KEY FACTS – Questioning techniques that generate sales

Key Fact: It's now an undisputed fact that effective questioning skills are fundamental to sales success. It's equally true that everyone can ask questions. So why doesn't every question-rich sales meeting succeed?

• When it comes to questions, it's quality not quantity that matters. Telling sellers to ask more questions will usually work, but it probably won't produce more sales. Ask too many of the wrong questions and you won’t improve your sales success at all. That’s because there are four key questions types, the SPIN® questions, and each has a different effect on sales success. SPIN® explains each question type and when to use it, to ensure you maximise value for your customers at every sales meeting.


• It's not as simple as open versus closed. Common sense suggests that questions that get people talking have to be better than those that invite one-word answers, but there's absolutely no evidence to support that in a selling situation. The reality is it's the context and content of the question, not just the structure, which determines how the other person responds. In something as complicated as selling, there will be times when a yes/no response is exactly what you want to hear. By using SPIN^® skilfully you can get your customers to give as long, or as short, an answer as you need.


• Questions aren't just for gathering information. There's no doubt that gathering information about customers’ needs is the most important purpose of questions in selling, that's what SPIN^® is all about. But they do so much more besides; building rapport and empathy, establishing credibility and expertise and managing the process of the meeting itself are all achievable through skilled use of questions.

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