Fearlessly Asking All the Right Questions

And There Is No Such Thing as a Dumb Question

“I never learn anything talking.

I only learn things when I ask questions.”

Lou Holtz

In a 2020 article, I explored The Power of Asking Questions. “Question everything,” Albert Einstein famously said. Personal creativity and organizational innovation rely on a willingness to seek out new information.

Especially in sales, where success is based on information and human connections, asking questions has so many positive effects:

·       You are leading and controlling the conversation.

·       You are learning new things, expanding your knowledge about the client.

·       You are learning about the people, those that make the buying decision.

·       You are getting clarifications to avoid (incorrect) assumptions.

·       You are conveying interest and improving bonds with those decision-makers.

·       You are engaging people by making them comfortable and talking about a subject they know well, themselves.

The article in 2020 contains best practices on how to ask. Now it is time to take a look at what questions to ask? Here are 75 questions, grouped by their intent or their situational setting in the sales process. The foundation of the list comes from two articles by Lisa Rose and Anita Greenland.

Rapport-Building Questions

Rapport is the ability to relate to others in a way that creates a level of trust and understanding. It is the process of responsiveness at the unconscious level. It is important to build rapport with your client as it gets their unconscious mind to accept and begin to process your suggestions. They are made to feel comfortable and relaxed, as well as open to suggestions.

Examples of sales questions for rapport-building include:

1.     What got you into this line of business?

2.     What are some of your personal goals and priorities right now?

3.     What are the biggest obstacles you’re experiencing?

4.     What are your plans for this weekend/upcoming holiday?

5.     How are your children/spouse/relatives you mentioned during our last conversation?

6.     How did that thing/project/deal you were talking about last time turn out?

7.     What big news or breakthroughs have you had since the last time we spoke?

8.     Tell me about any new obstacles or problems that have arisen?

Situation Questions

Use situation questions to learn where your prospect stands today, from their processes and pain points to competitive plans and results. Examples are:

9.     Which tools/process/product do you currently use?

10.  What is your role at the company/in the process?

11.  How long has this solution been in place?

12.  How important is this to the company?

13.  Can you share/walk me through how this works today?

14.  Who do you consider your strongest competitors?

15.  How are your competitors addressing this?

Problem Questions

Problem questions aim to uncover the true challenge the buyer is having, as well as the buyer’s deep motivations, e.g., problems or dissatisfaction with their current solution. These questions are best used early in the sales process. Examples include:

16.  How would you describe the problem you’re trying to solve?

17.  What about this situation keeps you up at night?

18.  What challenges have you encountered in the past while trying to solve this problem?

19.  What are the disadvantages of the way you are doing this now?

20.  Is there anything else about the situation that worries or frustrates you?

21.  Are you satisfied with your current solution/process?

22.  Does this process ever fail?

23.  What are your reasons for considering an alternative?

Impact Questions

Impact questions are often closely aligned to the problem. They help both the salesperson and the prospect clearly identify the client’s pain points, so they are on the same page about the investment required to change it. Examples of impact questions include:

24.  How much does this problem currently cost your company?

25.  How much does it cost you, personally?

26.  What are the non-monetary costs associated with the problem?

27.  How long has the problem been impacting you?

28.  What would it feel like to solve the problem once and for all?

29.  How much would a good solution save you and the company?

Solution Questions

Solution questions aim to guide the customer to a solution to their problem and to understand how your offerings fit into that solution. A good salesperson knows not just to tell the client how to solve the problem, rather cleverly provide it with a question mark on the end. Take the problem that you identified earlier and solved in your head and ask the client to solve it instead of giving the answer.

Examples are:

30.  What would an ideal solution look like for you?

31.  What does a realistic solution look like to you?

32.  What are the must-have criteria for a solution to work for you?

33.  What is your timeline for developing a solution?

34.  What are the qualities you need in a solution provider?

35.  Would any of these additional products/services/criteria be helpful in your solution?

36.  What nice-to-have features/elements are you looking to add?

Buying Process Questions

Buying process questions help the sales rep understand the steps they must take in order to secure the sale. They are critical to avoid surprises late in the process that might derail the deal. Examples include:

37.  Who, besides yourself, of course, will be involved in the buying decision?

38.  Can you let me know about your decision-making process?

39.  How will your procurement/legal department get involved?

40.  What is your timeline/deadline for making a decision?

41.  What additional information will you need in order to make your decision?

42.  What further information do you need to take the next step?

43.  Have you had problems in the past when making similar purchases?

44.  What has worked/not worked for you in the past?

45.  Do you have a formal onboarding/approval process for a new supplier?

Budget Questions

Budget questions aim to understand the budget and also to discover potential additional sources of funding. This is the type of question that, from time-to-time, prospects play close to their vest. Some don’t want to share budgets with salespeople. Your prospects know that your products or services do cost money. It is a problem, though, if you do not raise the subject—your fear of asking costs you and your company valuable time and revenue.

These budget questions can be asked while uncovering the desired solution or during the buying process discussion, and always before presenting a solution:

46.  Do you have a budget in mind for this?

47.  What are you planning to spend on this product/solution?

48.  Where will the funds come from to pay for the solution?

49.  What will happen if the available budget isn’t enough to fully implement the desired solution?

50.  Are there other sources of funding that could be explored if necessary?

51.  When can we discuss how this gets paid for?

Follow-Up Questions

Follow-up questions are asked during a sales conversation to get the prospect to go deeper and uncover more information. Examples of powerful follow-up questions include:

52.  Tell me more about that, please.

53.  What would an example of that be?

54.  How did that impact you?

55.  Who else was impacted?

56.  Why is that?

57.  What else was going on that affected the situation?

58.  What other thoughts do you have about that?

59.  Where did the situation go from there?

60.  What was the outcome of that?

61.  When else have you experienced similar situations?

Deep Probing Questions

Great questioning helps you to uncover critical information, even from reluctant prospects. Follow-up questions can quickly go very deep and become probing. For most of those, rapport needs to be established first. Then, however, deep probing questions can be asked at any point in the process. Examples include:

62.  Can you tell me more about that?

63.  Why does that matter to your/your business?

64.  Can you be more specific about that?

65.  Have your priorities changed over time?

66.  Why is this important to you/your business?

67.  What is the one thing/feature that you/your business cannot live without?

68.  How did you feel about that?

69.  What is your biggest fear relative to me/my solution?

70.  What criteria will you use in your decision making?

Objection Questions

The right open-ended questions can help salespeople avoid some objections altogether, uncover others early and proactively, and lead the customer past any that do arise. Provide your salespeople with a list of common objections, as well as the best-practice responses.

Examples of questions to uncover objections include:

71.  What in my solution/product/proposal does not address your needs?

72.  How does my quote align with your expectations?

73.  How does our product/solution fit into your process?

74.  What did the reference I provide share with you?

75.  What, if anything, prevents you from making a decision now?

Do not be afraid that by asking questions, you will look weak, ignorant, or unsure. Asking questions puts you in control of the conversation and all the relevant issues.

Do you want to find out how interim executives ask questions?

__________________

Lisa Rose - Sales Probing Questions to Uncover Buyer Needs

Anita Greenland - 51 Examples of Powerful Open-Ended Questions to Increase Sales

 Photo by Anne Gosewehr