Questions That Sell

In selling, focus is often put on having all the "right" answers. There is an illusion that if you tell a prospect all about your product or service and can answer each of their questions, you will progress the sale -- that is, move it forward toward a close.

This illusion puts a lot of pressure on you, the salesperson, to know all the answers; plus this illusion is just that: an illusion. Having all the answers to your prospect's questions does not progress a sale. Quite the opposite! Having the questions -- the right questions -- progresses the sale.

So, take the emphasis away from knowing all the right answers to knowing all the right questions. If you know the right questions to ask, you will not only sell faster, but there will be fewer questions that you need to answer!

So, what are the "right" questions?

The right questions open up the conversation and uncover the motivation to change, the motivation to buy a product or service like yours. As these right questions are uncovering motivation, they will by default progress the sale, if a sale is to be made. Hence, I call these right questions "power questions."

Power questions have a certain construction and a certain scope.

The construction of a question will impact its power. For example, if you ask a question which has a yes/no answer, how powerful can it possibly be? Does a yes/no question open up the conversation and help you discover the motivation to change? Are yes/no questions penetrating, and do they encourage the conversation to go deeper? Typically, no, they do not.

Compare a yes/no question to a "Why" question or a Who, What, When, Where, Which or How question. Think about how powerful each of these questions is in opening up the conversation, in penetrating and uncovering motivation.

For a question to be powerful in moving forward the sale of your product or service, it must not only have a certain construction but also a certain scope. These questions need to be centered on the scope of the problems that you solve. They need to be relevant to uncovering the motivation for your particular solution.

So we've talked about how a power question must have a certain construction and scope, but for the power really to be unleashed with the question, you'll need to ask yourself a few questions about your questions:

Is this a question that I don't know the answer to?

Is this a question that I sincerely want to know the answer to?

Does this question contain assumptions? (Assumptions narrow the conversation.)

Is this question manipulative or persuasive? (If so, it will close down versus open up the conversation.)

What is my intent with this question? Is it to sell or to really understand? (If it is to sell, expect the power in the question to disappear.)

Does this question help my prospect gain a deeper understanding as well?

So think up some power questions that are relevant to the problems that you solve in your profession. What are some What, Why, and When questions that will enable you to dive deeper and understand their problems? Ask yourself the above questions about your questions.

You want to also find a question framework that is simple to use and is conversational. I coach my clients on the DIVE mode. It stands for Discover, Impact, Value, and Emagine.

Before your next sales conversation, prepare some power questions and give up feeling that you have to know all the answers. You are going to be pleasantly surprised. The more power questions you ask, the fewer questions you will be asked and the fewer answers you will need to have. You'll also find that your sale will be speeding up -- provided, of course, that you are listening to the answers!

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