Sales Questionnaire

One lady in my office has a questionairre on a clip board that she takes on appointments. She says she goes right down the list of questions and at the end gives a short presentation. It sounds cold but she does okay. Does anyone else do this?

I have a questionnaire that I use. A couple of years ago I built it into the data sheet that I take with me on listing appointments. I like it and the newbies love it because it reminds them of the questions they need to be asking.

A sales questionnaire sounds good but I haven't tried it. Is it really necessary?

Originally Posted by shinningstar A sales questionnaire sounds good but I haven't tried it. Is it really necessary?

It might help because the questions are written down in case I get nervous and forget.

The biggest danger of using a questionnaire is it's natural to sometimes forget to delve deeper where you should. If a prospect answers in a way that seems you can investigate further with more probing questions in an effort to have them see for themselves the value of what you're selling, make sure you don't miss that opportunity because your main concern is now getting to the next question in the questionnaire.

Originally Posted by Coda1108 The biggest danger of using a questionnaire is it's natural to sometimes forget to delve deeper where you should. If a prospect answers in a way that seems you can investigate further with more probing questions in an effort to have them see for themselves the value of what you're selling, make sure you don't miss that opportunity because your main concern is now getting to the next question in the questionnaire.

I didn't think of that. Anything else to look out for?

I haven't used a questionaire yet. I have asked general questions of my customers though and am trying to keep a log of which items they order so that I'll know their tastes.

Originally Posted by Thomas I didn't think of that. Anything else to look out for?

Always end with "What else would you like to add to what you've already told me?"

A lot of times, someone taking the questionnaire might think of something during the process, but doesn't volunteer it. Some people won't until they're asked to.

This is especially important if you're conducting the interview in person.

NOTE the question is "What else would you..." and not "Is there anything else...." You should ALWAYS ask these types of questions as open-ended, meaning the respondent cannot answer with a Yes or No.

Originally Posted by Coda1108 NOTE the question is "What else would you..." and not "Is there anything else...." You should ALWAYS ask these types of questions as open-ended, meaning the respondent cannot answer with a Yes or No.

Oh yes... this is one of the first things I learned and it's very helpful to remember. Even in things like phone calls it works... if you say "Do you have a question?" it's too easy to say no. If you say "WHAT is your first question?" people are more likely to actually say something.

Originally Posted by Thomas She says she goes right down the list of questions and at the end gives a short presentation. It sounds cold but she does okay. Does anyone else do this?

For initial training and later memory jogging this could be a good idea because it could free up your mind to listen instead of thinking about what your next question will be. Flexibility in the questioning process is important and would need to be addressed with this approach.