Dumb Questions = Dumb Answers

My 14-year old daughter can trash her bedroom faster than a tornado. Encountering the chaos the other day, exasperated by the piles of books, clothes, and other unidentifiable objects that looked like food scraps, I asked her, "Do you want me to come in here and throw away everything I find on the floor?"

"No, Dad," she whispered while pleading with her gorgeous blue eyes.

Well, what did I expect her to say?

"Sure Dad, throw away everything you can find."

Then I thought about the other inane questions I, and other parents, have asked kids:

"Do you want to go to your room?"

"Do you want to lose your computer privilege?"

"How many times do I have to tell you not to do that?"

I guess I should follow the same guidelines at home regarding questioning as I do on the phone:

The quality of your answer is in direct correlation to the quality of your question. Ask a dumb question, get a similar-quality answer.

For example, consider the go-nowhere questions employed by some sales reps:

• "Do you have any questions?"
  
• "Do you have any needs?"
  
• "What do you look for in a service?"
  
• "Do you need anything else?"
  
• "So is everything going OK with the company you’re buying from now?"

All of those virtually assure a negative response. Selling is tough enough as is, don’t make it more difficult.

Here are the same questions, with more productive alternatives.

Instead of, "Do you have any questions?", try,

"What were your thoughts about the performance figures in the brochure?"

"As you read the proposal, which area did you spend the most time on?"

In place of, "Do you have any needs?", consider,

"What are your expansion and equipment plans for the next six months?"

"Which areas have you targeted for an increase in productivity?"

Instead of, "What do you look for in a service?", use,

"What are the three main criteria you used when you selected your existing vendor? Which one did you place the most emphasis on?"

"What specifically will you base your decision on?"

Don't use, "Do you need anything else?" Try,

"Many customers who order the _____ also get some_____ to go with it. Would you like one also?"

Avoid, "So is everything going OK with the company you’re buying from now?" In its place try,

"How do you handle it when (fill in the blank with a problem they might experience with the vendor, based on your knowledge of them.)

For example,

"What do you do when you have special orders you need with less than a week’s notice?"

Ask a vague question, get an equally vague (and worthless) answer. Be specific, be prepared, and your questions will reward you accordingly.

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Reprinted with permission from Art Sobczak's "TelE-Sales Hot Tips of the Week." To subscribe, free, visit BusinessByPhone.com.

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