The right question sells for you.

Last week we got into the difference between a Need and a Want, and how some buyers already know their problem while others haven't spotted it yet.

So how do you actually find out which one you're talking to?

Not randomly, and not off a checklist. There's an order to it, and Chapter 5 of Relationship Intelligence lays out exactly what that looks like.

Most reps skip the warm-up. Four questions in, and now they know the budget, the timeline, and who signs off…but they still don't actually know what's going on in the client’s world.

The fix: start broader than that.

Give enough room for someone to talk.

The answer you get will lead you to the real problem. Simple questions like this allow you to just get the door open and make them feel comfortable enough to share whats really going on.

Once they've told you something, don't nod and move on as if following your own script. Ask how long it's been going on. What they've already tried. Why that didn't work. That's the moment a vague comment turns into an actual problem.

Then ask the harder question: what happens if nothing changes?

This is the part most reps rush past, and it's usually why deals stall out on "let me think about it." A problem with no consequence attached doesn't feel urgent. It just feels like something to deal with later.

Get specific about what waiting actually costs, in money, time, or risk. Asking them to verbally identify the risk of doing nothing makes the urgency of the problem more real to them.

Here's the part most reps never get to: instead of telling the buyer what your product fixes, ask them what it would look like if the problem they just identified, simply went away.

"What would that free up for you?" "What would change if this wasn't an issue anymore?"

Let them paint the picture in their own words. When they describe the outcome themselves, they're not being sold to. They're talking themselves into it.

That's really what this whole chapter comes down to. You don't need to memorize the perfect pitch. You need the right question, asked in the right order, and the conversation does the rest.

Take Your Sales to the Next Level with Relationship Intelligence.

Want to master the art of selling without being pushy? Top sales professionals don’t just sell, they build relationships that last. That’s why we created Sales Mastery - Relationship Intelligence, the ultimate training to take you to the next level of sales mastery.

Better answers start with better questions. Next week, we get into what happens after you've asked them.

Keep learning,

Better Relationships. Better Conversations. Better Sales.