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Are you answering the wrong sales questions?

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Asked and Answered – practically an instinct. Someone asks us a question, so we answer it.

In sales, this could be hurting you.

Now – what the heck am I talking about. Let me illustrate

I have a MacBook Air – that super thin laptop from Apple. People see me use it when I give presentations, or when I work from a coffee shop. Sometimes, they ask me about it, and more often than not, the question sounds like this:

“So – is that a good computer?”

It is a logical question, borne from natural curiosity. However, if you are a salesperson, and the same question comes up about your product or service, you can’t just answer it. Why not?

Structurally, it is a yes / no question. However, if you answer yes or no at the wrong time – even with elaboration, you leave out a whole lot.

Before we get into that, let me address a concern you might be having – customers don’t usually ask questions like “is your product good”. That’s true, but they ask questions that have the same effect, like:

  • Can you tell me about your product?
  • How can your product help our organization?
  • What makes your product better for us than our other choices?

If you answer questions like these when they are first asked, – before your needs analysis -  you assume that you know what the customer needs. So what should you do instead?

Simply put, the answer to ALL of these questions is the same:

“It depends”

You will use different words, but that is the gist of it.

  • How can you know what a prospect wants to know about your product until you know what they want to use it for?
  • How can you know how your product can help their organization until you better understand their organization?
  • How can you know how your solution compare to other competing solutions – for them – until you understand how they will use it?

Until you understand their needs, you can’t talk about how your product will help (benefits), you can only talk about what your product is (features) – which is much less compelling.

I love my MacBook Air. It is thin and light which is great for me since I use public transportation and fly a lot, so it doesn’t take up much room and is easier to carry.

I really like Apple because I work alone, and I have a better chance of solving my computer issues on a Mac than I would on a PC.

But the MacBook Air is expensive; may not be OK in a PC driven enterprise; may not have the right software for all people; and compared to other Macs – it has less “horsepower” for the money.

So it is good for me and my needs. I can’t know if it is good for the guy in the coffee shop until I know more about his needs. Truth be told, at the coffee shop I just say yes and get back to work (or whatever it is I am doing) – but in sales, you must understand the customers needs before you answer, so that your answer can be more compelling than a generic features list.

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David Masover is an Amazon Kindle Best Selling Author of books on sales, and sales management. Visit Amazon now for a free sample of his books on your Kindle or use the free Kindle App on your phone, tablet or PC.


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