Every prospective client is different; what is consistent is that prospects 'will try to leave out details' because they are afraid the sales person will 'oversell' them or 'sell them something higher priced than they want to spend' or have had one of many bad experiences with sales people who lied to them in the past, and want to prevent that from happening.
It is important to develop some level of comfort, and start to build a little trust with each other....when those things happen, the prospect 'lets down his defenses, and becomes more open and honest' -- because he is not afraid of the salesperson, but can start to see him as an ally.
Getting business from referrals, makes this go easier. But we all meet people for the first time, in other ways.
I would like to say "THANK YOU" to all the experts who replied to my question. You have helped me solve one of my biggest challenges. I printed this out and will keep it with me until I have assimilated everything. Life is Good Again!
Paulette Halpern