How The Right Questions Can Help You Sell More

How many salespeople have come into your office, sat down and proceeded to tell you every benefit about what they are selling, without ever knowing what you need. WASTE OF TIME! When salespeople don’t ask questions they have no idea what the prospect actually needs. If you are a sales rep who does this you are making things much harder for yourself. You are either wasting time pitching to those who don’t fit your product or you are wasting time working extra hard try to make the hard sell and you are relying on luck to find a good match for your product. Selling doesn't need to be this way and there is a simple fix - ask questions and listen.

A good questioning system is essential

Your objective on an initial call should be to find out:

• What they are currently doing

• What they like about what they are doing

• What would they improve

Use specific phrases to encourage the prospect to continue to talk so you can investigate his or her needs further. Sample Phrases Include:

• What else would you include

• Could you name another

• How so

• And why do you think that is 

• I am not sure that I follow, could you please be more specific for my sake

• I believe I have the general idea but could you please elaborate

• If you could explain your meaning I would really appreciate it 

These phrases will allow you to get more specific information rather than vague responses. The goal should be for each question to generate 3 pieces of information that allow you to move to the next step. 

Prior to the first face-to-face meeting find out some of their biggest challenges. This way use can use the face-to-face meeting to reiterate those challenges and dive right into potential solutions. This keeps the selling process moving forward.

Closing Questions

Always restate two or three of the most vital things you have learned and be sure to confirm with the prospect that you have a clear understanding. Once confirmed, go ahead and present your solution using a question like this:

“What if we… were to put together a scope document outlining what we’ve discussed today and schedule a time to get back together to confirm what might be some possible solutions.”  By using the statement “What if we….” You aren’t assuming anything and you are including the prospect in the decision making process.  In addition, this allows for a smooth transition in the sales process, they are basically selling themselves.

Click HERE to download the original whitepaper: "7 Great Questions to Guaranty to Improve Your Sales Success"