As marketing guru Seth Godin has said, it’s a marketer’s job to help B2B clients look great to their bosses—or at least to help them sell their awesome idea to other decision-makers. When you ask the right questions, you create a whole new breed of customer experience.
Consider that 64% of B2B buyers want to work with firms that demonstrate knowledge about their company and provide actionable insights for their problems. Also, 62% expect salespeople to have experience with and understanding of what works in their industry.
During your first meeting with a prospect, these are the three key questions to ask beyond, “What color T-shirt do you want?”.
- What’s the goal of this project or event? Asking this shows you’re actively engaged in the solution: “Is this a company anniversary party? A corporate holiday party? A high school’s big homecoming celebration? A 5K fundraiser for breast cancer awareness?”
- What do you want to communicate? By asking this, you’re taking the time to learn the foundation motivation for the project or event—and what your client truly cares about.
- What memories and feelings are you trying to create? Ask what emotions your client wants their employees, customers, or event attendees to experience and remember. You’re making an emotional connection or bridge with your client by doing this. Your relationship turns more teamwork than transactional.
