Step #7 Leading Probes

How did your Summary Probe practice go???I'm sure you're fast on your way to becoming a Summary Probe aficionado.??Good for you.?Are you ready to tackle Leading Probes now???Good, I thought so.

Much the same as Summary Probes, Leading Probes are verifiers.??They're also behavioral modifiers.??Even though there are similarities, Leading Probes are quite different from Summary Probes.??

Leading Probes are statements in question form, whereas Summary Probes are questions that restate what you’ve heard.??Because they are statements?Leading Probes must always be stated (delivered) with authority and confidence.??When you use Summary Probes you want your clients to primarily perceive you as being sincere.??However, your client’s perception of you when you're executing Leading Probes should be one of assurance, authoritativeness, dominance, self-confidence, and strength.??Rather than sounding as though they're being asked, Leading Probes sound much closer to you telling your clients the question.??That sounds a little innocuous, doesn't it??Leading Probes seem much more like statements than questions.??That's primarily because of the forceful confidence with which you present every Leading Probe.? ? ?

Leading Probes aren't to be used just at any old time, whenever you feel like it.?Leading Probes are used based on your pre-drawn conclusion?of what you believe to be your client’s actual meaning, not merely what your client’s words may have indicated.?Pre-drawn conclusions are not based solely on what is said, but on what is meant by what is said.??I hope that wasn't as confusing to you as it sounded to me.??Don't think of pre-drawn conclusions as being the same as assumptions.??You see, without prior knowledge of the topic at hand you can still easily formulate an assumption.??However, a pre-drawn conclusion must be based on at least a modicum of acquired evidence, be it factual or not.??Because you've been observing and listening to your clients with an open mind you've gleaned a sufficient amount of information to feel completely confident in the pre-drawn conclusion you've developed.??That level of confidence translates into the authoritative strength needed to execute a flawless Leading Probe.??A particular client might say,?"I don't know if I'm ready to do this yet".??However, what they really mean is it costs too much.??You heard exactly what your client said, but your well founded pre-drawn conclusion tells you that the real issue here is cost.??Your Leading Probe stated confidently might be, "It's really the cost that's bothering you Mr. Rhee, isn't it?"??The last two words of the sentence, "isn't it?"?should be said less as a question and more as a statement of fact.??You're telling your client the probe, not asking your client.??You?must have a pre-drawn conclusion in order to create a Leading Probe.??Without a pre-drawn conclusion your Leading Probe could quite easily become manipulative.?Your job is to satisfy your client’s needs, not to manipulate your client into buying something or doing something they neither want nor need.?

Your client’s response to your?Leading Probe is what verifies your pre-drawn conclusion.??When you say,?"It's really the cost that's bothering you Mr. Rhee, isn't it?" and your client immediately responds with,?"Yeah, I’m concerned whether I can afford this with my wife being out of work right now."??Okay, your pre-drawn conclusion has been verified.??Not only was your pre-drawn conclusion verified, but you received additional information about your client's monetary situation. Without your use of a Leading Probes, you might not have otherwise been privy to that information.??Because Leading Probes sound more like statements than questions your client’s tendency is to not only respond to your query, but to retort with additional information to justify their initial statement.?How wonderful, you verified your pre-drawn conclusion and obtain additional information all at the same time.?Probes are pretty darn terrific, aren't they???Oops, that’s a Leading Probe.???

Leading Probes are also behavioral modifiers.??They create trust and confidence.??Leading Probes do this in two different ways.??Because you're speaking authoritatively with strength and self-confidence your clients instinctively feel a sense of confidence in you.?It's difficult not to feel confident about someone who sounds so totally confident in himself or herself.?That's why politicians rarely, if ever, say,?"I think it will", or?"Maybe it might."??Instead, they say,?"It will",and?"I'm confident about this."??Politicians know that to create confidence you must act confident.?It's because of the authority and self-assurance in your voice and the strength of your mannerisms that Leading Probes create confidence.? Please note: I’m not in any way, shape, or form suggestion you become a politician.?

So, from where does the trust come???Initially your client’s trust in you and what you say comes from your pre-drawn conclusions.??Allow me to explain.??Your Leading Probe wasn't based on an assumption, a thought, a mere guess.?Your pre-drawn conclusion was based on your careful observations, your in-depth listening, and not just on a wild guess or what you hoped would happen.??When you stated your Leading Probe, you voiced it with self-assurance and authority.??You made it quite obvious that you weren't guessing or asking.??It was easy for you to sound confident because you had enough recently acquired information about your client and his or her needs to confidently state your Leading Probe.??You honestly believed you were one hundred percent correct in your pre-draw conclusion.??When your client immediately agreed with you,?"Yeah, I’m concerned whether I can afford this with my wife being out of work right now", he was telling you that he knew you really understood him, understood him possibly even better than he understood himself at that moment.??Your understanding of what your client meant, not just what was said, is what convinced your client that he or she should trust you.??At a subliminal level your client was thinking,?this salesperson really understands me, this is a salesperson I can trust.

Once again, my deep-seated paranoia is surging to the forefront, so bear with me, please.??I just need to make absolutely sure that I've impressed upon you the importance of?telling?your Leading Probes rather than simply asking them.??Leading Probes are presented in a firm and forceful voice.?Your body, hand, and head movements should also indicate that exact same level of confidence, firmness, and forceful expression.??If someone wasn't listening closely, they might not even recognize that you actually asked a question.??They might think that you were telling someone something, not asking.?

Sorry for belaboring the point, but without a strong intent in your voice your Leading Probes will end up being little more than Open Probes.??That means you won't be creating confidence, you won't be creating trust, and at best you may only receive a simple "yes" or "no" response from your client.??It's all in the inflections in your voice and your mannerisms.??

Examples of Leading Probes;???

*?"Getting this fixed is really important to you, isn't it?"???????????

*?"Friday mornings are usually the best for you, aren't?they?"???

*?"You're not comfortable without additional?protection, are you?"??

*?"We've laid all your concerns to rest, haven't we?"????????

You could probably use one more example of a Leading Probe, couldn't you??I guess that would be two more examples if we count the one I just used, wouldn't it???I mean three if we count that last one.???

"You're going to be terrific with all the probes, aren't you?"? All right, that's enough.??That's more than enough.??It’s time to begin practicing.??You know it'll be easy, don't you???Sorry, I seem to have been taken over by the Leading Probe craze, haven't I???Oops, it happened again, didn't it?

For the remainder of today you’re going to use as many Leading Probes as possible.??When listening to people or media identify the Leading Probes you hear.??Tomorrow you’ll do the same with Open Probes, the next day with Closed Probes, then Summary Probes and then right back to Leading Probes again.??Concentrate on just one type of probe per day and alternate the probes from day to day.??Practice, practice, practice!??Then practice some more!???

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For additional information about David Richman and Butterfield Enterprises, Inc. take a moment to review David’s Linkedin Profile and read what his clients have to say about him.??If you would prefer speaking directly to David, call (818) 368-1308 or email?[email protected]. And if you haven’t already done so, join David’s Linkedin network.