Questions That Sell

Questions About the Past

Many salespeople overlook asking questions about the past. Some think that dwelling on what happened last year, or even last month, is irrelevant. They have told me, “You can’t change the past, can you? So why bother asking questions about it?” During every sales training session, I ask salespeople to write down all the typical questions they ask on a regular basis, regardless if they are making a first-time sales call or renewing an established relationship. When I collect the responses, without fail, 90 percent of the questions we tally are about the present. Only a few are about the future, and rarely do I collect any about the past. If there is a question about the past, it’s usually a warm-up question, such as, ...