Question Based Selling: The First Question You Should Ask

Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner, my co-authors for Stop Selling & Start Leading, are the creators of the body of work known as The Leadership Challenge®. Jim and Barry have spent decades researching leadership and understanding exactly what it is that leaders do to make themselves more effective with their followers. As it turns out, these are the very same behaviors our buyers want us to exhibit more frequently.
In fact, two of the top ten behaviors buyers want to see more frequently from sellers pertain to questions. So if you’re engaging in question based selling, you’re on the right track.
However, before you get started, there’s something you should know. There’s a very important question you need to ask yourself before you start asking buyers questions.