“If I could show you how to 10X your revenue, would you be interested?”
“Wouldn’t you like to get more leads if you could?”
“If you could close more deals wouldn’t that increase your income?”
Leading questions prompt a desired answer that’s in the best interest of the salesperson.
When you ask leading questions, prospects can smell your commission breath. They know you’re putting your best interests ahead of theirs.
Prospects are skeptical of claims made by salespeople because they have a vested interest.
What’s the way out?
Ask an illumination question about a potential problem and pass control to the prospect so they can make up their own mind.
In other words, poke the bear.
Here are a few examples.
Example for Truthfinders:
“How do you know the founder you’re about to invest in won’t have a sordid history splashed across Tech Crunch’s homepage?”
Example for SambaSafety:
“If you run an MVRs quarterly, how do you know violations aren’t occurring between pulls?”
Example for an X-Ray machine
“How are you dealing with lower demand for CT procedures due to declining reimbursements from more expensive exams?”
Example for a staffing firm that places salespeople:
“How do you know good interviews won’t turn into bad sales hires?”
Illumination questions don’t prompt a desired response. They’re neutral. They make prospects subconsciously think, “Hmm, I’m not sure.“
No assumptions.
No agenda.
No persuading.
Straightforward curiosity.
Ditch the pitch.
Poke the bear.