Discovery questions develop customers and their needs. That is a well established fact in sales. Yet somehow salespeople struggle to execute this properly. Why? In some cases they like to shortcut this part of the process and jump right into presentation mode. Perhaps engaging customers on that level feels a little uncomfortable. Quite often it is because they forget the questions that they were supposed to ask. The discovery process is a chance to learn whether or not there is an opportunity for the salesperson and the customer to work together and it can be hard to know what questions to ask that won’t come across as self-serving. We commonly train our salespeople to look for the pain; customers only buy on pain, right?. Although that isn’t totally wrong, it is far from being completely true. So many salespeople diminish the ‘process of uncovering pain points’ because it feels, well, kind of wrong. Do all customers willingly want to talk about pain? Sometimes yes and sometimes no.
One thing all sales have in common is that it represents a change that a customer is considering to make something different about their current situation. “If I spend my money I will then have _____________.” There are essentially only two things that people will buy; solutions to problems and things that make them feel good. There is a gray area in between because a solution can make you feel good as well, but those two core elements remain. So the question is how do you know what’s motivating the customer without going down an exhaustive list of pain questions that often make both you and them feel uncomfortable? Believe it or not, there are only three questions that you need to ask to find out 80% of everything you need to know and, best of all, they will make both you and your customer feel quite comfortable as you build trust.
Question #1: “In relation to what we sell, what about your current situation is working?”
This starts the conversation on a positive note and instantly makes your customer feel more at ease. It shows respect and empathy and keeps you from being salesy. It will also establish what some of the customer’s expectations are so you know not to offer them something that disrupts a situation they don’t want or need to change. You’ll be able to meet the customer right where they are and have a better understanding of what to focus your offer on instead of wasting time discussing something they are not going to be interested in.
Question #2: “In relation to what we sell, what about your current situation is not working or could be working better?”
This is without exception the best needs based question you could ever ask. It is direct, yet open-ended enough for customers to tell you all kinds of things. This is especially helpful when you know that the customer is using a competitor and you don’t want to come across as being gossipy. You can now easily identify the needs gap that your customer is experiencing and determine how your offer can fill that gap.
Question #3: “In relation to what we sell, what opportunities do you see or seek?”
If people only buy solutions to problems and things that make them feel good, this question best engages the customer’s imagination to get them out of the world they are stuck in. We want the customer to feel good, and the sooner you can get them doing that the more they will see you as a viable option. Can you see yourself being that opportunity based on what they are telling you? If so, you have found a very fast path to a sale and it doesn’t have to be a long conversation about the customer’s pain.
