You are here: Home / Sales 3.0 / Six Questions Your Client Needs You To Answer
shutterstock_1168054 copy

Six Questions Your Client Needs You To Answer

November 1, 2011 by 8 Comments

Who does your client need you to be? Answering these questions from your dream client’s perspective will help you?

What Are My Business Goals and Objectives?

Your dream client needs you to know and understand their business goals and objectives. They need you to ask the questions that help them to identify their own business goals and objectives, and they need you to connect those goals to the solution you build for—and with—them.

Do You Have the Business Acumen to Help Me?

Your prospect needs to know that you have the business acumen to help them. It isn’t enough to ask questions. You need to be able to ask the questions that get to the real issues, the issues that must be resolved in order to produce the results that they need. Business acumen means knowing how to help answer those questions. You must also know and understand how to help them get results.

Who Do We Need on Our Team?

Your prospective clients need you to know who you will need on your team to produce results. This team includes people from their organization, their stakeholders. It also includes members of your team that you will need to lead to produce results as your client’s partner. You need to know more than what is necessary—you also need to know who is necessary.

How Do You Help Me Make a Compelling Case?

Your dream client is going to need to make the case for your solution within his or her own organization. They need you to help provide them with the business case. They also need you to help them build the consensus for your solution. They need a compelling case, and they need you to help them make it.

What Are My Constraints?

Your prospect needs you to understand their constraints? What are the limitations when it comes to producing a business result? What can be done, and what will be more difficult to accomplish? How do they mitigate their constraints? What can be done to provide an improvement? What might be changed?

Will You Be Here?

Your client needs to know that you will be there. When the problems appear, when things get tough, your client needs to know that you are going to be there in the foxhole beside them. Your client needs to know that you are committed to more than selling them a solution; they need to know that you will own the outcome.

Questions

What does your client need from you?

Who does your client need you to be?

What questions do you need to be able to answer for your clients?

Filed Under: Sales 3.0

  • Pingback: Six Questions Your Client Needs You To Answer — S. Anthony Iannarino | Social Media Sociables | Scoop.it

  • http://www.datarecoverysoftware.com recovery of data

    Hi, will you please suggest some tips to maintain effective goals and objectives…

  • http://brianvickery.com Brian Vickery

    I’ve seen the “will you be here” as a 2-edged sword sometimes. I like to represent that my company will be there, and I am always a phone call away if trouble strikes. However, I will *not* be the resource doing the work. I try to get across the point that I have employees that are far better at this stuff than I am.

    However, some clients develop that trust and they want me onsite full-time (by-product of still being half decent on the technical side). I honestly cannot offer that and be scalable to other clients. That’s why it is important to identify that team lead quickly and start giving that lead a chance to build trust with the client so you become “expendable”.

    • http://www.thesalesblog.com S. Anthony Iannarino

      I agree. I think that we as salespeople have to own the outcomes, but not that transactions. It’s an important distinction! 

      A

  • http://www.generate-barcode.com barcode free

    I think clients wants trust and quality work from us if they paying for the work. 

  • richard ruff

    Anthony

    Good article and great topic.  In response to the “what questions do you need to be able to answer” question – the tough questions vary by market.  But let’s take the high-end sale that is high risk for the buyer.

    In that situation the key question is “how are you going to handle the low probability – high consequence situation.”  In the high-end sale risk reduction is often a big deal.

    dick

    • http://www.thesalesblog.com S. Anthony Iannarino

      I think risk reduction is way underestimated when the stakes are high, Dick. I also think we make it worse by waiting to try to address risk mitigation until the end of the sales process. It always feels like you are behind the eight ball and justifying. It feels easier when you bring it in early in the process, more natural, I think. What say you?

      Anthony

  • Pingback: Sales blogger roundup for November 7

Download my E-Book: How to Crush It, Kill It, and Master Cold Calling Now! FREE when you subscribe to my newsletter »