21 B2B Sales Questions To Close More Deals in 2024

Closing a deal can be tough. But, asking the right questions can help you identify the needs of your potential customers and position your product or service as the best solution, getting you even closer to closing that B2B sale!

Not only do great sales questions help to qualify leads and identify the needs of potential customers. But they also demonstrate that you understand the challenges and goals of the business. This creates confidence that the solution you offer will be useful.?

One of the main benefits of asking the right sales questions is how it quickly builds trust with potential customers. According to a study by HubSpot, 92% of buyers say they would be more likely to purchase from a salesperson they trust.

Furthermore, another reason to be strategic with your sales questions is that they can tease out vital information from the prospect, which you can use throughout the selling process. Ask the right questions, and your sales reps will know the pain points specific to this particular business and how to structure the products or services you offer them so that they perfectly match their needs.

This will put you ahead of most of the competition because 69% of sales reps say that they struggle to identify the specific needs of their prospects (from a study by The Bridge Group).?

In this article, we’ll explore how to ask great B2B sales questions, including what specific questions you can ask to gain a deeper understanding of your business, how to persuade them best, and how to tailor your solutions to meet their needs.

General Tips for Asking B2B Sales Questions

Before delving into specific sales scripts, we need to lay a proper foundation of skills. Without them, you run the risk of asking the right questions but not actually closing the B2B sale.

Be Prepared

Before you begin the sales process, research the business and the industry. This will help you to ask more informed and relevant questions.

Be a Great Listener

Listening to the answers is one of the most important things to remember when asking questions. Deeply, so that you clearly understand what they are saying, what they are NOT saying, and the implications of all of it. Listen more than you talk, even on a sales call, and you’ll gain a deeper understanding of the business and identify areas where you can add value.

Use Open-Ended Questions...

Open-ended questions encourage the prospect to provide more information or directly state their needs and pain points. This can also be a way to subtly direct prospects to a general conclusion you are working towards in the conversation. For example, instead of asking, “Do you have any problems with your current solution?” try asking, “Can you tell me more about the challenges you are facing with your current solution?”.

...But Avoid Leading Questions

On the one hand, you’ve got questions that are effective at gently guiding a prospect towards a general type of conclusion (i.e., “Can you tell me about some of the problems you have in your current software solution?”). But on the other hand, if you take that too far, you end up with overtly leading questions. Leading questions are designed to elicit a specific response (i.e., “Our services sound super valuable and worth the price, don’t they?”). These can be perceived as manipulative and damage the trust between you and the prospect.

Use “Why” Questions:

“Why” questions can help uncover a problem’s underlying reasons. For example, instead of asking, “What are your goals for this project?” try asking, “Why is this project important to your business?” (also a good example of a gently guiding open-ended question).

Scripts for 21 B2B Sales Questions to Help You Close More Deals

1. Can You Tell me about Your Current Process for [Problem Your Product Solves]?

Understanding a customer’s current solution can provide insight into what they are currently using and what they are looking to replace or improve.

2. Can You Tell me about a Recent Challenge or Pain Point You’ve Experienced with Your Current Solution?

Knowing about recent challenges or pain points with a customer’s current solution can help identify potential areas for improvement and how your solution can address those issues.

3. How Does [Problem Your Product Solves] Impact Your Business Currently?

Knowing the impact of a customer’s pain points on their business can help determine the level of urgency and the potential return on investment for a new solution.

4. How do You Measure the Performance of Your Current [Problem Your Product Solves] Solution?

Understanding how customers assess their problems and key requirements for a new solution can help ensure your solution meets their needs and aligns with their goals.

5. If I had a Magic Button I could Press to Instantly Give You What You Want in the [General Product Category] Area of Your Business, What Would That Look Like?

In some cases, prospects will fully outline in extremely precise terms the parameters of what they are after, which leaves it up to you to say we do/don’t do that. It costs X. An example…Q: if I could give you exactly what you want regarding email marketing, what would that look like? A: a sequence of 7 emails promoting my new webinar in the style of Frank Kern.

6. Have You Tried Other Solutions Before?

Knowing if a customer has considered other solutions can help identify what they have already looked at and what they may be comparing your solution to.

7. How Does Our Solution Compare to Your Current One?

Comparing your solution to a customer’s current one can help them understand how it addresses their pain points and offers unique value.

8. Can You Tell me about Your Budget for this Project?

Can you tell me about any budget or resource constraints you have related to [problem your product solves]? Knowing a customer’s budget can help determine if your solution is viable for them and help inform pricing and negotiation.

9. How Soon Are You Looking to Implement a New Solution?

Knowing when a customer is looking to implement a new solution can help determine the timeline for the sales process and the potential for closing the deal.

11. How will this Solution Help You Achieve Your Goals?

Knowing how a customer’s goals align with your solution can help demonstrate the potential for success and return on investment.

12. Can You Tell me about any Specific Features or Functionality Important to You?

This question allows you to discuss how your solution does those things.

13. Can You Tell me about the Decision-Making Process for this Purchase?

Understanding a customer’s decision-making process can help ensure all necessary stakeholders are involved and the process moves forward smoothly.

14. Who are the Key Stakeholders needing Involvement in the Decision?

Knowing who the key stakeholders are can help ensure that you are addressing their specific needs and concerns.

15. Can You Tell me about any Specific Timelines or Deadlines You have for Addressing [Problem Your Product Solves]?

Knowing a customer’s timeline can help ensure the sales process aligns with their schedule. That implementation can be completed within their desired timeframe.

16. Can You Tell me about any Potential Obstacles or objects you Anticipate?

Knowing potential roadblocks or objections can help anticipate and address them before they become problematic.

17. If We Can Do [XYZ Solution They Want] for You, How Will You Utilize That in Your Business?

This is a way to check that they will apply and gain value from your solution. Otherwise, you risk project cancellations, chargebacks, or refunds if they take your solution and do nothing with it. It also plants seeds for getting testimonials down the road!

18. Can You Tell me about Your Organization’s Overall Scalability and Future Direction?

Knowing about a customer’s scalability can help determine future growth and expansion potential, especially if you work with clients longer. This can also be a way to vet how established the customer’s business is to see if it’s the target market for what you offer.

19. What Real Reference Example of [XYZ Solution or Deliverable] would You like to Emulate?

This question is a good way to spot red flags because it helps you determine their realistic expectations. By now, you should know their current situation, the desired outcome, and some parameters on how they’d like to achieve it. If you’re discussing website design services with a prospect and they have no current website, have a budget of $2,000, and expect you to do a beautiful, 100-page website….then this gives you a chance to say no before you accept this nightmare of a project.

20. What would Stop You from Saying “Yes”? Do You have any Other Questions or Concerns You have about Our Solution?

This is a way to ask them to provide all the foreseeable objections they have now or might have down the road so you can address them right out of the gate.

21. What Can We Do to Make this a No-Brainer for You to Say “Yes” Today?

Offering additional value or slightly tailoring your offering can help set your solution apart and demonstrate the potential for long-term success.

Some Closing Thoughts

In conclusion, asking great B2B sales questions is an important part of the sales process. Not only do they help to qualify leads and identify the needs of potential customers, but they also demonstrate that you understand the challenges and goals of the business. Following these tips can improve your ability to ask great questions and build stronger relationships with prospects to close more B2B sales.

Asking smart sales questions is the main tool to close more B2B sales. Great sales questions build trust and understanding in your mind and your prospects and help you sync your sales process to their decision-making process. Approaching your sales questions in the ways we’ve explored above will help you be more effective at guiding sales conversations to productive territory and ultimately have the best shot at closing the deal in a way that completely resonates.