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Ask open-ended questions as a means to get your prospects talking.
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As a salesperson, one of the easiest pitfalls is what we refer to as core dumping. I have been doing sales and service scenarios for three years. The number one thing that I see sales people do is telling and not selling. It never fails, sales people do this time and time again. It is a behavior that is hard to break. As a prospect, all I have to do is to say hello and the sales person is off and running. I normally just cut the sales person off after fifteen minutes or so. When we review the video tapes, I usually ask one short, seemingly simple question, "As a prospect, what are my needs and how can you help me?" Silence can be painful at times like this. Without having to say anything, the message has been clearly made and understood. Many people enter sales with the notion that the longest list of features wins the order. So given twenty minutes of a prospect's time, the entire list must be given. Hopefully, my list will win. You may be tired of hearing about the power of asking questions, but we suggest that you ask, not tell.
Ask open-ended questions as a means to get your prospects talking. This should increase your understanding of where you might fit in the solution and increase your position with the prospect. Not too long ago, I collected some good open-ended questions from the people in our office. Here are a few:
- What is the main challenge you currently face?
- What actions are taking place to correct this situation?
- What product or service are you currently using?
- What do you like or dislike about the current product or service you are using?
- Who else is involved in this process?
- How and when will the decision be made? By whom?
- What implications are there if things do not change in the next 3-6-9 months?
- How would you change things if you had it your way?
- What alternatives have you considered?
- How do you plan to finance the purchase?
I threw the last one in because it is imperative to understand this. The others should provide a platform in which your prospects and customers can open up. Given their answers, you can begin to ask more detailed questions and have a natural dialogue. Allow them to paint a picture of their situation and then paint a picture of how you can help.
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