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‘YOU
ASKED FOR IT’ - A POTPOURRI OF INFORMATIONAL TIDBITS
Although it is
summertime and the living is supposed to get easier, all of us
tend to maintain that quickened pace to keep up with whatever
destinations and goals we choose to rush towards. However, once
in a select while, it is imperative that each of us make the
time to slow down and re-assess what we are doing, to where we
want to go and how will we get there. Yogi Berra is quoted as
saying: "if you don’t know where you are going, then how do you
know when you have arrived?"
This time of
year – the time that invites us to slow down and re-assess – may
be a good starting point for us to do just that: re-assess our
goals, relationships, timetables, focus, and most of all
re-assess our chosen ways of living our lives. Good luck on this
journey.
For this article we have chosen to slow down and assume the
coaching role designed by the frequently asked questions that
were asked by you, our readers. Although responses were emailed
to your questions on an individualized basis, the following
questions are probably asked (or thought about) by the majority
of us at LEAST ONCE. We invite you to keep your questions
coming, so that we can write articles to respond to your special
needs. Your input is most important.
FROM READERS’
QUERIES – THE FAQs
Q. "What
are a few good qualifying questions I can ask so as not to come
across as ‘hard-selling’, while gathering important information
to establish productive relationships with prospective clients?"
Let’s remind
ourselves that this question is appropriate to all of us who are
selling ideas, products, services and even themselves to
prospective clients, customers, and buyers. By answering
well-defined questions, your prospects will provide important
information to help you influence them to buy what is right for
them.
You ask
questions to determine what your prospects want and need,
enabling you to apply the knowledge you have about your product
and/or service to what you are learning about the prospects and
their special needs. The question is a diagnostic tool that can
chisel out the past history, present status and future visions
from the way your prospects view, their business.
A few sample
questions that you can ask are:
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How do you
see your business in three to five years?
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Tell me about
your company and its history.
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Right now,
who are your main customers / clients? What do they need from
you? What are the biggest challenges they present to you and
your business?
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What will
your next vendor need to do to earn your business?
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What is the
process your company has in selecting a vendor? How do you
differ from your competitors?
-
What kind of
support do you expect after the sale is made?
-
How do you
develop new business?
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How do you
want the product/service to bring you into the future?
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Why should
you consider paying more for this product/service?
-
What existing
problems/concerns do you have with the product/service you are
using now?
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What is
working? What is not working?
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How do you
think you will be better off with my product/service?
If you listen
effectively enough and ask the right diagnostic questions, the
prospects will tell you how, why, and when they will buy.
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