Game Changing Question to Ask When You Finally Have That Meeting!

We've all been there,

The elusive prospect who have dipped, dodged and rolled away.


You know the deal makes sense, this is a pure win win.


How to land not only this one, but others going forward to help tweak your approach...


"What made you decide to take THIS meeting?"


Not only will this lead to more cementing/anchor talk - they will sit there and convince themselves WHY this is their time and why it's important to close.


The prospect will overcome their own objections.


A

This pure ๐Ÿ”ฅ?

Attached poll
*Voting in this poll no longer yields commission.
๐Ÿ”Ž Prospecting
๐Ÿ‘‘ Sales Strategy
๐Ÿ“ˆ Closing
4
CadenceCombat
Tycoon
3
Account Executive
I think it depends on the kind of prospect youโ€™re working with and how self-evident your value prop is...

This question can be seen as lazy and provoke mild annoyance if the prospect was expecting you to make a case for why this is worth their time in the first place.

If they are bleeding pain from the outset, itโ€™s a great question. If you have to educate them substantially on the value prop of your product, Iโ€™d be apprehensive about using that question during discovery.
SADNES5
Politicker
2
down voters are marketing spies
I disagree with your "lazy" comment. This is for the deal that you've FINALLY gotten with the person who can make it happen.

Getting a cold lead and saying "why are you talking to me?" that is absolute garbo - no one would do that.

I get it. This is for that elusive deal that you know CAN and WILL work, but you need to close.ย 
CadenceCombat
Tycoon
3
Account Executive
Iโ€™m not saying it is lazy as an undisputed fact. Iโ€™m saying it could be perceived that way with some stakeholders.

In my experience, this question can catch some stakeholders on the back foot and they have a hard time effectively breaking down the various motivations for wanting to take the meeting or learning about your solution... And the expectation is that youโ€™re there, as a sales professional, to effectively translate the business case for them.

Not saying you are wrong, Iโ€™m just offering my perspective.

I prefer a โ€˜confirmation of intiativeโ€™ approach where I write down all the motivations that come up through the discovery process so I can pull it up on a slide with any new stakeholders joining the conversation to reconfirm alignment and update accordingly.

So, instead of โ€œwhat made you decide to take this meeting?โ€ Itโ€™s more like โ€œBased on the discussion so far, itโ€™s my understanding that XYZ are the main drivers to explore this solution. Do you agree with this or is there anything you would add, remove, change...?โ€
SADNES5
Politicker
2
down voters are marketing spies
Very valid. I think we run in separate circles when it comes to prospects. You're likely selling to executives who wear ties? Whisper often during meetings? (Just my sales intuition here)ย 

In my experience, this is a relationship, where to get to this point not only do I have a solid understanding of their pain points/objections/interests/nice to haves. I sell to the decision makers who drive profits for the executives. Different ball game I think.

I understand if you don't have the right relationship, asking "What made today happen?" could be seen as off putting 100%.

Love this discourse.ย 
AlecBaldwinsHairline
Valued Contributor
2
Head of Sales Development
It's good to set expectations, but I like to understand their story not their trigger.

Tell me a bit about what's going on over there that has you interested in hopping on the call today, and where you think we can add some value to your business.


Let them sell to you.
SADNES5
Politicker
2
down voters are marketing spies
I think that is too "salesman" and not a closer. No disagreement here, if you ask about how things are going at the business, they don't take off the work filter (IMO)

Why today, why now? What moved the needle? Is far better than "Jannice from accounting said I need to move ahead or I lose this budget" = I'll shop around

vs

"Well... I have some budget to burn, and this product fits that neiche" = SOLD
AlecBaldwinsHairline
Valued Contributor
2
Head of Sales Development
Yeah.

Hey I have a blank check - sell to me!

Doesn't work.
HarryCaray
Notable Contributor
2
HMFIC
use this all the time
sahil
Notable Contributor
1
Deepak Chopra of Sales
This is actually very smart - love making them justify how they spend their time.
funcoupons
WR Officer
1
๐Ÿ‘‘
I like it. I tend to use it with leads I get from BDR. Since I've never talked to them before, I first want to suss out whether they're actually invested or if I got yet another shitty prospect.ย 
SADNES5
Politicker
1
down voters are marketing spies
What I dislike the most, is when a BDR calls me... and doesn't qualify. Just wants to set the meet.
funcoupons
WR Officer
1
๐Ÿ‘‘
Agreed. I sell employee benefits to businesses, so there are some pretty cut and dry qualifying questions that can automatically rule someone out. Annoying as hell when BDR doesn't ask, or does ask, knows they're not qualified and slides the appt through anyway.
3

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