What’s the best way to influence and move your prospect in the direction you want them to go? There are many times during your presentation that you can and should ask questions. Questions are the most powerful way to guide and influence your prospects in a gentle way. If you are asking a question rather than just stating the information it makes it much more effective in getting leads. This is a powerful persuasion technique.
This is not one section of your presentation, rather all-encompassing within your presentation. The questions are important, but how you ask them is as important if not more important. There’s a skill, technique or art to how you ask questions for persuasion. When you learn the art of asking questions you can apply it in any other area of your life.
Where do you ask questions during your presentation?
Step 1: The Introduction (product or service is insignificant here)
I know this will be redundant if you’ve read anything else of mine, but it’s important to restate. When you approach the homeowner’s door they weren’t thinking about you or what you’re there to offer. Their mind and attention is a million miles away from what you want them to focus on so leading off your presentation and the introduction with a question is a powerful way to wake them up and get them to focus on you and your pending opportunity.
Here are some questions I ask right off the bat. I use these when I have what I call a lead or reference. It could be a neighbor or a specific job site you’re working on in the neighborhood. You use these as points of reference for the homeowner.
Do you know (neighbor) down the street?o you where (you’re business location) is off of Main Street?
I state the questions this way because it’s a yes or no answer. Either way they know the answer to it. It’s also an engagement tool.
When you use references or name drop it doesn’t really matter if they know the person or the address. The key is you got their attention using the reference and lowed their guard.
You should always ask questions they could answer, preferably with a yes or no answer early in your interaction with them.
You should avoid questions like, “have you ever heard of us?” They can answer this question but it’s not a good way to start your rapport with them.
The next question should be leading to your offer. It also should keep their guard low and the pressure off. The next questions should lead them to making a small commitment.
“So with that in mind we’re going to be in the area doing work and talking to many of your neighbors. Are you generally around during the day like this or are evenings or weekends better for you?” This question is used when you’re canvassing for a single product or service. Having multiple products or services I don’t recommend using this question because it doesn’t allow them to make a definitive answer that leads to your objective. When offering a single product or service this is a low level, alternative choice question. You’re giving them 3 choices to pick, day-times, evenings or weekends.
For multiple products or services I’ll ask the question differently. This is geared to get them to choose what they’re interested in. Use the below line after you hand them a flier listing all of your products or services.
“Off the flier, which would be the next home improvement you might look into next on your home?” The key in the question is “looking into”. You’re not asking them to commit to buying the product or service, but rather just looking into. There’s no pressure attached to looking into. The “looking into” makes it easier to get a product or service commitment.
If you were offering single products keep the question focused to picking an appointment time offering alternative choices and if presenting multiple products or services the question should be geared to them choosing a product or service they’d look into next.
If you were offering them information rather than products or appointment times you want to get the homeowner to commit to the specific information you’ll send them. The key is in the commitment. Small commitments throughout the presentation lead to bigger commitments later in the presentation. You never want to ask for permission to send them information rather than getting them to choose what information you’ll send them. If you ask if you can send them a free guide, appointment time or price quote they’ll typically say no and it can shut down your presentation.
The measure of asking the right questions in your introduction is it has to pass my 3-tiered test:
1. Did you get their attention?
2. Where you clear?
3. Did you lower their guard?
Step 2: The Transition Question
In my 5-step system the second step is designed if you do get an objection during the introduction. For teaching purposes I’m going to presume you do get an objection and I apply my step 2. My step 2 is always a question. You can’t get rattled when you do get an objection so you have to be prepared for the objection with a question.
The objection will always be a no to your offer, a price quote or information so my question is geared at redirecting them based on the product or service I’m presenting or they’ve selected.
Here’s my transition question (Step 2)
“No problem let me ask you a question. Have you ever had a price quote on (insert the product of service)?
They will always have an answer to this question and their answer will give you a tremendous amount of insight into who this prospect is.
Their answers divide them into a no or yes person. It doesn’t matter what your product or service, their answer will tell you they’ve already looked into the product/service, which tells you they’ve already recognized the need for the product or service but they just haven’t acted on it.
My following conversation with them will be based on knowing they already have the need and want.
If they say no they haven’t had an estimate then your entire focus at this point must be on establishing the need or want.
With your question you have to identify what type of prospect this homeowner is. Have they already recognized their need or want for the product or service? O do you need to create the need and want?
Step 3: Yes-No
If the prospect has a yes response to your transition question, then they’ve identified themselves to have a need or want for the product or service you’re presenting. I move forward asking additional questions to further rapport with the homeowner. Remember, they answered yes to my transition question and now I ask questions to further my rapport. Questions such as:
Do you remember whom you got the quote from?
How long ago did you get the quote?
Do you remember what stopped you from moving forward?
This is the only time I’ll ask questions that aren’t alternative choice questions. And truthfully, their answers to these questions are really insignificant. They lead me to the 4th and 5th steps in my presentation.
If the prospects respond with a no response to your transition question, you’re going to come back with a strong rebuttal to establish the need and want for your product, service or information. The key though to your rebuttal is to finish it strong with an assumptive alternative choice question.
Steps 4 & 5: Drilling Down
Steps 4 & 5 in my 5-step canvassing system is drilling down to time and money and using programs to keep the hopes of affordability alive. Again use an assumptive alternative choice question at the end of each rebuttal to assume the lead, appointment or information delivered.
At the start of this article, I mentioned how you ask a question is as important as the questions themselves. In past articles and Telecoaching calls I’ve given extensive time to discussing how you use your voice or your tonality. There’s a technique called ‘upturning’, which is where your voice goes up at the end of a question rather than down. When your tone drops at the end of a sentence it infers the end. When your voice goes up at the end of a sentence, especially a question, it infers there’s to be more, such as the homeowner answering the question. For specific examples on upturning be sure to listen to the live Telecoaching call from June 12, 2013.
When you get a Green Light
If they’ve given you a positive direction to your offer or lead, it is time to start capturing their information.
Great I’ll get you that information. This leads to capturing the homeowner’s personal information. If you’re using my system you know my Rule of 6. The first 6 questions are asked in assumptive form. The questions are actually tie down questions asking them to confirm information rather than providing the information. I start with the information I already know, such as the street number, street name, city, zip, etc. This then leads to getting more personal information once you’ve established the agreement pattern. If you’re not familiar with my ‘Rule of 6’ technique refer to the section in my Canvassing in the New Economy video training series or past archives of Canvassing Insider articles (article archives are available to all coaching members).
If you take away only 1 thing from this article it should be how to ask questions in a way that moves your prospect closer to your objective.
If you have a story or results you can share with me that you implemented from this article share it with me by email at cthompson@canvassking.com or if you have a question that pertains to the content of this article go to www.AskTheCanvassKing.com and submit your questions. I’ll answer them either directly back to you, or, if they would be valuable to all my members I’ll share them on a live Telecoaching call.