What Questions to Ask

The first step to success in your business or life is to know what questions to ask.

At age 16, I was hired by a millionaire in my home town to interview residents to determine if they wanted a shopping mall (the nearest mall was 50 miles away). I assured him that everyone would want a mall. He replied that we needed to first conduct research to find out. He provided me and the other interviewers a list of questions to ask the residents. The data showed the residents did not want the shopping mall. It was a priceless lesson and taught me never to assume anything.

In my career working with affluent women & couples, I have learned that the question is more important than the answer. I also discovered that the key to sales and research interviews is to know the best questions to ask based on the client or prospect’s response to the previous question. Specifically questions that provide answers that lead you to the insight you need to best serve your ideal client. This insight changed my career and it can change yours too.

Let’s review the research process:

The first step is to determine what answers (information) you need to best serve your ideal prospect or client. It is very important to take the time to ask questions so you can determine everything you need to know. While this may seem laborious, it is time well spent. When done correctly, your questions will provide insight on the best client acquisition strategies to attract and convert a boat load of ideal clients.

The next step is to determine what questions will provide the answers you listed in the first step. Begin by identifying 3-5 questions for each answer you want. Take time to practice asking the questions so your are prepared and the process is seamless. Start by testing your questions in actual real world scenarios.  A great place to begin is by asking prospects, clients, and referral partners if you can sit down with them for a few minutes to gain insight.

It is important to also ask for introductions to other interviewees. The prospects, clients, and referral partners in your niche can provide a direct path to a massive amount of interviewees that ultimately lead to more clients and more sales.

If you don’t know what to ask, here is a sample of questions to ask your interviewees:

Where do you go?

What do you do in your free time?

Where do you live?

When do you feel most motivated?

What TV stations do you watch?

What news station do you watch?

What keeps you up at night?

When do you forget about time?

You also want to find out how they make decisions and what motivates them to action. The answer to this information such as this is best found by observation rather than by asking.

Next, as you are testing your questions, you need to measure your results. This allows you to determine which questions are the most effective. This also provides the baseline of your questions. Once you create your baseline, the next step is to write out another question that provides the same answer. This step is critical and is often overlooked. It is important because the second question provides a confirmation of the information you want and need to determine the strategies that will best attract your ideal client.

In my 20+ years of working with affluent women & couples, I found that women often provide what they perceive as the correct answer versus the reality of their situation. Asking questions a second time in a different way (and also observing what they actually do versus what they say they do) will help you determine the best course of action to attract more ideal clients to your business.

If you would like more insight on what questions to ask, access our upcoming master class on creating your marketing plan, go here.