Out of the Question

By James Patterson

Highly successful salespeople are skillful in the use of questions. A salesman's dilemma is asking the right question at the right time. This book covers how to establish rapport with good questions. It shows you how to develop knowledge about your prospects needs with the use of open end questions. You will learn how to confirm benefits with both open and closed end questions. It shows you how to develop "Go To" questions so you are always prepared. And, finally, it will cover good and bad questions so you can avoid pitfalls and enhance your sales skills. It's what you get out of the question that counts. The information in this book will significantly improve your selling capabilities from which you will earn greater dollars.

• Language: English
• Publisher: James Patterson
• Release date: Feb 4, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301996988

James Patterson

James D. Patterson has been involved in sales for over 40 years during which time he has sold real estate, office equipment, life insurance, and TV time plus other services and products. He has trained over 1000 sales people and account executives. Among his corporate positions were National Sales Training Manager for Xerox Corporation, President of Midas International of Canada, and President of Innerspace Environments. He was the founder of Woodfield Properties in Kentfield, CA, a real estate brokerage company, where he built the firm to 3 offices with over 50 sales associates. He sold the company to Merrill Lynch Realty and relocated to Santa Barbara, CA where he continues to represent sellers and buyers of real property as an Associate Broker with Village Properties. Over the years, he has sold everything from vacant land to major hotels, from condominiums to large estates. The skillful use of questions has been a major factor in his success.

Book preview

Out of the Question

A Salesman’s Dilemma

James D. Patterson

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Smashwords Edition

Copyright 2013 James D. Patterson

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - Why Questions

Chapter 2 - Establishing Rapport

Chapter 3 - Developing Knowledge

Chapter 4 - Confirming Benefits

Chapter 5 - Go To Questions for Your Particular Situation

Chapter 6 - Structuring Questions

Chapter 7 - Good and Bad Questions

Chapter 8 - Summary

About the Author

Chapter 1

Why Questions

What is the one thing all highly successful salespeople have in common? From consumer sales such as cars, appliances and real estate to high level business sales like computer systems, aircraft and financial products, effective salespeople are skillful with this major component in the sales process. And what is this essential component? Questions. John Chancellor, a famous TV journalist, said, "Strength is not in having the right answers, but in asking the right questions.

The key word in the above quote is right. A question is only as good as its outcome. What comes out of the question will lead you further along the sales path, leave you mired where you are, or, in some cases, set you back. The critical element determining what you get out of the question is the quality of the question you ask. There is no doubt you can increase sales with better questions.

A salespersons role is to guide a prospect along a desired path that ultimately ends in a sale. As a guide, the salesperson must exercise some degree of control. How does the salesperson do this in a way that creates cooperation? Good questions. Who is in control of the sales process? The person asking questions. Questions direct the process along the desired path. Effective questions are essential for the salesperson to achieve the desired results for both the salesperson and the prospect. Better questions produce greater results and more $$$$$.

One of the classic examples of this control of the process can be seen in the many crime dramas portrayed on TV every day. The prosecuting attorney uses questions to control the witness as the prosecutor attempts to sell the jury on the defendant's guilt. The key difference between the prosecutor and a salesperson is the prosecutor is trained to only ask questions that he or she already knows the answer. The salesperson asks questions to discover information the salesperson does not know or confirm information not already stated. In both cases, questions are the tool of choice.

When I was in charge of the national sales training for Xerox Corporation, the company asked me and my staff to evaluate a sales training program that was developed by a small company in New York. We liked it so much that Xerox purchased the company and the program became the platform for all Xerox sales training. The program was named Professional Selling Skills (PSS) and it