5 of the Most Powerful Sales Questions to Ask Potential Customers

With a large amount of stiff competition in most industries, salespeople can end up falling over themselves when reaching out to prospective customers. As a result of their frantic efforts, sellers run the risk of peddling out stale pitches that regurgitate the facts and fail to capture the prospect’s attention. 

Given the large numbers of sellers approaching buyers every day, it’s no surprise that customers rarely respond well to cookie-cutter pitches. So how can you light a fire under your pitch to give it some oomph? Today, we’ll talk about the five most powerful questions you can use to get ahead of the competition. Let’s get to it. 

Why sales questions can give sellers an edge

A reliable sales course will usually advise sellers to customize a pitch to make it more impactful. An adept pitch fits the following checkpoints:

• Well researched 
• Clearly defines the problem and offers a solution
• Makes a compelling argument 
• Focuses on the customer, not the product/service or the company

To win over more buyers, craft a pitch that shows exactly how what you’re selling can help them overcome their specific pain points. 

By asking the right questions, you can create pitches that buyers will be more inclined to give an ear to. Once you figure out what buyers want, need, and expect, you can tailor your pitch to bring more results. 

In addition, asking questions can help prospects see that you’re out to meet their needs, which can ensure that your buyers feel heard and in control.   

So what are the best questions to ask? 

“What are your main problems?”

When dealing with different customers in the same target market, it’s easy to assume that you have it all figured out. However, business courses say that individuals or businesses are seldom alike in all the ways that matter. That’s why it helps to find out the unique set of challenges that your prospect faces. 

Once you unearth your buyer’s main pain points, you can link how what you offer solves these pain points, raising your odds of hooking the prospect.

“What do you think would be required to fix this?”

By asking the prospect to troubleshoot for possible solutions, you can uncover even more pain points. When the prospect tunnels deeper into the problem and unearths solutions, you can see things from their point of view. This helps you craft a better pitch that speaks volumes to the prospect. 

Also, getting your prospects to think about solutions plants the seed for forward momentum to actively explore problem-solving. Once this impetus to find solutions has been set in motion, the prospect’s likelihood of buying your product or service increases. 

“How do you approve purchases, and who has the final say?”

When you’re a B2B seller, you might have made the mistake of launching into your full pitch but unknowingly be speaking to a gatekeeper. That’s why the best sales courses emphasize that you should find out who the decision makers are early on.  

If you charge right into your pitch, you’ll likely find yourself needing to start over when you get to speak with a stakeholder with decision-making credentials. 

In addition, asking about the right person to talk to can help you research how to approach them and how to handle the small talk. 

“Who supplies you currently? Are there any other options you are currently looking into?”

Knowing your competition can help you play to your competitive advantages to persuade the prospect to shift over to you. Plus, once you establish that the prospect is looking at switching suppliers, it means there’s an open door. 

On the other hand, if your prospect displays no intention to change suppliers, you can deal with the objection first before you pitch your product or service. 

“Can you tell me more about your business?”

Understanding the nature of your prospects’ business gives you an opportunity to show that you care about your customers. As advised by the best communication courses, remember to use your body language to your advantage, like leaning in or nodding your head to show intense concentration. 

Once you more fully understand a prospect’s business model, you can better customize your pitch. You will be able to show how your offering can improve specific areas of their business.

Use questions to close more sales

Talking “at” prospects seldom moves them to make a buy decision. Instead of speaking just to hammer out all the facts or to hold the floor, focus on asking the right questions to get more intel. Once you get the answers you need, you can use your pitch to illuminate prospects on how your offering meets their needs, leading to more closes.