So, you got a face-to-face meeting with your client, you want this meeting to be successful and lead to a sale. What are some of the things that you could say to make this meeting magic? In short, what are the most powerful questions in sales?
Like all people, salespeople have habits, just like your morning routine or your exercise routine, you have habits. You do the same thing repeatedly. I bet you wake up and do 5 similar things each morning. If you do repeatable things they become a habit, and we do them innately. For instance, you brush your teeth with the same hand, the same toothpaste, and eat the same thing for breakfast etc.
The big problem with habits is we do them repeatably without awareness
The big problem in sales is that we do the same thing repeatedly and expect different results. So become aware of what you are doing, and record yourself on the phone. Record and review, then make a note of what you want to change and repeat the process. By doing this you will reach high performance and get more sales.
3 habits that salespeople do repeatedly that kill a sales meeting
Talk too much about themselves, their product, their company
They don’t listen
Sell and pitch far too early even before they understand the client’s problems.
Find out the Most Powerful Questions in Sales in my Video Below
Find out Their Pains and Gains
Today I’m going to teach you the three most powerful sales questions ever that you can use in your sales meeting. When we are client-facing multiple facets come into play for instance body language, how you present yourself, tonality etc but today we are going to focus on questioning.
The most important thing to do is find out all the information at the early stages of the sales process, sit and listen, and gather up as many details as you can, especially if the customer is a right fit for you and should you spend your valuable time with them.
The best salespeople sit like a cat, they take in all the information, why because the information is power especially when you use it.
So just think of it, what are you selling? A nail sells a hole, what problems do your products or services fix. That’s what you ask questions about.
Note I said ask, and ask again, then listen and write down what keeps this customer up at night. What is nerve-striking with your client?
Most salespeople make this mistake, they let their guards down and consequently think this is a done deal. Do not just feed data to a client, make sure to dig deep and find out their pains and gains, and what is important to them.
The 3 Most Powerful Sales Questions
1. So, what motivated you to have this meeting with us today? Or why did you agree to set aside the time to meet today?
Then keep quiet, let the prospect do all the talking and you take notes. Let them talk and show interest by nodding and saying yes. Do not interrupt.
2. So, Name XXX, in relation to XXX (their problem or need) what exactly are we trying to accomplish here today?
That’s a very powerful question. It is very goal-oriented and outcome-driven. What are we trying to accomplish here today? Make sure to let them talk 75% of the time and you pipe in 25% of the time.
For consultative and discovery calls you can askwhere are you today with this situation? and where would you like to be?
Now that question is so powerful because it tells me exactly, what’s the status of the company, right? Where they are, what are their frustrations, and what are the pain points? And then where do they want to be? Where do they want to be a year from now?
You must present your product and service as a bridge from where they are (pain) to where they want to be (solution). Use your product as the bridge, or system to the problem to fix it. Ask them how long they have had this problem and go into the details of what this is costing them
Remember, as salespeople, we are problem-solvers.
If it’s a good fit, we go for it. If it’s not a good fit it’s okay to say no. Hone in on their frustrations and what keeps them up at night, but remember if they are not a fit you need to move on. Remember, if there’s no pain, there is no sale!
Another good question is how long have you had this problem? At this point, you must get them to own the problem, so XXX with this XXX (problem) what would you like to happen?
Let them say…
We need to solve this problem
We tried XXX before and it did not work
We have tried to get a solution
We have tried many vendors but never followed through
This problem has been ongoing
We couldn’t solve the problem
The next question to ask is this:
3. If this meeting accomplished everything you could hope for, in terms of a solution to your problem XXX what would that look like?
Listen, as they will give you exactly what they want. Make sure you feed this back to them in your pitch, matching all the major pains with solutions. Make sure to take notes at meetings as you will forget relevant points.
This tells you how you need to sell … now start your high-level pitch!
Simple Questions are So Powerful
So next time when you’re in a face-to-face meeting talk less, ask questions and listen.
Simple questions are so powerful they are designed for one thing and one thing only, to get a deep understanding of what your prospect is looking for.
Use what, when, why, and where.
Adrienne is a Business Growth Advisor. On a mission to elevate your company’s growth, through building sales and leads blueprints that work time and time again. Do you want to find out how to build your own sales blueprint, to get more leads and sales for your company?
Do you want more sales? Do you know the fundamentals that underpin a top-performing sales team?
Ok, I will say this adage once – “There is no quick fix,” no 48-hour diet that works so why on earth do you think you can grow sales without putting in the framework and processes that create a successful sales area?
I am often asked by people what I do for a living. I am a Sales Consultant. The answer I get is “Oh, you do sales training?”
Most people think sales training will sort out a sales area and this is far from the truth. I have trained many sales teams in Dublin and abroad. My ethos is to underpin sales success by looking at the complete picture.
1. Sales Process to Help you Win More Business
If you have a formalized process it helps the sales team focus on activities and tasks that win more sales, as a result, building a high performing sales team. It is essential to break down the sales tasks in a sales process using small steps. Think about how your salespeople are in front of customers. i.e. What does the first meeting entail, what questions need to be answered, what qualification questions do you need to ask? When do you present? What does the presentation look like? If you have 6 salespeople and no sales process, they will all do it differently. How do you know what your salespeople say in front of customers?
Salespeople can achieve a higher performance by using a sales process that works time and time again.
2. Create A Solid Plan with KPI’s and Goals
If you fail to plan you plan to fail.
Establish Goals with KPIs to Evaluate Your Sucess
You must have a plan with goals and KPIs. This is not just a target and a number, it is a breakdown of the activity behind the goals. Weigh up the daily, weekly, and monthly activities that must be met to achieve the goal.
With a clear game plan in place at the outset, the chance of achieving success is 80% higher. Those who set goals for themselves achieve higher rates of success in their careers. Knowing how we plan to accomplish those goals – i.e. Having a plan is pivotal to enabling high performance.
3. Use CRM Sales Software that Helps You Win More Sales
If you are more organized and systematic you will win more sales. It’s that simple. A CRM tracks your progress, shows your pipeline, what needs to be done and what to focus on. It needs to be easy to use and not take all day to input information so use a versatile CRM App that’s a good fit for your business.
Choosing the right CRM for your business is key. Good analytics are needed to know where you are and what needs to be done. A CRM tells you what to do, the key is how you do it and that it is performance-related.
4. High Performing Sales People
You must have a process to enable you to search for great talent. Questions to ask yourself: Firstly, what do I expect the new hire to do in their first month, and the months that follow? Secondly, what can I reasonably expect them to achieve, how quickly, and what can I do to help them? Thirdly, what core skills and attributes are absolute necessities? And finally, what new services could this new person offer clients or customers?
5. Sales Training and Coaching is a Must for a High Performing Sales Team
Continuous growth is essential because, like sports sales is a performance, consistency is key. Sales have changed more dramatically in the last 20 years than in the previous 50, so keep up with your customers and focus on how they buy, then build your sales process around this. Salespeople are a direct reflection of your company. Continued education is critical to the success of your sales team and should be provided as often as possible.
Continued Education is Critical to Your Sales Team Success
6. Want to Win More Sales? Have a Winning Mindset
There is no second in sales, there is first and last! Go after each sale with the winning mentality. This is a must! If you do every step of the sales with a winning mindset you are more likely to win the sale.
7. Best Practice Sales Management
Create ownership of activities and tasks for your team. Be generous with your time. Give credit where credit is due and focus on your sales process. Set clear goals and clarity of tasks, people like to know how to create success and rely on the know-how of managing. If they believe in you, they will follow. Teach your salespeople how to do the tasks for themselves. The saying is true, ” give a fish to a person they will last a day, teach them to fish and they will last a lifetime”
Use coaching questions to really drill down with problem areas salespeople are having. On a scale of 1-10 where are you with this task? If you had no limits or constraints with this problem, what would you do?
Sales meetings must be scheduled in the diary, and salespeople must know where you are in relation to their plan, and what activities need to be done within a time frame.
8. Value Proposition
Understanding your value proposition is vital for salespeople. I commonly find this is a big block for lots of companies and thus salespeople are not equipped with the right messaging. Salespeople often talk about their company, and their products, they focus on features and benefits, this is a problem. Salespeople must talk about what the features and benefits mean to the customer. Use your wording like this: “we help companies to XXX giving them more XXX (result for the customer)”
Content is still king, so work on your value proposition and nail it. If you want help with this book a strategy call with me.
9.Lead Generation – Online to Offline Selling
Constant prospecting is the role of a salesperson and with social media, prospecting has never been easier. LinkedIn is an essential tool for B2B salespeople to extend their business network or tribe and get more sales conversations. Find out where your customers sit on social media and engage with them.
It’s also widely known that the marketing team is often responsible for executing and managing email campaigns, and are therefore well versed in communicating and writing compelling content that engages with customers. Find out what works to create leads, this is the end result you want.
10.Praise and Reward
Hire, Train, Coach and Reward Great Salespeople.
Really work on getting good, hard-working people and reward them, praise them and make them feel valued. This is really key to high performing sales teams and as a result, you will keep your team longer and get better results.
If you manage to do all the above… GREAT! But if you don’t hire a coach or business strategist to help you!
Do you want to take action? Do you want to grow your business to get more leads and sales?
Top reasons why you will get the sale over your competitor.
Connection
Proof
Belief
Trust
Risk
Connection
Making a sale and getting customers to buy from you is all about your customer. Decide to double down and focus on the customers burning pains and compelling gains, by connecting with them through their concerns.
People mainly think about themselves, their life, problems, pains and needs. The customer who connects likes and trusts you is more likely to buy from you, hence making a connection with your buyer is vital. Find out what their passion is, connect on this level as well as business conversations. Keep the focus on the customer at all times, this is key, as it develops trust with your customer. Creating a commonality with your customer helps create a connection, for instance, if he likes the same sport as you, you went to the same college, and you like a similar subject. When you create a connection a person is more likely to confide in you. They will most likely tell you their pains and this is where you can dig down and really engage to give value and help through your product or service.
Proof
Our mind is the CEO, the mind is always trying to keep us safe, similarly, when a customer is buying they will always look for proof and safety that the product or service will work.
That is why demonstrating proof and testimonials is important and a key element of what makes customers buy from you. Always talk about the burning pains and the solution to overcome the pain. Always give examples of customers who had the same problem and how they overcame it.
Find a customer with a burning problem, and demonstrate how your product or service helped them solve the problem. Do this with a testimonial, build trust and make it easier for a prospect to buy from you.
Belief
If you believe in your product or service the customer will pick up on this. When you believe in your product you are more likely to be confident and this sells as it reassures the customer.
Trust
What makes customers buy from you? People buy off people they trust. Sometimes salespeople are not trusted they get a bad rap and are often associated with films like ‘Gerry McGuire or Death of a Salesman.
Bearing this in mind it is vital to build trust. So how do you build trust? By being dependable and reliable you build trust. Do what you say you will do.
There is something about sales that makes salespeople believe that they don’t deserve the trust of prospects. For instance, when a prospect tells us something that is not true. Does it happen? How do we handle it? We need to point it out. Say, Jim… I am curious about what you said ” repeat what they said” then say I would look at it like this and give you reasons. By calling them out you are asking for honesty, this gives you credibility and builds trust.
If you want a customer to buy from you, you must be clear about the risks they can come up against.
At the closing stage of your sales process, if you have addressed risks along the way the buyer will give you fewer objections. Here are a few tips to deal with the risks in your sales. Use statistics and data to support your proposal. Ensure transparency, as prospects know the truth, so don’t hide it. Engage multiple stakeholders, especially C level. Always show proof and testimonials and case studies.
Adrienne is a Business Growth Advisor. On a mission to elevate your company’s growth, through building sales and leads blueprints that work time and time again. Do you want to find out how to build your own sales blueprint, to get more leads and sales for your company?
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About Me
Adrienne is a business growth strategist, founder of Elevate Sales with 20 years of international sales experience growing companies from Zero to 6 and 7 figures.
