5 Great sales questions

So you have made contact and built a relationship with a client. But how can you start to really uncover client needs?

The answer is, with some great questions.

Now this isn’t about staging an interrogation but just taking the time to think through some questions that build on each other to really open up opportunities.

The right questions are one’s that open up conversation and feel more natural. You will have your own style but try to work some of these in to your next client meeting -

Tell me more about that challenge

Before you ask this question of a prospect, I’m going to assume that you’ve already engaged the prospect in a conversation about their challenges, concerns, or needs. But now you need to become a sales psychologist. The first statement a client might make can be conversational filler, you need to go past that because what matters is what comes after.

Most salespeople never get past the surface of an initial statement. They just take whatever the prospect says at face value and then launch right into their pitch or say, “Well, you’re in the right place!” and suddenly we are done with listening and we are into broadcast mode. But if you know to ask “Tell me more about that challenge” then you’ll immediately go deeper and find out more. 

What’s a recent example of that?

This sales question takes you even deeper. You’ve already compelled your prospect to tell you more about their key challenge—now, you’re asking for a recent example. 

This sales question is all about taking the prospect’s pain-point from academic to reality. When prospects talk to salespeople about their challenges, it often feels academic in nature. You want to make it real. 

That’s why you’re going to ask about a recent example of that challenge. Once the prospect gives you an example, it’s amazing how it just flips a switch. That’s because now you’re getting into what really matters—and you can feel the shift in the conversation. Prospects can feel it too. At the same time, the example they share helps you get so much more insight into what’s actually happening, and why it’s so problematic for the prospect. Part of asking a good question is getting the prospect to articulate the challenges they face, and to admit to themselves how much pain they’re really in.

The other side of this question is if there isn’t a recent example of their issue then it may not be a high priority and therefore won’t have any budget allocated to resolving it.

If you could solve this, what would it mean in financial terms?

If you can translate your prospect’s challenges into financial measures, then you’ll get them to tell you the value of your solution. There’s nothing more powerful than that. This is what it means to sell “on value”  Ask your prospect to articulate exactly what their problem costs them in money. 

Now, if there is truly no monetary value on the challenge your prospect mentioned, you can still ask something like, “If you could solve this, what would it mean to you?” or “If you were able to solve this, what would it mean, big picture?” The main idea is that you want to get the prospect thinking, “If I were actually able to solve this, what would that really mean for me?” This can lead to you uncovering both the professional and personal motivators.

Why is this an issue right now?

This sales question is important because it gives urgency to the prospect’s needs. You want to dig deep to find out the urgency and relevancy of the prospect’s challenge—right now. The prospect may answer, “Well, we’re really more focused on solving this in Q4,” or “While it’s important to us, I think I’ve got a couple of other issues that are more important right now. Then I want to come back to this down the road.” On the other hand, if it’s really important to them, they’re going to say “this is a strategic priority – I have to get this done” and you know where you stand.

This also helps to reinforce in their head a positive view of you. Their thought process might be “Yeah, this is really important to solve. I’m feeling good talking to this person who’s asked me some really powerful questions to get me to actually articulate why I care about this.”

How is this affecting you directly?

Let’s say the prospect is talking about the organization’s operational challenges. But as the prospect talks, it becomes clear that they’re focusing on how the challenge affects everyone else but them.

Until you start to understand how this issue is affecting the prospect directly, you won’t be able to determine whether the prospect is going to make a buying decision one way or the other. Ultimately the data shows that all buying decisions are made based on emotion. We just use logic to justify the emotional decision. So dig deep to understand how the challenge affects the prospect personally—and emotionally. Do be careful to ask this sales question with some emotional intelligence. Say something like, “I really appreciate what you’ve told me so far. How would you say that this is affecting you directly, on a personal level?” A bit of empathy can really help to build relationships.

And one bonus question –

Is doing nothing an option?

Some salespeople shy away from asking this – almost as if they prefer not to know but save yourself time and ask if they can do nothing. If they are not facing any negative consequences for inaction, they may be reluctant to make any change, since change can be difficult and complicated. However, if there are factors that are driving action this will help identify them. This question can be very useful ahead of entering any formal procurement process as a qualification question. You could alter this to be more specific for that use case ‘Is there appetite to change providers at this time’.

Best practice is to plan out a few questions in advance of any meeting. Don’t just wing it, take the time to use a meeting planner and lay your questions out. Then think about the order in which you will ask them. The results can be remarkable.

I wish you every success.

Smooth Sales is a collective of Sales experts able to transform your commercial organisation. Specialising in 3–24-month contracts we become part of your team to drive real change. Find out more at www.smoothsales.co.uk