Reversing, or asking a prospect’s questions with questions of your own, sounds like a lot to expect, doesn’t it? Especially if you’re not used to reversing. Just to clarify, to reverse is to respond to a prospect’s question with a question. The overall purpose is to get to the truth of a prospect’s situation.
Well, it’s time to put aside the question-response behavior you learned as a kid, and to step into the adult world of selling. Here, answering questions with questions is the rule of the road.You didn’t grow up asking a question with a question, did you? As a youngster, you were taught to answer a question, when someone asked you one. The adults in your life taught you that. And your teachers expected you, without fail, to answer a question.
Of course, you’ll have to give a prospect an answer to a question at some point. That’s when a prospect asks you the same question say two or three times. But before that, the rule is to reverse, reverse, reverse, and reverse more. Here are three reasons why:
- When you reverse, you’ll get past a prospect’s pain indicators and to the pain(s) he or she is experiencing. That’s when your prospect will move into the buying mode. Then you can sell to the pain. If you don’t reverse, kiss your sale goodbye. It won’t happen.
- When you ask a prospect a question, you likely won’t get a thoughtful answer. Your prospect will likely answer your question from the habitual response he or she has mastered over the years talking with hundreds of salespeople who’ve asked the same or similar question you’ve asked.
- Some prospect questions are downright dangerous to answer. For example: How much will it cost? How much of my time will it take? When can you start? Answering questions like these are going to be wrong if you lack complete information. First, because you may lack enough information to respond to them accurately. Second, you can’t answer them accurately unless you reverse to find the real reasons a prospect’s asking them.
Still not convinced that reversing or reversing more makes sense? Then look at it this way: Think of yourself as compensated based on how many questions you ask prospects, not on how many answers you give them.
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