Question to Ask “What do you attribute that to”
If you want insight into the thought process of the prospect, then ask them “What do you attribute that to”. Or you can ask “What, in your mind, caused that”. You would ask this question when they told you about a situation or problem they are facing. The normal course of action would be to say, “tell me more about that”. Or maybe to ask another question delving into the details of the problem. The value of asking “what caused that” is that it gives you an idea about what the prospect thinks the real problem is. It might also give you a clue as to how to solve the problem. But the real value is in giving you more information about how the prospect thinks and what the real pain is. You can always go back and get more details about the problem with follow up questions.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Your value is in the questions you ask
You, as a sales professional, bring value to your prospect by the questions you ask. Twenty years ago, it was the information you were able to provide but that is not true any longer. They can get most of that online or in the cloud. Some say it is the expertise that you bring. But the real value you bring is in the questions you are able to ask that make the prospect think. If you can draw on you knowledge and experience to ask questions that bring a different perspective or challenge the traditional thinking or shed a new light on the problem, then you demonstrate real value to the prospect. You become a resource to the prospect that they can go to when they are stuck or when they want to be sure they have “thought of everything”. If you can ask those kinds of questions, then you will have a conversation with the prospect that your competitors never have. That in itself will distinguish you from the competition more than any information you can impart. If you can draw on your knowledge to ask the good hard tough questions then you will have the conversation with the prospect that they need to have and that will demonstrate your value put you ahead of the competition.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Don’t Pounce
Predators pounce on their prey. They lie in and wait for the prey to come by, then pounce on them and have their way. Obviously, the prey tries to escape the clutches of the enemy. That is what it feels like to a prospect when you leap in with a solution at the first mention of a problem. Leaping in with a solution is what I call “pouncing”. Even if the prospect does not instinctively recoil, you will lose control of the conversation. Oh, you may think you have control because you will be talking. You will be explaining your solution and answering questions. But all further progress toward uncovering the prospects pain and compelling reason to buy will come to an abrupt halt. The prospect will have a solution (or at least an approach to consider) and you, the salesperson, have nothing and have lost control of the conversation. The better approach is to acknowledge the issue and ask for the prospect to elaborate and give you more detail. At the appropriate time you can propose a solution. By that time, you will have uncovered the compelling reason to buy and otherwise properly qualified the prospect.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Change the paradigm of the sales call
Salespeople spend a lot of time trying to qualify to do business with important prospects. The problem with that approach is that it gives all the power in the new relationship to the prospect. You or your company have years of experience delivering great results for your clients. You need to believe that you are qualified to do business with that prospect. The real question is “are they qualified to do business with you”. In other words, you must determine whether it is worth your time and effort to pursue this prospect. They are not worth the time and effort (and money) if they do not have a compelling reason to buy what you are selling. And even if they are going to buy, the next question is do they have enough money to buy from you. Then they must be willing and able to make a decision to purchase your solution. It is ideal if they are focused on you and if you have a great relationship with the prospect, but without the first three elements they do not qualify to earn any of your precious time and effort.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Don’t Ask Leading Questions
Asking a leading question can lead you, the questioner, right into a dead end. Any question whose intent is obvious to the prospect can bring the conversation to a place where the pressure is back on you. For example, if you ask, “are you happy with your current supplier?”. The prospect can see immediately that if they say “no” to that question, it gives you an advantage. So, they will always say “yes, we are happy”. You then have to take up another line of questioning. That line is at a dead end prompted by the way you asked the question. Prospects do not want to be led into a trap, so choose your questions carefully. In fact, in this case, you are better off making a statement. You could say “I assume you are happy with your current supplier”. Now the prospect can agree with you and you can move on to another topic or they can disagree with your statement (prospects generally like to disagree with salespeople, It is their instinct). In this case it feels safer to the prospect to admit they are not 100% happy and you can take the conversation from there.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Questions are Situational
Questions are the tools of the trade for salespeople. But top salespeople do not show up to sales calls with a preplanned list of questions ready to ask. The sales call should be a conversation in which the salesperson unobtrusively steers the conversation in a way that all of his or her questions get answered. All the while the prospect should feel like he was controlling the conversation. There are two problems if you come to the sales call with a preplanned list of questions. The first problem is that you will be more focused on your questions than what the prospect is saying, and you will miss important cues the prospect gives you. The second problem is that the questions inevitably will not fit the situation. You will look a lot like a person with a hammer looking for a nail to hit. What you should do instead is to prepare a list of the information you need to find out. Then, steer the conversation in that direction. The exact format of the question will form itself in your head at the appropriate time and will be more natural sounding to the prospect. Trust in your ability to find the right words if you get to the right place. Then, concentrate on getting the conversation to the right place.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Nothing is Obvious
When something seems obvious to you, you may feel self-conscious about asking the next logical question. For example, When the prospect says they want the new software operational by July 1st, it may seem obvious to you that they need to place the order by April 15th to allow for delivery, installation and training of the new users. It seems obvious because in your first meeting you had discussed lead time. So, you forecast it that way. But what was obvious to you may not have been obvious to the prospect because they were not thinking about delivery or they just forgot about the lead time. They were planning on ordering by June 1st due to some internal procedures. They thought that was plenty of time. By May 1st, your boss is getting antsy because the PO is not in yet. Sales meetings are held. Uncomfortable questions are asked. Pressure is applied to the salesperson to close the order. Trust in the salesperson’s and the sales manager’s forecasts has taken a hit. Delivery schedules are impacted. Overtime may have to be worked to meet the deadline. Profit margins suffer. This situation has just become way more messy than it had to be. All of this could have been avoided had the salesperson not thought that “it was obvious that the order has to be placed in April to meet the deadline”. This example is a trivial example but is played out hundreds of times in more serious situations. All the salesperson had to do was not make an assumption and ask when the order would be placed. Just remember to take nothing for granted and that nothing is obvious. Then ask a question. You life will be way less messy if you do.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Corona Virus – Be Human
Every marketing email I get these days has some statement like “I hope you are doing well and staying safe during the corona virus pandemic”. This is immediately followed up with some sales pitch or other. I am fairly sure their well wishes were less than sincere. There are obvious issues with expressing concern in an email because there is no tonality which would contain most of the empathy you are trying to convey. But these emails illustrate the point I want to make here. In these times of crisis, when people have many personal concerns about their safety and their family and their job, etc. you need to express your humanity more. Don’t just call someone and launch into your “business as usual” sales persona. Connect with your prospect on a human level by asking about how they are weathering the crisis. AND MEAN IT. You have to be authentic. If they relate some major issues they are going through, that is probably not the best time to try to get them to make a decision or too try to push your agenda. You are better off saying something like “sounds like that project is on hold for a while” and agree to check back in a few weeks when things settle down. Stay in touch but make sure to connect on a human level. This is not a sales technique it is just the right thing to do and you have to be sincere.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Corona Virus One tactic to use in this environment
With many businesses shut down you may be hearing prospects tell you they can’t do anything until the shut down is over. When you hear that the best thing to do is to acknowledge that you understand and that it makes perfect sense … because it does. This is not an objection … its the reality of the times. But don’t stop there. Follow that up with the follow question “So Mary, let’s say the pandemic is over and you are back to work, what would be the next step”. This will move the discussion past the problem and let you start dealing with the issues that will come up in two months when they are back to work. The discussion can proceed to changes in the budget for the project, changes to the priority or the decision process, etc. You should end the conversation with a commitment form them when it is ok for you to follow up. This will put you at the head of the line (compared to your competitors) when things loosen up and will keep your pipeline updated and your forecasts accurate in the meantime. Always remember, however, to be respectful of the situation the prospect is in both professionally and personally.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
Don’t confuse with interaction/engagement with bonding/connections
There is a difference between interacting with a prospect and engaging with a prospect. When you interact, you are essentially at a superficial level with whomever you are interacting with. It is an exchange of information, but no true bond is created. On a sales call this would involve getting the basic information you would need to provide a quote or proposal. You ask a question; they give an answer. It can be cordial or even friendly. But there is not true deep understanding. The skilled salesperson, however, goes further and creates a bond with the prospect. This occurs when the salesperson asks good hard and tough questions that demonstrate that he or she understands the prospects problem and its consequences at a deep level. The prospect comes to understand that the salesperson “gets” where the prospect is coming from. Likewise, the salesperson senses that the prospect knows the salesperson has gotten to the heart of the matter. In short, both parties see (know intuitively) that the other “gets it or has a deep appreciation for the other. When this happens, engagement has been achieved. There is now a bond between the prospect and salesperson. It does not have to do with friendliness. It is about the mutual understanding that is important. That not happen in a superficial interaction not matter how friendly it is.
If you have a sales question you would like to discuss follow the link to schedule a call:
https://calendly.com/dancaramanico/callwithdan
