Asking Strong Sales Questions

Anyone who has ever been in sales knows that there is no one way sell, that there are as many sales styles as there are sales people. To find and define one's sales style is an introspective, reflective, and sometimes even painful process.

One element that I have found especially helpful as I grow into my own role as a sales person is asking the right questions. Jeffrey Gitomer, in his acclaimed The Little Red Book of Selling, strongly recommends that sales people make a list of 20 unbeatable questions and have them memorized. I think this is a great idea but put off actually writing the list until yesterday, after I had a fantastic conversation with one of our clients. An experienced sales trainer with 10 years under his belt, he declared that sales is nothing more than a process of knowing one's product, getting to know the prospect's needs (through questions!), and matching the two to make a sale.

With this in mind I now give you my 20 unbeatable sales questions for selling suites, virtual offices, and meeting rooms. Yours, of course, will be different depending on your product, but the idea is the same:

1. What has prompted you to seek office space at this time?

2. What prompted your interest in space with Davinci Suites?

3. What do you know about the executive suite concept?

4. What was your previous office arrangement?

5. What did you like about your previous arrangement? What would you have improved?

6. If this is your first office, what do you picture as your ideal space?

7. Where do you see your business (or this branch of your business) in 6 months? 12 months?

8. What is your budget?

9. What other things have you budgeted for outside of the office itself?

10. What is your time frame to make a decision?

11. How many people are you hoping to accommodate?

12. What can you tell me about the other people involved in the process?

13. How do you plan to use this office?

14. What preparations do you need to make to move in? (talking to partners, ending a previous
lease, getting startup capital, etc.)

15. Where else have you looked?

16. Where else do you plan to look?

17. What did you like about the other options you have looked at? What could be improved?

18. If you are planning to look elsewhere, what would be your primary consideration in
comparing what you have already seen?

19. What concerns do you have? What are your biggest hurdles?

20. What are your obstacles to signing today?

These, of course, must be asked at the right time in the conversation, customized to the prospect's needs, and not given in rapid succession. Still, having a list provides an excellent template for a confident sale.