We are all taught that questions are important: the 70/30 rule and the idea of asking open ended questions, but there are definitely some questions you just never need to ask. In this blog post I will unpack the reasoning behind why certain questions should just be avoided and how some can be phrased in a more productive way during cold calls and preliminary meetings.
- How are you doing?
While this may seem like an innocuous and easy way to start a conversation, especially on cold calls, it should be avoided like the plague. The prospect knows that you don’t really care how they are doing, because you can’t really if you’ve never met them and have no relationship prior to the call. Secondly, it puts the burden on them to come up with a response right away and generally doesn’t serve a purpose towards your ultimate goal. You are much better off just being up front: introduce yourself, explain why you are calling, and then start probing for their pain points to see if you can help them.
- Are you the decision maker?
This is an important question to get the answer to, however you should never ask it like this. If they happen to be, then the ball is immediately in your court for an aggressive close. If they are not, then it basically renders them useless to you or at least makes them feel that way. A more smooth way to ask this question would be to phrase it more along the lines of next steps. Throw out a theoretical question such as, “Now if we are wanting to move forward with this, is there anyone else we need to include in the discussion before we pull the trigger?” or something to that effect.
- What are the biggest challenges facing your business right now?
Again, like the previous question it is very important to get an answer to this question but in the cold call or even introductory meeting you should avoid going here just yet. Go for the appointment. This conversation is better left for a follow up meeting that can have more structure than an unpredictable phone call or first meeting. Saving this for later will help you not accidentally spill the candy in the lobby.
Questions are very important, but even more important is knowing when and where to ask them in the sales process. Avoiding these three common mistakes in cold calling will help you build a better relationship with your prospect and come across in a more genuine way signaling you want to build a relationship instead of just get your way.
testacr22
Wow!! This post is very enlightening. As I have never had to do cold calling without a script, I would very likely fall into these traps out of sheer panic. Thanks for the insight!
I completely agree with this post! I have done some cold-calling and I’ve never used a script. It’s amazing how much easier the conversation seems to flow when you have a basic idea of what you need to talk about or get answers too, without reading from a paper! Great work.
I found it interesting that starting with an innocent “How do you do?” can be an easy way to get off on the right foot. Cold calling in general is an awkward way to sell so the less awkward moments, the better.