267: Designing Qualifying Questions and Our Agenda Statement

<p>This week we will look at improving our questioning skills and setting up the meeting agenda.  There are a variety of qualifying questions we need to design before we meet with the client, be that meeting online or in person.  What we don’t want is to be trying to work it out on the spur of the moment.  It is always better to have a basic structure and then adjust to suit the situation, than trying to come up with brilliance on the fly.  Yes, we have to be flexible and adaptable、 but planning is also an integral component in sales success.  I am not a great fan of pre-cooked scripts, but I do like structures.  We can set up the parameters and then fill in the details as we require, based on where the conversation is going and the needs of the moment.  Let’s take a look at some of the questions we need to design and I will use our business as the model.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>The Permission Question</strong>: If we are meeting the client for the first time, then we need to remind them that we have helped others in a similar business to theirs and we may be able to help them too, but in order to know that or not we need to ask them a few questions.  This is a simple structure and easy to ask.  Remember, we are going to be asking them everything about their secret company business, especially about their weaknesses, and we are a stranger to the client.  Would you tell a stranger all the things that are going wrong with your marriage or your kids?  No, yet we expect the client to open up about their failings in their firm.  We have to get their agreement to share with us, otherwise we cannot help them.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>The Need Questions:</strong> Harsh as it is to contemplate, we may not be a match for this client.  We need to know that as quickly as possible, so that we are not wasting anyone’s time.  We can ask, “What are some key issues for your business at the moment?”. If they are not forthcoming because the question is too broad, then we can try to dig down and spark some feedback.  For example, we