they hold points to the Skill Store, input they wait on to Alis Ideate Interviews, files it cannot see to Alis Ideate Projects.
When someone last joined the team, how did they pick up the way you do things?
A person everyone copies, or a new joiner who worked it out from scratch, is the Skill Store door: what only that person can do is the first skill. Input from people who will not fit in one room, with a wait measured in weeks, is Alis Ideate Interviews; four or more of them and the door is open, three or fewer and they do not need us.
On the last piece of work that went out, whose input did you need?
A person everyone copies, or a new joiner who worked it out from scratch, is the Skill Store door: what only that person can do is the first skill. Input from people who will not fit in one room, with a wait measured in weeks, is Alis Ideate Interviews; four or more of them and the door is open, three or fewer and they do not need us.
How long did that take to get?
A person everyone copies, or a new joiner who worked it out from scratch, is the Skill Store door: what only that person can do is the first skill. Input from people who will not fit in one room, with a wait measured in weeks, is Alis Ideate Interviews; four or more of them and the door is open, three or fewer and they do not need us.
Who uses what you've built today?
A customer asking where it runs, or who can get at the data, with a contract date attached, opens the Build door: Alis Build Environments in their own cloud and Alis Build DBD for the release path, with AlisX Specialists when a friend set up the hosting. An answer they were not proud of is the heat. No customer asking yet is early; log it and keep in touch.
When did a customer last ask you where it runs?
A customer asking where it runs, or who can get at the data, with a contract date attached, opens the Build door: Alis Build Environments in their own cloud and Alis Build DBD for the release path, with AlisX Specialists when a friend set up the hosting. An answer they were not proud of is the heat. No customer asking yet is early; log it and keep in touch.
What did you tell them?
A customer asking where it runs, or who can get at the data, with a contract date attached, opens the Build door: Alis Build Environments in their own cloud and Alis Build DBD for the release path, with AlisX Specialists when a friend set up the hosting. An answer they were not proud of is the heat. No customer asking yet is early; log it and keep in touch.
On the last project you started, what had to happen before the client signed?
Weeks of unpaid work before a signature is the Alis Ideate Interviews door: requirements gathered from the client's people on the next pursuit. A first week spent on auth, hosting and pipelines, the same as the project before, is Alis Build Environments in the client's cloud, with the method itself as the Skill Store.
How long did that take?
Weeks of unpaid work before a signature is the Alis Ideate Interviews door: requirements gathered from the client's people on the next pursuit. A first week spent on auth, hosting and pipelines, the same as the project before, is Alis Build Environments in the client's cloud, with the method itself as the Skill Store.
What did the first week of the project go on?
Weeks of unpaid work before a signature is the Alis Ideate Interviews door: requirements gathered from the client's people on the next pursuit. A first week spent on auth, hosting and pipelines, the same as the project before, is Alis Build Environments in the client's cloud, with the method itself as the Skill Store.
On the last brief, how long was it from the client's first ask to a brief the team could start on?
Weeks between the client's ask and a brief the team can start on, with the client's people chased one at a time, is the Alis Ideate Interviews door. A build that landed on a different host under a different login from the one before is Alis Build Environments, and the studio's way of building a page is the Skill Store.
Where did the last thing you built for a client end up running?
Weeks between the client's ask and a brief the team can start on, with the client's people chased one at a time, is the Alis Ideate Interviews door. A build that landed on a different host under a different login from the one before is Alis Build Environments, and the studio's way of building a page is the Skill Store.
On your current engagement, how did you find out how the work gets done day to day at the client?
Weeks of workshops and one-to-one calls to learn how the client works is the Alis Ideate Interviews door. A deck skeleton and one person's memory as the only thing reused is the Skill Store: the method captured once and improved on every engagement, with Alis Ideate Artifacts for the deliverable on top of it.
What from the last engagement did you reuse on this one?
Weeks of workshops and one-to-one calls to learn how the client works is the Alis Ideate Interviews door. A deck skeleton and one person's memory as the only thing reused is the Skill Store: the method captured once and improved on every engagement, with Alis Ideate Artifacts for the deliverable on top of it.
Where you are steering: the problem to go in with, the tools to go in with, and the first move. A destination, not a script.
The wish
Where do you wish {ai} did more for you?
Their own words first, before any of the wishes below. Jot the phrase as they said it. If the answer is about them alone, ask the same question for the team as a second line. A category (workflows, adoption, integration) is not a wish yet: ask which one, specifically. Light up the wishes as they name them; a wish named unprompted counts for more than one ticked from the list. The list is a probe for a thin answer, offered one item at a time in the founder's wording, never the opener.
Here are some of the things we hear people say they wish their AI tools could do for them or their team. Do any of these sound like you?
Only after the open question has had its answer in their own words. Offer the first three to five, the ones most likely to land for this kind of firm; the rest only if none of those do. An item lights only when they recognise it in their own work; the line that follows asks for the last time it happened, not for agreement.
Tell me about the last time you went looking for a template or an example before you could start.
A real one names the job and where they looked first: a colleague's file, an old deck, a search that found nothing. "All the time" with no job attached is a polite yes. The Skill Store door opens once a job is named. Door: The Skill Store.
Tell me about the last time someone redid a piece of work that had already been done.
Listen for the piece of work, the person who redid it, and where the first version lived (a chat, a head, a leaver's drive). "We could be better at sharing" names nobody and nothing. No instance, no Skill Store door. Door: The Skill Store.
Tell me about the last time you needed input from several people before you could move on.
A wait with a length, a meeting that took weeks to book, or a decision that sat on one person's diary. "We collaborate a lot" is not a wait. The Alis Ideate Interviews door opens when the people are named and there are more than three of them. Door: Alis Ideate Interviews.
Tell me about the last file or format your AI tool couldn't work with.
A file type, a size, or the system it lives in, plus the workaround: split it up, retyped it, gave up. "It struggles sometimes" has no file in it. The named file is the Alis Ideate Projects door. Door: Alis Ideate Projects.
What was the last thing you made with your AI tool that you then had to hand to someone else?
The thing, who it went to, and the copy, paste and tidy-up in between. "The output could be better" has no recipient. The Alis Ideate Artifacts door opens when one is named. Door: Alis Ideate Artifacts.
Where does the last tool you built run today?
A place (a laptop, a personal account, a hosting service a friend set up) and who else now depends on it. "We'd want it done properly" with nothing running anywhere is agreement, not evidence. The place is the Alis Build Environments door; "a friend set it up" adds the Specialists. Door: Alis Build Environments.
Tell me about the last time you tried to get something you'd built into real use.
Where it stopped and who stopped it: a release only one person knows how to do, a review nobody owned, a change that went live with nobody checking it. "We'd like to scale it" with nothing built to point at is a polite yes. The stop is the Alis Build DBD door. A security questionnaire, or a customer asking where the data sits, is about the place it runs: Alis Build Environments. Door: Alis Build DBD.
What happened the last time you closed the laptop on a job that wasn't finished?
A job with a length, a laptop left open overnight, or something rerun the next morning. "That would be handy" with no job longer than a coffee is a wish, not a job. The long job is the Alis Build Workstations door. Door: Alis Build Workstations.
Tell me about the last thing you needed built, and how the requirements for it were agreed.
Requirements gathered through meetings and documents, then a build that landed somewhere different from the ask, is the real thing; a wish for a magic button is not yet. Door: Alis Ideate Interviews and Artifacts for the spec everyone signs off, then a partner who has built it before. Door: Alis Ideate Interviews.
Tell me about the last time you or your AI got stuck and needed a person. Who did you ask, and how long did it take to find them?
A person with a name, how they were found (a message to the whole channel, a favour from a friend, a contractor's invoice) and the hours or days it took. "We usually work it out" names nobody. The search is the AlisX Specialists door: someone on their own team who already knows, or a specialist from outside who can review the decision or help get it done. Door: AlisX Specialists.
The pain
Tell me about the last time that happened.
A named task on a named day, and who was in it. No example, no cost question. If nothing comes, this is not the pain: go back to the open question and try another shape of it. If they call it a nice-to-have or say they have not tried to fix it, say "fair enough", drop it, and never raise it again. The door is chosen from what they say here, not from the toggles.
What happened because of it?
Heat before numbers: a slipped date, a rework, a difficult conversation, a weekend lost. If they have not said, ask as a separate question where {ai} came into it, or did not. Only after this does the cost line make sense, and the cost asked is this instance's. Never supply a number.
If that were better, what would change first for you?
Their answer lights what it would give them: further (past the demo, into something running, a project landing, new revenue), faster (the meeting series, the queue, brief to build, their own week) or safer (AI nobody can see or check, data leaving, a security review). Those three are what we promise. Cheaper (the bill, licences, the same work twice, unpaid work) is a pain to ask about and never a fourth promise: light it when they raise it, and what we say back is more from the AI they already pay for. What each means depends on the firm and the seat you picked; the lines below change with them. Light what you hear, ask "anything else?" once, never read the list out. A pain they call a nice-to-have is dead: leave it dark.
Further
Their future state, in their words. The gap between this and what they described is the deal.
Their number, however rough. A range from them beats a figure from you. Never supply one.
One feeling question, asked once, then silence.
Faster
Their future state, in their words. The gap between this and what they described is the deal.
Their number, however rough. A range from them beats a figure from you. Never supply one.
One feeling question, asked once, then silence.
Safer
Their future state, in their words. The gap between this and what they described is the deal.
Their number, however rough. A range from them beats a figure from you. Never supply one.
One feeling question, asked once, then silence.
Cheaper
Their future state, in their words. The gap between this and what they described is the deal.
Their number, however rough. A range from them beats a figure from you. Never supply one.
One feeling question, asked once, then silence.
Is there a date this has to be better by?
A date within about three months, a number they are judged by, or neither. "It's ongoing" is a fair answer; write it down. If a date comes, ask as its own line what happens if it slips. Without a date or a number the follow-up runs slow, however real the pain, and the write-up says so.
Buying process
Mind if I ask a few questions about how something like this would get decided where you work?
Ask it only once the pain has an example and a cost; earlier it reads as an audit. A no is a finding, not a failure: go straight to the playback.
If you decided this was worth doing, what would have to happen between here and a signature?
Steps, names and dates. A founder's "I'd just buy it" is usually true. The same words from an executive at a large firm mean procurement, legal and security have not been thought about yet, so ask which of those would get involved.
The last time you put money against a new tool, what did you look at before you did?
Their criteria in their words: a reference, a security answer, cost per user, a trial that proved something. Then: "Whose budget would this come from, yours or a central one?" At an agency, a consultancy or a services firm, ask whether the first client project would carry it. Note the personal win if one shows.
What else have you looked at or tried for this?
Doing nothing and building it themselves are the two we lose to most. If neither comes up, ask "and what if you left it as it is?" A quote already on the table sets the pace and the price they will compare us to.
When does this need to be in place?
A quarter, a budget cycle, or a customer's date. "No particular date" against a real cost means the cost is not yet felt: go back to what happens if they miss. Whatever they say sets the follow-up's pace.
If your team wanted to go ahead with something like this, who would have to say yes?
A name or a role above them, and often a second one in IT. "Me" from a lead at a large firm is rarely the whole answer; ask who they would need on side. "Not sure" is not the end of it: ask "Who do you report to?", then whether a slipped date would be their problem too.
Who holds the budget for tools like this?
Their own line, the sponsor's, or a central one. Then: "What does that person look at before they release it?" At an agency or consultancy, ask whether it would be billed to a client engagement or carried as overhead. A lead who can spend from a project budget without a new approval is closer to a buyer than they sound.
What else have you tried for this?
The IT queue, a vendor already in, a spreadsheet, or nothing. A team staffed to build it the conventional way is not lost: ask how long that route took last time. Something they built themselves that lives on a laptop is the environments door.
The last time you got a new tool approved, how long did it take from first ask to people using it?
Past behaviour beats a hoped-for date. Months, and what slowed it, tell you the real path. Put it against the date on their piece of work; if the two do not fit, say so on the call.
Would you introduce us to the person who'd have to say yes, or would you rather take it in yourself first?
A yes with a when is a champion. "Let me take it in first" is fair: ask what they would need from us to do that, and send the playback within two days so they have it in hand.
The last tool your team brought in, what did it have to go through before it was allowed?
A security review, an architecture board, a data residency check, a vendor questionnaire. Who ran it and how long it took is the timing. In financial services assume a security review whatever they say. Note which item they lead with: that one goes first in the playback, and their own cloud under their own IAM (environments) is the answer to most of them.
Who would have to say yes for something like this to go in?
Security, architecture, the budget holder, sometimes a CIO. "Just me" at a large firm is rarely true; ask who would object if it went in without them. Note whether they own the platform choice or advise on it.
Where does the budget for tools like this sit?
Their line, a platform budget, or a business team that would pay for it. Then: "What does whoever holds it look at?" Cost against the current cloud and token bill usually comes up here. Take their number; never supply one.
What else have you looked at or tried for this?
Building it themselves is the live one: ask how far it got and where it runs now. A half-built internal platform is the environments and dbd door, not a competitor. A hyperscaler's own tooling and doing nothing are the other two.
Would you introduce us to the people who'd have to say yes?
A yes with a name is a champion. "Send me something first" means the playback and a technical write-up, not the deck. If they hesitate, ask what they would want to see run first.
If your team wanted to use something like this, who would have to say yes?
One question maps the organisation in ten seconds and stops a user being pitched as a buyer. A name or a role is the answer. "Not sure" is not an answer yet: ask "Who do you report to?", then whether the missed date would land on them too.
The last time a new tool showed up on your team, how did it get there?
Someone asked for it, IT chose it, or people started using it and it stuck. The third is the path we count on: a free trial in their hands. How long it took, if they know, is the timing.
Who pays for the tools you use today?
A central budget, a manager's card, or their own money. A shrug is fine; they are not the buyer. What the payer looks at is a question for the person they named, not for them.
What have you already tried to get round this?
A workaround, a prompt they built, a script on their laptop, a tool they pay for themselves. Something they built and want to keep is the store door; something with nowhere to run is the environments door. "Nothing" on a pain they called real means ask what stopped them.
Would you introduce us to the person you mentioned, or would you rather try it yourself first?
Trying it first is the better answer from a user: it makes them the reference. A yes to the introduction with a when is a champion. Either way, send the playback so they have something to forward.
The playback
Say it back in their words, then wait. Name nothing until they confirm. A correction is the best moment of the call: restate it in their words and ask the one question it points to before going on. Never answer a correction with an apology and a close.
Name the kind of problem before the tool: know-how, context, somewhere to build, or the right person. Then one tool at most, chosen from an instance and never from a loose word. The proof is there for when they ask how you know; say it as written and add nothing to it. If nothing reached an instance, say that nothing of ours fits right now; it is useful to know and it earns the next conversation.
Know-howContextA secure place to buildThe right people to askFollow up and next steps
What would be useful from here, from your side?
A step in their words, with a date. Only if nothing comes, offer the options: a call to go through this properly, a hands-on session with the team, trying it free, an introduction to a partner, or nothing for now. "Nothing for now" is an honest answer; log it and send the write-up anyway. Offer the introduction (partners) only where their function or industry has a partner-built solution.
Who else should hear the same questions?
The names from earlier in the call, asked for by name or role: jot them on the seat line as they come up and this line quotes them. "Who else" on its own gets "not sure". If no names came up, ask who else would have a view on the thing that gets in the way, then what their role is, one at a time.
If something like that were to happen for your team, who would have to say yes?
Whether it is them. If not, that person is the buyer and the next move. "Not sure" is not the end of it: ask who they report to, then whether a missed date would land on that person too. A name or a role is the answer; a shrug is a finding.
I'll send you the write-up of what you said. If the others answer the same questions, it covers how the team works rather than one person. Would you forward them the link?
A yes to forwarding is champion behaviour. The link opens the same questions as an Interview (interviews), so the write-up covers the team rather than one person. If they hesitate, offer as a separate question to invite the others yourselves and ask for their emails. A no is fine; the write-up goes to them regardless.
Say the next step back with its date and what they will get from you, then stop: no new question after the close.
The note, for the CRM
Hand-off: the discovery interview for the rest of the company
If they ask what AlisX is
- We are the antidote to AI chaos; the foundation for AI confidence.
- We bring structure to how and where individuals and teams work with their AI tools so that work goes further, moves faster and happens safer.
- We do this through our agent native workbench: the AlisX Platform.
- On this workbench is everything you need to go further, move faster and operate safer with the AI tools you already use: know-how they can apply, context they can trust, a secure place to build and the right people to ask.
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