Read these 11 DISCOVERY Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Selling tips and hundreds of other topics.
Curiosity never killed the cat when it comes to sales. Upon your initial greeting with either a new prospect or a current customer, approach the meeting with a sense of curiosity. Find something to be ‘curious' about. This conveys that you are ‘interested' in the person – the company.
When we ask questions about a customer's business, we convey sincere interest in their business. When they talk about ‘their' business, they will realize their own needs, problems, situations which will sensitize them to being open to listen to your sales story.
The most important step of the sales process is to ask relevant questions to your prospect. Questions should be asked in a conversational tone. The questions you ask will determine the 'information' you gather - that will lead you to make the sale. Question wisely. Listen intently.
It's very important to always ask open-ended questions in order to get your prospect to do the talking. Begin questions with Who-What-When-Where-How-Why.
Remember, if he says it - it is true. You can remind him what 'he' said later when needed in the close steps.
Understanding your customer`s buying process makes you much smarter and more successful if you understand `why people really buy`. People buy for their own reasons, not for yours. Until you know your customer`s reasons for wanting, or not wanting, to buy your product/service...you`re in the dark! It doesn`t matter how many reasons you give for believing your product/service is a great buy, they will mean nothing unless your customer has solid reasons of his own for wanting to do business with you. Customers face new problems every day that can radically alter their needs for your products/services. The key is to stay in contact with your prospects...and ALWAYS ask questions to learn where they are in terms of needing your product/service.
When in the discovery step of the sale, you need to gather information that is relevant to your objective and the customer's objective. The facts you learn, when put together in a logical manner, will lead you to your solution for the customer.
In order to get better information from a prospect, you have to ask better questions. Ask Quality Questions over Quantity of Questions. Quality Questions give you facts that will impact the decision making process of your prospect to buy – or not to buy.
The questions we ask we can lead to and develop the customer 'hot button', increase our business knowledge, obtain clues for possible future objections, and give us a better grasp of our customer's problems, needs, situations. Good questions will give us the facts on which to make a sound and solid solution recommendation.
The most important step of your sales process should be the 'Fact-Finding' step. This is the step that allows you to ask the questions that will uncover prospect's needs that will relate to your product/service. When asking your prospect questions 'to learn about his business', be sure to TAKE WRITTEN NOTES. When the prospect sees you taking notes, he 'feels' that what he is saying is important to you. This will also give you ammunition when you begin to solve his problems by recommending your product solutions.
When we ask our prospects specific questions to learn more about their business situations, it is important that we 'listen'. Too often, we are trying to figure out what 'our' next move will be that we miss an important 'clue' that will make the difference for us. When you ask your prospect a question - LISTEN to his answer.
Go ahead and ask that dumb question. Many times it is not the question that you ask but the ones you don't ask that will shape the outcome of the sale.
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