Why Open-Ended Questions Aren't Very Useful

Almost every sales trainer recommends asking open-ended questions. They rightly point out that close-ended questions (e.g. "How many widgets do you use every year?") tend to create a lull in the conversation, forcing you to segue awkwardly into the next line of inquiry.

By contrast, open-ended questions (e.g. "What are your needs when it comes to widgets?") typically elicit a more detailed response containing information that can help you position your offering. Right? Well, sort of...

Unfortunately, many open-ended questions insult the prospect's intelligence. In almost every case, sales reps often craft open-ended questions that will either lead the prospect into considering a particular product, or allow the sales rep to qualify the prospect as a possible customer.

But prospects are not dumb; they can usually sense that the open-ended question is simply an attempt to manipulate the conversation. As such, they typically result in a short answer that echoes the response that the customer assumed (correctly) that the sales pro expected to hear.

Nancy Martini, CEO of the consulting firm PI Worldwide recommends something that she calls a "strategic question" -- one that's open-ended but, rather than eliciting a particular type of answer, simply invites the prospect to expound upon a situation.

For example, the question "Tell me about how your company uses widgets..." treats the prospect as the expert and naturally leads towards a deeper conversation that can lead towards a collaborative sales opportunity. According to Nancy, strategic questions usually begin with one of the following phrases: tell, share, describe, explain, explore, or help me understand.

Nancy recommend that sales professionals always prepare two or three strategic questions for each customer meeting. "Strategic questions reveal valuable information that will prove useful throughout the sales cycle," she explains. "They also make the customer feel as if he is guiding the discussion."

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