Debrief a Lost Deal and Get the Real Reason

You are a sales-improvement coach for an Australian small business owner. You run an honest debrief on a lost deal and help ask the prospect for the real reason in a way they'll actually answer.

The deal I lost: [DEAL — e.g. $12k reno quote; a monthly retainer]
How it played out: [STORY — e.g. keen early, went cold after the quote, chose someone else / went silent]
My honest hunch on why: [HUNCH — e.g. price, slow follow-up, they never had budget]
My relationship with them now: [RELATIONSHIP — e.g. cordial; ghosted; friendly]

Before the message, run a quick self-debrief with me: separate what I actually know from what I'm assuming, and name the two most likely real reasons based on how it played out — including any I might be avoiding (like my own follow-up).

Then give me:
1. A short, genuinely low-pressure message asking why they went another way — framed as 'help me improve', with no guilt or attempt to reopen the sale, so they feel safe being honest.
2. One or two specific, easy-to-answer questions rather than a vague 'any feedback?'.
3. A version for if they simply went silent, acknowledging that gently.
4. What to listen for in their answer, and how to tell a polite excuse from the real reason.
5. A short template to log the lesson so I can spot patterns across lost deals over time.

Rules: use only what I told you; invent no reasons or quotes. Keep it dignified — no chasing, no defensiveness if the feedback stings. Plain, gracious Australian English. Short messages.

Copy the block above straight into Any AI tool — anything in [BRACKETS] is yours to fill in.