Why do customers procrastinate from buying? Because they feel they don’t really need the product or service right now. You really can’t convince them to the contrary because they don’t really trust you and feel you have a financial motive. Luckily for you, the one person that does, is there with you; the customer. But how do you get them to convince themselves to buy? you use Questions. This is how to use questions to sell.
How questions work is that they get the customers to engage themselves and prove to themselves that they actually need to buy because the need is present and immediate. During this discussion held in the customer’s subconscious, you get the chance to inject your product into the list of known solutions.
It’s not hard to learn how to use questions to sell as I demonstrate using the following questions in sales scenarios.
How to use Questions to sell
1. Ask questions that make your product or service relevant.
A client may or may not think that your product or service is the right solution for them. In their mind they already have several alternatives they are trying to choose amongst.
For your product or service to have a chance, you need to make it the best choice by asking questions where the answer includes a feature or benefit of product or service.
For example in my line of work I ask potential clients,
“Do you think your business needs information and strategies that can help it gain more customers and retain the ones you already have?”
For a majority of business, the answer is usually
‘Yes!’
To this I follow with,
“I’m sure you probably have a source for this or are currently choosing between a few alternative but, would I interest you with some no obligation information pieces that we offer so you can go through them and we can meet after a few days to discuss your opinion on them?”
What this does is to get a client who either already uses a similar service to yours or one who did not know they needed one, to give you a chance to present to them and hopefully make a better impression than the competition. If I alternatively just asked
“I know you need my product X, can I send you a quotation and we can sit down to close the deal after?”
Most would just answer,
“NO thanks, I already have a provider for that.”
2. Ask questions that establish urgency
Customers procrastinate buying what they need even if it is an emergency. They then often end up buying a similar product or service from a different vendor in an emergency. To prevent this problem, try your best without smothering the customer, to get them to buy immediately or at least to schedule a next appointment to continue the sales pitch.
A good question to ask if you are a photographer to a client who is hesitant to lock down the deal is,
“If you wait too long and someone else signs me up for that date, are you willing to accept a lesser quality job?”
If you sell expensive TVs ask this question
“Sir, what is more important to you, saving a few shillings now for short-lived happiness or getting a device that will serve you at least a decade plus, with a one year warranty?”
3. Ask Questions that elicit a commitment
You can get a customer or client to commit to a future purchase or future presentation by using floater questions that leverage a desired outcome for the client to your desired outcome. These are generally hypothetical questions that ask client if they would be willing to do something for you if you do one for them.
A good example is,
“If I give you a free evaluation of your current marketing strategy and we find the blind spots, would you be willing to consider a few of my solutions?”
This a much better way of saying,
“I have a few solutions to your current marketing strategy, can we do a free evaluation to find the blind spots?”
The problem with this second question is that it demonstrates your gain to the customer or client before showing the client how they are benefiting.
These are just three ways on how to use questions to sell but there are literally endless variations of strategies on how to use questions to sell. By studying how to hold conversations and how to ask questions, you can design your own formula for the conversation.