Socratic Sales: The 21 Best Questions for Mastering Lead Qualification and Accelerating Sales [eBook]

Are you ready to sell like Socrates?

The Greek philosopher Socrates was no fan of lectures, and if he were around today, he’d be equally dismissive of sales pitches. He was famous for asking his students targeted questions  in order to provoke thoughts, help them analyze concepts, and get to the truth of issues. Socrates knew where he wanted his students to arrive, but instead of simply lecturing them, he realized that he could lead them to epiphany by asking a series of questions in the right order. This method of Socratic questioning is still widely used today by university professors and psychologists.

It’s also just as applicable to Sales.

When you get on the phone with your prospects, you have an agenda. Just like Socrates, you know what you want your prospects to do (buy). By asking prospects pointed questions, you can  subtly lead qualified prospects to a buying decision. You’ll also quickly weed out those prospects that aren’t qualified buyers.

Our latest eBook, Socratic Sales: The 21 Best Sales Questions for Mastering Lead Qualification and Accelerating Sales will arm you with the most vital sales qualification questions that will help you build rapport and close deals faster than ever before. The eBook also features the curated wisdom of Revenue.io, and a variety of sales leaders including AG Salesworks’ Peter Gracey and Sales Engine’s Craig Wortmann.

The Importance of Asking Questions

A famous quote that’s attributed to Socrates is that “the unexamined life is not worth living.” This quote should serve as a mantra for any great salesperson. Salespeople should be curious about their prospects’ business drivers. Without adequately understanding your prospects’ problems, how can you adequately provide solutions? When you ask prospects questions, you not learn more about them, you also communicate an interest in their business drivers. Think about it, would you rather buy from a sales rep that spends 10 minutes rattling on about how great their product is, or a salesperson who is curious to find out how to best help you overcome your challenges?

The Benefits of Socratic Sales

The 21 questions in this eBook will give you the foundation you need to become a master qualifier. But remember that qualification isn’t just about assessing prospects’ needs, pain points, budget and timeline. It’s also about helping them imagine the better reality that’s available to them by purchasing your solution. By taking a Socratic approach to Sales you’ll:

• Virtually never have to do any hard selling
• Eliminate sales objections before they even arise
• Greatly shorten sales cycles