JKL Associates – Business & Talent Builders Blog!

April 26, 2012 – ISSN# 1545-2646

Searching via Questions

Last week we talked about qualifying and how important it is to be very stringent about the process to make sure you and your prospect are a good fit.

Part of that qualification process is doing your research and discovery of the prospects needs and wants. This part of the sales effort is when you become the detective to solve the mystery.

The mystery comes in many various shapes and sizes.  Sometimes the prospect knows (or at least believes they know) exactly what they need and want.  In other cases the prospect just knows that their situation could be improved if this or that would just be different. In either situation, it is critical that the detective does their homework to flush out the real and critical issues so that both parties understand what needs to take place.

This process is somewhat like searching the internet for some information.  In the search bar, you type in your question, statement or few words and then the search engine does its magic to return you various results from your query. They get ranked by various means and you the user start to click through the results to find your answers. Some of the returned results meet your needs while other links don’t help your situation. 

In the sales process you must process like a search engine but take the return of details to a much more sophisticated level. You not only want to return answers but you need to wrap your organization’s deliverables around and through your answers so it aligns directly with the prospect’s needs and provide a value to their business. This is where the combination of sales art and science blend to bring top sales reps out on top of their competition.

In order to make your sales search engine work to its fullest capability, you need to prepare your sales program with key questions your prospect can answer.  These questions must be pertinent to the needs and wants of the situation and not just casual conversation.  They must demonstrate that the sales rep has confidence in the subject matter and the knowledge and  know how to bring the solution to the table.

This week, examine your sales process and determine if your questions are discovering the best information and leading your prospect to the solution you can provide to them.

Is your search engine working correctly for your sales team? Give JKL Associates a call (313) 527-7945.

Questions or comments – email us at partners@jklassociates.com or call our Office at (313) 527-7945

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JKL Associates
18530 Mack Ave #242
Grosse Pointe Farms
MI 48236

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