|
It
is no secret that listening is the key to sales. There is a little
deeper secret to the listening side of selling. And that secret is the
artful development of questions. It's not only the ability to listen
that separates the super sales winners from the rest, it is the ability
to develop the right questions that will elicit the answers to which you
will want to listen!
There is also a little known and often overlooked corollary to the power
of questions. And that corollary is this: Never ask a question unless
you're reasonably sure of the answer. The secret here is Pre-Call
Planning. The artful act of preparing for the call. A key part of that
is to anticipate things like:
- What
questions will I need to ask to elicit interest?
- What
problems does this person want to solve?
- What
questions are they likely to ask me?
- What
will they find most or least attractive about my product? Company?
Delivery? Service?
- Why
would they be interested now? Not interested now?
Here's
the secret. Never, ever call on a prospect until you have become
reasonably confident of the (a) questions they are likely to ask you and
(b) the questions you need to ask them. Then, and only then should you
proceed with the call.
Questions you should ask during your sales presentation should never
sound like the interrogation of a suspect by Sergeant Joe Friday of
Dragnet fame, either. Instead, they should be preceded by phrases such
as:
- Explain
for me if you will...
- Let
me ask you this if I might...
- Could
you help me with...
- Could
you expand on that for me...
- I'm
interested in learning about...
Phrases
such as these will enable you to soften your approach to questions,
gather your thoughts and empower you to ask questions that are
thoughtful and appropriate.
As a general rule try to avoid questions that start with the words
"Do," "Could," "Would," or
"Are." The common problem here? All of these questions can be
answered with a simple (and, therefore, limiting), "No" or
"Yes." Instead, try to ask questions that get the prospect
reflecting and discussing issues, problems, challenges, opportunities,
time frames, intentions, goals, impediments and desires.
Do your best to ask questions that contain the classic "who, what,
when, where and how." Ask for permission to record your prospect's
answers. Wait and record what you hear. Make it obvious you are
interested and captivated...that you are prepared to maintain a
permanent record of the things you have uncovered.
Ask questions related to the needs your product or service might meet
for your prospect. Ask questions related to the benefits they might seek
from your product. Ask questions related to their position on the most
common stalls or objections you encounter. Ask questions related to
buying cycles, current suppliers, time frames, delivery demands, and
budget ranges. Ask questions that reflect your understanding of what
your prospect has said. Do that by making the following types of
statements and end the statement with a rhetoric question like, "Is
that correct?"
- What
I heard you say was...
- My
impression of your problem is...
- As
I heard you say...
You
can never ask enough questions. But the secret is to ask the right
questions of the right people at the right time. Be sure you're with a
qualified prospect by asking the right questions. Work hard at
developing your battery of questions. In fact, I've got three that I use
all the time. They are my favorites...let me give them to you as my
special gift to you for being smart enough to live here in the Triad!
Here
they are:
- What
would you like someone like our organization to do for you?
- What,
if anything, are you looking for that you haven't found?
- Who
else, other than you, of course, is involved in making this type of
decision?
- Now,
let me ask you a question. Are you convinced that listening is only
part of the equation? How about the right questions.
|
