How an ASI engagement works
From discovery call to intelligence delivery in 3–4 weeks. Here's exactly what happens, what you need to provide, and what you receive.
The short version
- Discovery call (30 minutes) — We explore your situation and identify whether ASI is the right fit
- Pre-work and preparation — You complete a briefing document; we review and prepare
- Kickoff workshop (2 hours) — We define the decision architecture and intelligence priorities together
- Intelligence gathering (1–2 weeks) — We explore how decision-makers in your category reason and evaluate
- Analysis (3–5 days) — We translate raw intelligence into strategic finding
- Delivery workshop (2 hours) — We walk through findings, implications, and recommendations together
- Partner presentation (optional) — We present findings to the partnership if that would be valuable
Total timeline: 3–4 weeks from kickoff workshop to delivery
Phase 1: Discovery call
Duration: 30 minutes
What happens:
We explore your situation and the strategic questions you need answered. Common starting points:
- "Why do we keep losing competitive pitches to 'essentially similar' competitors?"
- "What actually differentiates us in our clients' eyes?"
- "We're launching a new practice — what do buyers in this space actually value?"
- "Panel renewal is coming — what intelligence would strengthen our position?"
- "We're rebranding — what positioning will the market actually respond to?"
We'll tell you honestly whether ASI can answer your question — and if it can't, what approach would work better.
What you need to provide:
- 30 minutes of your time
- Information about the challenges you think might be tackled by better client intelligence
Outcome:
You'll know whether ASI fits your situation. If it does, we'll send you the pre-work briefing document to prepare for the kickoff workshop.
Phase 2: Pre-work and preparation
Duration: Before the kickoff workshop
What happens:
We brief you on what it would be useful for us to know before our workshop. Depending on the project, this might be:
- Your competitive landscape and who you're typically compared against
- Recent wins and losses (patterns you've noticed, feedback you've received)
- Current positioning and messaging (how you describe your differentiation today)
- The specific decisions or questions you want intelligence to inform
You complete this before the kickoff workshop. We review it thoroughly so we arrive prepared to make the most of your workshop time.
What you need to provide:
- Completed briefing document (typically 45–60 minutes to complete thoughtfully)
- Any existing research, win/loss data, or client feedback you have (helpful but not required)
Outcome:
We arrive at the kickoff workshop with context. None of your time wasted bring us up to speed on basics.
Phase 3: Kickoff workshop
Duration: 2 hours
What happens:
This is where we define what intelligence we're gathering and why.
Decision architecture mapping
Who makes decisions when firms like yours are evaluated? What roles? What sectors? What firm sizes? What geographic considerations? We map the dimensions that matter for your specific intelligence question.
Intelligence priorities
What questions will reveal decision drivers versus hygiene factors? What probes will surface language patterns and competitive blind spots? We align on exactly what you need to know.
Client Proxy panel design
We define the decision-makers who will represent the variation in your buyer population — by role, sector, firm size, and whatever dimensions matter for your intelligence question. Not averaged opinions — individual models capturing how different buyer types think and evaluate.
What you need to provide:
- 2 hours with the right people in the room (typically: marketing lead, BD lead, and/or a partner who understands competitive dynamics)
- Honest input on your competitive situation and current positioning challenges
Outcome:
A clear intelligence design. You'll know what we're investigating and what intelligence you'll receive.
Phase 4: Intelligence gathering
Duration: 1–2 weeks
What happens:
We explore how your Client Proxy panel reasons when evaluating firms in your category. Each decision-maker model is probed individually — revealing what drives their choices, what creates confidence, and what triggers rejection.
What this surfaces:
- What actually drives decisions — where to invest positioning effort
- How buyers interpret your language — where your claims land vs where you intend
- What no firm in your category is addressing — the competitive white space
- What creates confidence vs what triggers scepticism
- What gets you rejected before you're seriously considered
What you need to provide:
Nothing. This phase is all us.
Outcome:
Raw intelligence data ready for analysis.
Phase 5: Analysis
Duration: 3–5 days
What happens:
We analyse the intelligence and translate it into strategic findings:
Decision driver analysis
What actually predicts choices in your category? Where should you invest positioning effort? What's hygiene (required but not differentiating) versus what's a genuine differentiator?
Language gap identification
Where do your current claims land differently than intended? What terminology creates confusion? What language patterns signal credibility?
Competitive opportunity mapping
What decision drivers matter to buyers but no firm in your category addresses? Where's the positioning white space?
Strategic recommendations
Based on the intelligence: what positioning changes would create competitive distance? What messaging shifts? What operational proof points would you need to develop?
What you need to provide:
Nothing. We're getting ready to present the intelligence to you.
Outcome:
Intelligence report and strategic recommendations ready for the delivery workshop.
Phase 6: Delivery workshop
Duration: 2 hours
What happens:
We walk through the findings together — not a presentation you sit through, but a working session.
Findings review
What did the intelligence reveal? Where did it confirm your assumptions? Where did it contradict them? What surprised you or us?
Implications discussion
What does this mean for your positioning? Your messaging? Your pitch approach? Your competitive strategy?
Recommendations and priorities
Based on the intelligence, what should you do? What's highest leverage? What's the sequence?
Application planning
How will you use this intelligence? Who needs to see it? What decisions does it inform immediately?
What you receive:
- Intelligence report with findings and analysis
- Strategic recommendations document
- 90-day AI Advisor access — your intelligence embedded in an AI advisor for ongoing application
What you need to provide:
- 2 hours with the right people in the room (same group as kickoff, ideally, plus anyone who will own implementation)
- Readiness for implications and possibilitiies
Phase 7: Partner presentation (optional)
Duration: Typically 60–90 minutes
What happens:
If it would be valuable, we present the findings to your partnership or leadership team.
This isn't a repeat of the delivery workshop — it's tailored for a partner audience:
- What the intelligence reveals about competitive position
- What it means for the firm's strategic direction
- What changes the intelligence supports
- Q&A on methodology and findings
When this helps:
- When positioning changes need partner buy-in
- When the findings challenge assumptions partners hold
- When you want external validation for a strategic direction
- When implementation requires firm-wide commitment
What you need to provide:
- Partner time (we work with you on scheduling and format)
- Context on what questions or resistance to anticipate
This is offered if it would be helpful. It's not required.
What happens after delivery
Immediate: You have intelligence your competitors don't.
You know what drives decisions in your category. You know where your current positioning lands versus where you intend it to land. You know where the competitive white space is.
Next 90 days: Your AI Advisor is active.
Your intelligence is embedded in an AI advisor trained on your specific findings. Use it to pressure-test pitches, draft positioning-consistent content, and apply your intelligence to live situations.
Optional: Strategic consulting
If you want help translating intelligence into positioning frameworks, delivery mapping, and messaging hierarchy, strategic consulting builds on your ASI foundation. Most firms find value in this step — intelligence without implementation creates no distance.
Day 90: Subscription decision
Your bundled AI Advisor access ends. You can subscribe to retain and expand, or let the access conclude. By day 90, you'll know whether the advisor has become essential to how you compete.
What ASI does not require from you
No client interviews required
We don't need you to arrange access to your clients. The intelligence comes from Client Proxies representing your buyer population — not from conversations with your actual relationships.
No partner time for research
Partners don't need to participate in lengthy workshops, interviews, or surveys. The two workshops (kickoff and delivery) are the only structured time commitment.
No existing research required
If you have prior research, win/loss data, or client feedback, it's helpful context. If you don't, we build from first principles.
No lengthy procurement process
ASI is a defined engagement with clear deliverables. Typical procurement approval is straightforward.
AI governance and data security
A question we hear from firms with AI policies: "How does ASI fit our AI governance framework?"
ASI is a one-way system that delivers intelligence into your firm.
No client data or firm information leaves your firm — we don't ask for any of that data because we don't need any. The intelligence we gather is about your category (how buyers in your market make decisions), not about your firm's confidential information or your clients' matters.
For this reason, every client so far has found that ASI sits entirely outside their AI governance scope. None of your firm's information or your clients' information is seen by us, let alone entered into any AI system.
What we receive from you:
- The sort of clients you value (not the names of clients you represent now)
- Context about your competitive landscape (who you pitch against)
- Your current positioning and messaging (what you say publicly)
- Your strategic questions (what hypotheses you want to test)
What we don't receive:
- Client names or matter information
- Confidential firm data
- Anything that would trigger data protection or AI governance concerns
If your firm has specific AI governance requirements, we're happy to discuss how ASI fits your framework.
See if ASI fits your situation
Book a 30-minute discovery call. We'll explore your situation, identify your most critical intelligence gaps, and confirm whether ASI is the right approach for your specific question.
If it is, you'll know exactly what you'd receive and when. If it isn't, we'll tell you that directly.
Prefer to email? Email us at asi@taleist.agency.