Yes, There Are Stupid Questions – Or: How to Properly Qualify a Customer

This week I’ll be going a little in-depth on arguably the most important part of the sales process – qualifying your customer.

 

Now, we all know that the sales process starts off with forging a bond with the customer before diving into the nitty-gritty of the sale – so let’s just skip all of that and assume you knocked it out of the park, because of course you did.  When qualifying your customer, there are a few things to consider – the most important of which is that yes, there are indeed dumb questions.  Be sure you are aware of some of your customer’s needs before you being to nearly interrogate them with what they will think of as obvious questions.  If you go into the qualification pitch with no knowledge of their needs, you will look like a clueless sales jockey.

 

Mind you, this is a double-edged sword – be sure you avoid taking any unnecessary liberties by making assumptions about your client.  Do your very best to not assume they are like a previous client or another industry leader/the industry standard – it is key to treat each customer as a client with a unique set of circumstances surrounding their need(s), BECAUSE THEY ARE.