Knowledge
Open questions in sales: what they are and how to use them
Open questions
It is no great secret that an effective salesperson should ask more than they talk. Only getting to know the buying reality of a potential client well makes it possible to tailor the offer and highlight those of its elements the client particularly cares about. It is also known that the sales conversation should be led by the salesperson, not the client. And the conversation is led by the one who asks the questions.
Open questions in sales
So how do you ask if we do not yet know the client, their company and their needs? This is exactly where open questionscome to the rescue. They work great during small talk before moving on to the actual conversation, as well as at the beginning of client needs discovery. Open questions allow us to narrow down the topic areas that are particularly important from the client’s point of view. They let us diagnose issues that we can later deepen with more specific, directional questions. Open questions are meant to allow the person we are talking to to speak freely. Especially at the beginning of the conversation this is important insofar as a client engaged in the conversation will most likely be more patient and open. If you want to get to know the client well, you must ask open questions. It is worth remembering that most often we ourselves, or our company, are the most interesting topic of conversation for us. So when we create an opportunity for the client to do so, they will probably be happy to talk, allowing us to gather information which in their opinion is relevant to the matter.
 |
If after reading this article you feel you want more on the topic of asking the right questions, listen to episode #3 of the podcast Droga Przedsiebiorcy (in Polish) |
Open question examples: how to ask open questions?
Good open questions in a sales conversation will be:
Why are you considering buying this particular solution?
How have you dealt so far with the problem we solve?
What impact could this solution have on your company and why?
What could be the consequences of not implementing the solution we are talking about?
What in your opinion is most important in the context of this solution?
What will you pay particular attention to when making the decision?
What are your biggest concerns about this solution?
and something always worth remembering:
Is there anything else that matters which we have not talked about?
Which open questions to avoid?
You should avoid open questions that simply make no sense. Open questions that are too personal can also be slippery ground. The open questions asked must not give the other person the impression that the question was asked only to keep the conversation going. It is good for the topic we raise to be thematically related to the context of our meeting. However, one should not be afraid of asking open questions; they bring freedom into the conversation and allow it to naturally get where we want to lead it, without putting pressure on the other person.
Open questions are the foundation of a well-built sales process. They make it easy to establish dialogue, engage the other person and build trust. If we ask open questions and let the other person speak, they have the impression that we are sincerely interested in their thoughts, experiences and needs. And we sincerely should be. Real curiosity about the client’s business reality is a trait that everyone who sells should cultivate. If we are authentically interested in the problems the client struggles with, we will be authentic and credible to them. Importantly, the client will most likely stop treating us as a salesperson and start treating us as an advisor. In this way we move, as it were, to the client’s side, and instead of trying to sell them something, we help them make a good buying decision. This dramatically changes the perspective and effectiveness of our actions.
How many open questions should you ask?
There is no rule here; sometimes one open question is enough, sometimes several. Generally it is worth asking open questions for as long as it takes to gather information that will let us redirect the conversation to more specific areas, where we can move from open questions to directional questions and then ask closed questions to “seal” the facts.
It is worth mentioning that most sales conversations, both those held face to face and so-called cold calls, go very sluggishly at the beginning precisely because the salesperson uses closed questions instead of open ones. The other person then goes into defensive mode and will most likely strive to end the conversation. In such a situation even a valuable lead can easily be lost. We can also easily be pushed onto the defensive and instinctively switch to asking closed questions, which will make it even easier for the client to end the conversation quickly.
What is also important is that questions, whether they are open questions or closed questions, should not be pointless questions. You must always bear in mind that the client will simply ask “why are you asking me this?”. If you do not have a good justification, it may sink the rest of the conversation. So prepare questions that actually contribute something significant and are not just filler for the sales conversation. Start by defining the issues important for cooperation and then internally verify the questions by asking yourself “why should I ask this question?”.
