Sales & Customer Growth
The customer's first request is rarely the whole story
A customer asks for a price. Behind that may be a deadline, a budget limit, a bad experience with another supplier or a decision that someone else will make. Good discovery questions bring these out early, so you can propose something that fits, or honestly decide not to chase. This session builds a set of such questions for each participant's business and practises asking them naturally.
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Wrong assumptions are expensive.
Quoting before understanding leads to long, unnecessary quotations, to discounts offered to people who never asked for one, and to customers who say yes to the wrong thing and are unhappy later. A few minutes of good questions saves hours afterwards.
Asking questions is not interrogating. It is showing interest in the customer's situation. When it is done well, the customer feels understood, which is a better start to a sale than a catalogue.
What the session covers
30 topics across 6 areas. Six parts, each with questions written and practised.
Why We AskWhat we want to learn.5
- What the customer is trying to achieve
- What is happening now, and what is not working
- What would make this a success for them
- Who else is involved in the decision
- Whether we are actually a good fit
You are also deciding whether to take the customer on, not only trying to win them.
Open and Closed QuestionsA tool for each job.5
- Open questions that invite a story
- Closed questions that confirm a fact
- Questions that begin with what, how and tell me about
- Why "why" can sound like blame, and what to say instead
- Using silence after a question
Situation, Problem and ResultThree layers of questions.5
Participants write questions in each layer for their own business, whether it sells furniture, tutoring, packaging or accounting services.
- Situation: how do you do this today?
- Problem: what is the hardest part, and what does it cost you?
- Result: what would be better if this were solved?
- Matching questions to your own offer
- Not asking questions you could have found out yourself
Budget, Timing and DecisionThe three awkward ones.5
- Asking about budget as help, not as testing the customer
- Offering a range when the customer will not name a figure
- Asking when they need it, and why that date
- Who else will want to see the quotation
- What has stopped them deciding so far
Phrase them as a way to give a better recommendation, because that is what they are.
Listening for the Answer Behind the AnswerThe follow-up question.5
- Noticing vague words: soon, good, cheap, urgent
- Asking "what do you mean by that?"
- Repeating the last few words to invite more
- Spotting emotions: worry, urgency, frustration
- Summarising and asking if you have understood correctly
Using What You LearnQuestions are worthless if unused.5
- Writing down three things the customer said
- Using their own words in your recommendation
- Deciding to quote, to suggest something else, or to decline
- Keeping notes for the next conversation
- Updating your question list each month
What participants leave with
- Their own list of discovery questions, in plain language
- A one-page notes template for customer conversations
- A way to ask about budget and timing that feels comfortable
- Practice asking follow-up questions under time pressure
- A habit of reviewing which questions gave the best information
What this session is not
- A set of scripts to read out to customers
- A trick for extracting information
- A guarantee of closing more sales
- Suitable for replacing real listening
Who teaches it
- Consultative sales practitioners
- Business owners who sell services or custom work
- Account managers
- Customer-research practitioners
How the session runs
Two to three hours, in a small group. The practitioner demonstrates a conversation first without questions, then with them, using a hypothetical business, so the difference is easy to see. Participants then write questions for their own businesses, test them in pairs with one person playing a customer who gives vague answers, and refine them with feedback. The session ends with a notes template and a plan to use the questions in the next real conversation.
What your students leave with
- A set of eight to ten discovery questions written for their own business
- The difference between open and closed questions, and when to use each
- A way to ask about budget and timing without awkwardness
- The habit of asking one follow-up to a vague answer
- A short notes template to use during and after a conversation
- Confidence to stop pitching and keep asking when the situation needs it
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
Ask first, understand fully, then recommend.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.