I recently had a conversation about effective sales calls with Wayne Turmel, manager of instruction for the sales training firm Communispond. He says that the best way to move a sales call forward is to ask questions that draw the customer into the sales process. Here are some quick pointers:
Do your research. Don’t ask the customer to tell you stuff you can easily find out elsewhere. If you haven’t examined the customer’s website and SEC 10-Q filings, you’re not ready for the call.
Prepare yourself. Spend a minute before the call mapping out the questions that you plan to ask. Consider what you already know and what you’d like to know.
Structure your questions. There are five lines of inquiry that are important to EVERY sale:
- The current state of the customer’s business.
- The desired state of the customer’s business.
- What blocks the customer from moving from 1 to 2?
- What’s been tried, but failed, to move from 1 to 2?
- What resources can be committed to the move?
While items 3, 4 and 5 are questions, they are not the literal questions to ask. Each “lines of inquiry” could involve a dozen actual questions to help you figure out what the customer really needs.
Don’t hold an inquisition. While it’s normal to ask questions during sales calls, don’t give the customer the third degree. It may take more than one meeting to get all the information you need.
Don’t rehearse. Rehearsed questions and canned spiels are strictly for novices. Wayne suggests you jot down key words to remind you of the general lines of inquiry you want to pursue.
Really listen to the answer. Don’t watch the customer’s mouth move while you think about what to say next. Listen carefully, pause to think about what the customer said, and then lead the conversation where you want it to go.
