3 Steps to Perfect Probing by Kerry L. Johnson, Ph.D. One day a young, hardworking grocery clerk was stocking lettuce in the produce section. The fair haired clerk, whose promotion was imminent, was asked if half heads of lettuce could be sold. The clerk explained that lettuce was sold only as a complete head. The elderly and craggy customer demanded loudly that he be sold a half head. After hearing numerous explanations, the elderly gentleman became even more abusive in his demands. The young clerk walked back to the storage room and yelled to his boss, "Hey, some idiot out here wants half a head of lettuce." Noticing the customer in his peripheral vision standing behind him, the clerk said, "And this nice gentleman would like the other half." After the satisfied shopper left with his lettuce, the boss praised the lad on his ability to defuse an irate customer. Regrettably, it is not always possible to turn a negative presentation into a positive sale. Are you good at probing? Do you consistently ask the right questions or do you often put size 12 shoes in your mouth when you try to sell? Chances are you've learned how to ask good questions but haven't been taught the meaning and intent of the answers. When a customer speaks, he communicates special meaning behind every word. Psychologists know that each nuance and word can be reflected back by you, to sell the prospect. Just as the clerk was flexible, if not tactless, in responding to the customer and boss, so you can be as flexible to your prospect's answers. The days of planned product presentations are gone. We are in an era that requires an immediate and educated response to both factual and emotional needs. I recently heard a great sales analyst say, "Forget about your closings. How are your openings?" In contrast, another sales trainer told a group of stockbrokers that the more closing phases they knew and used, the more business they would generate. I disagree. The sharpest salespeople I know use only one or two closing techniques, the "assumptive" close and the "I recommend" close. But they probe so well the prospect closes himself. Here are three key tools that sales superstars use in probing a prospect: (1) They set outcomes and goals for the prospect; (2) They listen for the prospect's key words and phrases; (3) They are sensitive to the prospect's emotions during the interviews. OUTCOMES AND GOALS While on the East Coast, I interviewed one of the best salespeople I have met in quite a while. Russ Gills of Virginia Beach, Virginia, qualifies for the top of his industry's elite income level year after year. He uses one probing question that is truly brilliant. He simply asks all his prospective customers, "What does perfect insurance planning mean to you?" Prospects may think for a moment about premiums, savings and protection of the family as well as other benefits. Then they tell Russ in very specific words exactly what they want. Of course Russ goes through a financial questionnaire. He also knows from experience that most prospects have difficulty saving money. Therefore Russ structures every benefit he presents to satisfy his prospect's stated goal of perfection. Russ also uses another advanced technique. He always pushes his prospect to state their goals in positive terms, rather than allow a prospect to say something like, "I don't want to be broke when I'm 55," or "I don't want my wife to be destitute if I die." Russ restates his question again, "What do you want?" He rephrases by saying, "Do you want your wife to be financially independent if you die?" Important? You bet. The human mind has no way of knowing the difference between negative and positive information. Basically, both types are important and enter through the same channel in perception and then into memory. The unconscious photograph is left intact with no judgment assigned. A value judgment is then assigned consciously. I once read an interview highlighting the skills of Joe Montana, the superstar quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. During one game, Joe had the ball in the fourth quarter on the fourth down. His coach, Bill Walsh, signaled for a short "out pass" to the wide> receiver. While everyone in the stadium knew he could throw a football, Joe thought, "I hope I don't throw an interception." Guess what Joe did. You got it. He hit an opposing linebacker square in the numbers. Six points lost. You see, Joe made a conscious picture of the pass play in his mind. He saw himself throwing an interception and then thought, "Don't do that." The problem was that his unconscious didn't register "don't do that." It only saw a picture of an interception. Your prospective customers react the same way. They say, "I don't want to be broke when I'm 55." But the conscious mind sees a picture of a poverty stricken person and says, "Okay, you got it. Poor at 55." Positive mental pictures may have a lot to do with your prospect visualizing himself wealthy at 55. Then allowing you to help him make that picture a reality. To test this technique, I spoke to a manager on the telephone, saying, "What would a perfect sales presentation mean to you." He responded, "Something that would keep my agents from getting so depressed after making countless prospecting calls." I then rephrased his comment by replying, "You mean you'd like a program that would help your salespeople stay positive after prospecting calls?" He said, "Yes, that's it." State your prospect's goals in positive terms. LISTEN FOR YOUR PROSPECTS' KEY WORDS AND PHRASES Most of us in sales know that people communicate differently depending on their location and background. An East Coast salesperson might talk too quickly and aggressively for a laid-back California prospect. In fact, it's been suggested that in some areas of Southern California the pedestrian street lights should read, "Laid back" and "Go for it." But are you also aware of the unique way your prospect uses words? When you probe, it isn't enough to learn what your prospect needs. You must be able to communicate back the answers to his needs in your presentations, using the right meaning and intent. When your prospect understands what you say, and the intent behind it, he'll give you his trust. When you get your prospect's trust, he will buy. The best way to communicate meaning and intent is to use your prospect's own sub-language. In the home office of Connecticut Mutual, I met an executive who taught me a lesson in client relations. Having heard me speak previously in Oakland, California, he asked me to speak at one of his conferences. He said, "Kerry, if I used you as a speaker, what presentation would you give?" I said, "What do your agents need?" He said, "They need to sell more equity business. We want you to 'go beyond the nine dots' on this presentation." "Beyond the nine dots?" What did he mean? Possibly he was referring to an exercise of psychological creativity in which three rows of three dots are connected by using an arrow configuration. The more often he used this phrase, the more I realized it had special meaning to him. When he asked for my recommendation, I told him I'd suggest a presentation that would help the attendees sell more business by "going beyond the nine dots." His pupils dilated and eyebrows elevated. He said excitedly, "That's it. That's exactly what I want." I had said nothing extraordinary in my presentation except to repeat back, "....beyond the nine dots." This phrase had such powerful meaning for this executive that he sold himself after hearing it. Your potential customer will give you his key words and phrases in a notably perceptible way. He'll pause directly before and after he states them. A key phrase that Ronald Reagan used was marked out in this fashion. He often said, "We need to negotiate from a 'position of strength' with the Iranians." Or "We should bargain from a 'position of strength' with the Democrats." His "position of strength" phrase includes pauses directly before and after the statement. Reagan has probably used this phrase for many years. A wise negotiator could repeat this phrase back to him and easily gain the edge in a political gambit. After you hear your prospect's key words or phrases, copy them down. Make sure you use them when you present your product. He'll know exactly what you mean because those are exactly his words. READ YOUR PROSPECT'S EMOTIONS DURING THE INTERVIEW Even young children know that a smile means happy or a frown means sad. But rarely are moods that overt during a typical interview. Happiness is sometimes indicated by raised eyebrows. Disagreement may be offered by a sideways look. A sharp interviewer keeps a mental log of his prospect's non-verbal as well as verbal answers to posed questions. During an appointment, I observed an agent intuitively use this awareness. As he presented a disability policy, he unconsciously noticed his prospect pursing his lips. Instinctively the experienced agent said, "And I bet you would like to see a shorter waiting period before benefits are realized, wouldn't you?" The prospect nodded a relieved yes, obviously glad the agent was aware of his concerns. Are non-verbal nuances too difficult to glean from a probing interview? No, you just need to pay attention to the right signs. Often during workshops, I will ask attendees to drop dollar bills through the fingers of partners. The quick-fingered receiver is instructed to look at the sender's face as he drops the bill. They are told to look for muscle tension, color changes as well as more overt facial signals. The sender is told to think, "I'm about to drop the bill," triggering these facial changes. Surprisingly, the receivers all catch the bills after 5 or 6 attempts. All are also able to describe minute facial changes that occur before the bill is dropped. These are the talents of sales superstars. They don't sell products, they sell trust. They get trust because their people skills are as highly developed as their product knowledge. Put your customers goals into positive terms. Use your prospect's key words and phrases when you present your ideas. Learn your prospect's emotional cues as you probe. Selling is a people skills business. If this were not true, your company would sell its products via direct mail without the costly overhead of using salespeople. Whenever I hear of a salesperson with low production, the first item on the recovery list is to check out his people skills. Many managers spend a majority of time teaching product knowledge. Unfortunately, product knowledge is only a small fraction of the art of successful sales. I recently spoke to an salesperson in Tennessee, who according to his peers had substandard product knowledge. He confided in me, "You know Kerry, I'm frankly baffled by this changing financial climate. But as long as I can keep my clients' trust, I can hire CPA's and MBA's to be technicians. They can inform me on product changes while I can concentrate on maintaining rapport with my clients. Use these techniques the next time you probe or interview. With these techniques, your prospect may just sell himself. Dr. Kerry Johnson is a frequent speaker at financial services industry conferences around the world. He speaks on topics like "How to Read Your Clients Mind" and "How to Increase Your Sales By 70% in 6 Weeks" . He is the author of 6 books including "Mastering the Game: The Human Edge in Sales and Marketing." To receive a free subscription to his monthly newsletter, "The Winning Edge - Online," call (800) 386-1749 or subscribe on his web site at www.Kerryjohnson.com E-Mail Kerry@kerryjohnson.com