An open-ended question is one way of obtaining information. A person asking open-ended questions usually begins with the words: “who ...”, “what ...”, “how ...”, “why ...”, “how much ...”, “in connection with what ... "," what is your opinion ... "
Open-ended questions are one of the best ways to get to know a stranger better and establish friendships. Experienced negotiators use open-ended questions to “talk” to shy or nervous people. Educators often use open-ended questions when working with children or foreign students.
Open Question Goal
Listening to the answer to your question, an experienced counterpart deliberately introduces himself to a certain emotional state, allowing the potential client to feel like the main person involved in the meeting. As practice shows, an inexperienced person, being in such conditions, loses his head and can inform the interlocutor even about what he did not plan.
In the event that the expected effect is not achieved, the person asking the questions makes the next attempt to talk to the client - he does everything in his power so that the failed monologue becomes the beginning of the dialogue.
Why do people ask open-ended questions?
Open-ended questions are a quick way to get more information and learn about the true motives that drive the person you are talking to. The ability to ask the right open questions is a kind of skill, which can be mastered only if theoretical knowledge is confirmed by many years of practice.
During the first meeting, the seller tries to outline for himself the circle of interests of the interlocutor and create conditions for satisfying his problems. An experienced negotiator achieves this with questions such as: “What do you think, can it come in handy ...?”, “What are you interested in at the moment?”, And also invites the client to consider his answer options, formulating them in the form of questions, for example : “Why don't you ...?”, “And if you try to do so ...?”
To understand how a potential buyer accepted the seller’s intention to help him make a choice, they ask questions: “How do you feel about this?” or “What do you think?”, and if the client doubts, the reasons for the doubts arises are clarified by asking: “What bothers you?”, “What do you doubt?” or “What could be a hindrance?”
Examples of open questions
"In connection with what did this situation arise?"
“Why do you think your choice is right?”
Perhaps someone will be surprised by the following example of an open question. In sales questions like: “What problems can you solve by buying this product?” shop assistants usually don’t ask. But they are actively used by direct sales workers who are interested in long-term cooperation and seek to find an excuse to gain the trust of a potential client.
Here are examples of open-ended questions that distributors usually ask:
“Do you think this acquisition has brought you the maximum benefit?”
“When did you first hear about this opportunity?”
“What benefits have you noticed?”
Another example of an open sales question, a question like: “What result do you expect?” opens up an opportunity for the seller to demonstrate the whole range of goods that meets the expectations of the client, and the buyer can make the best choice.
Before going to a meeting with a client, the seller carefully thinks over exactly what questions he will ask and in what order.
How to start a dialogue
This topic is of concern to almost every newcomer who decides to devote himself to the field of sales: “how to ask a question to a person who does not intend to listen to me?”
A knowledgeable negotiator uses open-ended questions to better understand the needs of the client. Asking his questions, he tries:
- so that the wording is extremely clear. The shorter the question, the more likely it is to get a detailed answer;
- so that the dialogue does not turn into an interrogation. Questions raised in a relaxed way are more likely to be heard.
Of course, the seller must know how to ask questions correctly. There are cases when a theoretically savvy novice seller, knowing exactly how to ask a question, asked him and did not achieve success. This is because many newcomers have never heard that any phrase, at the end of which the speaker’s voice weakens, sounds like a statement of fact. When the speaker speaks the last words of a phrase, raising his voice, the whole phrase sounds like a question.
Having fully focused on the interlocutor, the seller, listening to his answers, can, in principle, be silent, showing his interest only with an approving smile, a nod of his head, or using the so-called “sign language”.
Having heard an unsatisfactory answer, which does not make it possible to make an impression about the client, the experienced seller does not panic, but continues to show interest through facial expressions, poses and gestures, thus encouraging new attempts by the client to give a detailed answer. During the conversation, the sales representative oversees the body movements of the interlocutor. What for? About this - a little later. Now about the rules of active listening.
The active listener does not interrupt the client, but sometimes pronounces phrases like: “Yes, really!”, “This is interesting!”, And also clarifies everything that is not clear to him, using open questions.
As one of the methods of active listening, most sellers use the following trick: they repeat the words spoken by the client and take a break, during which they think about their next steps, and at the same time let the client know that his opinion is of interest to the interlocutor. There are cases when a novice seller offended a client by not paying due attention to his words.
Sign language
If the listener crossed his arms over his chest, he took up a defensive position. This position should be regarded as a signal: "Let's change the subject."
If the interlocutor leaned slightly towards the speaker - he is very interested in talking.
If a potential buyer scratches his beard (chin), twirls an object in his hands or wipes his glasses - he makes a decision.
If the client sits directly, he is open to communication and fully trusts the seller.
If a person is slouching, he is full of humility and wants to please his interlocutor.
If a client with an absent look taps a shoe on the floor or on the leg of a chair, automatically draws something or clicks with a ballpoint pen - he is bored.
If the listener’s body is turned towards the front door, he is waiting for a convenient moment to say goodbye and leave.
If a person covers his mouth with his hands or looks past the speaker, he does not intend to discuss any topic.
How not to have a conversation
Many sellers believe that during the meeting they should devote the maximum amount of time to describing the benefits of the products that they offer. But the description of the goods does not guarantee the conclusion of a transaction.
Another common mistake of a novice seller is that, trying to answer all customer questions, he allows the buyer to control the outcome of the transaction.
Wrong open-ended questions
“Do you want to save your money?” Is a bad example of an open question. In sales, the correct wording plays a very important role. If the question is posed incorrectly, the sales representative will cease to control the situation and lose the client.
Making sales means controlling the development of events. The manager or person asking questions determines the direction of the course of events, and his interlocutor is to some extent a passenger who is traveling in the direction chosen by the manager.
“What do you think will make your life better?” Is another unfortunate example of an open question. In sales, questions of various types help to achieve different results, and a sales representative, allowing a potential buyer to talk on abstract topics, is wasting his time.
The right negotiations
Experienced sales representatives start preparing for negotiations with setting goals, that is, they decide what information about a potential buyer he needs and how to get it.
The start of negotiations is, in essence, the collection of information, upon receipt of which, the seller can proceed to the presentation. Inexperienced sales representatives make the same mistake - instead of asking a potential client about his needs, they allow him to ask questions himself.
The seller cannot start asking questions without finding out what position the potential buyer occupies, since the requests of the ordinary employee and manager are significantly different from each other.