Section 8 · AI Mini-Consultant — Earn the Meeting

8.5Diagnose before pitching

Built in the POC

No.: 8.5
DMA's reference: Decision Book p.20
Phase: Phase 1
Autonomy: L4 · Autonomous
DMA's decision: Yes

What DMA asked for · Decision Book p.20

Understand the problem first, then recommend the right service, rather than pushing everything.

Why it matters to DMA: It is what stops the agent feeling like a pushy chatbot.

In our words, from DMA's Product Decision Book v3, page 20.

How we do it

The strategist's approved instructions say it plainly: diagnose before you pitch. It asks two or three natural questions over the chat, one at a time: what the business does, what isn't working, what they have tried.
Before every reply, the conversation service tells it what is still missing (the business, the main problem, the website, the timing) and the current goal: diagnose, or, once the problem is known and the review has been shown, stop asking and offer the call.
The note-taker records which services fit what the visitor described. Those services go to the rep in Nutshell; the chat itself doesn't list services or quote prices.

The flow

It plays on its own while it's on screen; hover or use the controls to pause or step through.

Step 1 of 5

Questions first

What does the business do, and what isn't working?

Person
Rule in code
AI
Routing
Nutshell

Where the data goes

The same six stages on every page. Nothing reaches Nutshell except through the write gate.

1Website chat
Source
The visitor's answers.
2Sync
Copies Nutshell changes into the bridge database
Not involved.
3Bridge database
A copy of the CRM data, plus what the AI works out
The running notes: problem, services that fit, timing.
4AI
Claude models, only through DMA's own gateway
Asks, listens, reflects; a smaller model keeps the notes.
5Write gate
The only way back into Nutshell: checked, approved when needed, sent once
Writes the lead with the fitting services.
6Nutshell
The system of record
The rep starts from the diagnosis.

The tables behind it

Drawn from the POC's database catalogue: structure only, no data.

PK primary keyFK reference the database enforces (solid line)ID reference kept by id (dashed line)

Table	What it holds	Columns
conv.conversations	The chat and its stage.	22
conv.messages	Every line, encrypted.	21

How the tables connect (5)

Column	Points to	Kept by
conv.conversations.agent_version_id	agent.agent_versions	The application (by id)
conv.messages.conversation_id	conv.conversations	The database (foreign key)
conv.messages.participant_id	conv.participants	The application (by id)
conv.messages.decision_id	ctrl.decision_log	The application (by id)
conv.messages.agent_version_id	agent.agent_versions	The application (by id)

Worked example

Synthetic demo data: every name, business and number is made up.

Diagnosis in a real chat

1 / 2

What you see

1.The problem, in the visitor's words

A law-firm owner describes what isn't working.

A law-firm owner describes the problem: the strategist answers like a consultant, not a brochure.

What happens in the system

Conversation serviceturn context
The goal is "diagnose", with the list of what is still missing.

Right-hand values come from a real run of the POC on September 25, 2026 (trace tr_muh5t7yd21f50nl0xe4kx, tr_muh5t8021x0f48ojhiv2d). Rows marked “sample” are illustrative.

How one synthetic chat moved from diagnosis to the call.

Turn by turn

Turn	Still missing	Goal given to the strategist
1	business, problem, website, timing	Diagnose: understand the business and problem; get their website reviewed.
2	website, timing	Diagnose: understand the business and problem; get their website reviewed.
3	timing	Booking criteria are met: stop asking questions and offer the 45-minute call.

In the running POC

1 / 2A law-firm owner describes the problem: the strategist answers like a consultant, not a brochure.

1The visitor's problem, in their own words.
2A short reply that reflects the problem and asks one question. No pitch, no list of services.

Website chat · Harbor & Finch Law demo site. Captured from the running POC on September 25, 2026; synthetic data.

See it live

Opens the exact screen in the running POC, in a new tab.

Open	Where	What to try
Harbor & Finch Law demo site	Demo prospect website	Describe a problem and see it diagnose before suggesting anything.

Status

Built in the POC

Built in the POC. This capability runs in the POC today, on synthetic data, end to end.