5 Questions for Understanding Your Prospect's Buying ...

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1. These are just a few of the risks you face when you don’t take the time to explore and understand your prospect’s decision-making process. The good news is you can greatly reduce the likelihood of these scenarios playing out if you focus on asking the right questions early in your first meeting. “It’s your job to lead them away from their old, flawed process, toward your more effective one.” If you don’t create contrast between the two processes and fail to help them see the risks associated with their approach, you’re going to end up falling into the commodity trap—and, ultimately, losing.

   In Belief-based messaging

2. The second part of the question is: “In addition to yourself, who is part of the decision-making process, and who in your organization would be impacted by a change?” “Are they using a consultant? Is there a board that will be evaluating different proposals? Would employee stakeholders feel disrupted or threatened if a new relationship developed?” Third, ask, “What is it that you are hoping to accomplish?”

   In Blocker and detractor mapping

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