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Effective Questions to Close more Sales

Guest post by: Frank O`Toole

Article Overview: If you want to learn how to lead your team and your clients to their desires then read on. Learn how effective questioning can get you and them what you want.

Effective Questions to Close more Sales

You are in the middle of a call and you are leading them to their desire to their water but the problem is you can not get them to drink it. In sales training courses we explain to participants that you do not need to make them drink the water you simply want them to realise for themselves that they are thirsty. How can you guide people into realising that this is what they want? The fundamental truth is to ask the right questions. On a recent sales training course I noticed that so many of the participants were actually creating more objections than was originally there because they were talking too much. However the fact is that we sell more by asking questions and listening to the answers rather than making statements.

Have you ever noticed that people are more susceptible to rejecting someone else's ideas rather than their own? Well by asking prospective clients questions you can get them to feel that the idea and end result was theirs to begin with.

In sales training the trick is to use questions that will put the prospect in the frame of mind of painting a picture that will indicate the pain or problem that they are experiencing. We want them to picture a need, want or desire for that something that they do not have. The idea behind this is that the client will be more receptive to hear how it can be fixed.

The best way to create this desire is to ask broad questions to begin with and narrow them down as you go, picture a triangle upside down, it is wide at first but then gets straight to the point.

For example asking a colleague if they want to go to lunch you start by saying "are you hungry?" then "do you like spicy foods" then "do you like Chinese" then "will we go for a Chinese so?". You have got your client thinking about food then thinking about Chinese and then wanting it.

In sales training courseswe always use a pre call plan. In this plan it is vital to ask yourself the questions first, such as

• What information do you need?
• What is your objective?
• What do you want them to do?
• In order for them to do this what do they need to know, believe and feel?
• How do I get them to believe?

The answer to these questions is through questioning.

Ask questions that will help them reach their conclusion alone. Ask general open questions then probing questions then let them see the pan and feel the pain.

An ex colleague of mine who was involved in the sale of Life Assurance once said to me in order for people to really see that they need life assurance you have to 'paint pictures in their mind, or better still bring the coffin to the back door and make them smell the flowers'

I know that sounds awful and hard, however I understand what he meant. People will only buy if they can see a real need. It is your responsibility as a salesperson to use effective questioning techniques and paint pictures in the clients mind based on one of two reasons.

The two reasons we always mention on sales training courses are 'The fear of loss or desire for gain' these are the two main reasons customers say yes and buy.

Related Articles
  Closing Sales Kindly and Efficiently
  CLOSING THE SALE - IT'S HIGHLY OVERRATED
  The Close
  Why You Need A Sales System
  How to Use Layering Questions

Article Tags: sales skills courses, sales training, sales training courses, training courses



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