Top 3 ice-breaking questions to kick off any conversation: Real-Life Examples

A man unconsciously lying down in an ice-filled bathtub. Why?

Let me know what is your answer.

Now while you're thinking, let's discuss the ice-breaker:

No, not this ice-breaker, I meant ice-breaker in #sales What is it?

Ice-breaking questions are questions that help to begin a conversation. For example, you reach out to prospects on LinkedIn or you approach someone but you don't know how to kick off the discussion, right?

If you begin with the wrong things awkward situation you will make and you may make off :)

I am sharing my top 3 ice-breaking questions that will help you to kick off any conversation professionally and smoothly without your interlocutor feeling it.

A few weeks ago I had a meeting with my client and it'd be the first time we met we didn't have anything in common and I and my team member walked into the hall and finally arrived at the door and I saw my client. What do you think about how I started the conversation?

I just looked around and saw they just newly designed the office and there is no company logo on the front door wall. It was hard to find the office, If I would begin with this point, it'd have been the worst beginning because it is negative. Thus I added something to this and said "the lift in this building is super fast, I think it is new and also your office it seems you just moved here, right?"

He stated: "yeah, just you know........"

The conversation has been successfully started :)

So #tip 1 is to ask about something interesting around you, such as their office, the way they wear or the way their team environment looks like, but it ought to be positive.

However, for the #digital world, it is totally different because there is no physical world to talk about and it is difficult to find a common ground to talk and they can easily ignore you. Therefore, I use this technique and in most cases, I get a response:

By the way, LinkedIn made this easy for all of us, it's added a new "relationship explorer" feature which helps us to see what we have in common with #prospects . You can learn much more about this feature on LinkedIn for Sales .

As tip 2 I simply say "We have a shared connection" or " We are in the same group" etc. It depends on what kinds of relationships you have with prospects introduce yourself and mention common points. This makes trust and makes a ground to talk.

In sales (not sure about life :))) I love being straightforward and clear about my real intentions and aligning with my buyer’s top priority – them – helps disarm their initial impulse to pull away.

Thus, I directly ask a question in a way that the prospect feels he/she should answer the question which the question is already consist of the service that I want to offer them. Why?

• My reason is clear
• This is a question, so it is a CTA (call-to-action) point
• This is good for kicking off a conversation

Plus, I am adding a #technique that I learned from Mr. Christopher Voss ,

"No-oriented question" - Hearing?“yes”?may feel good. But when buyers hear yes-oriented questions, their gut instinct screams?“it’s a trap.”?A no-oriented question makes prospects feel more in control, safe, and willing to listen.

Finally, I got this kind of question:

"Would you be opposed to discussing [service/product you offer] "

For example: Would you be opposed to discussing a partnership related to providing your customers with visa services?

This is 3rd and final tip that I got for you today.

This is my ultimate guide to kick off most of the conversations. I'd love to hear your versions.