What Do Your Prospects Need? – Accelerating New Business Now.
Prior to meeting with new business prospects, we urge clients to prepare a needs analysis. You can’t help a client until you know what they need. Rainmakers diagnose a prospect’s problem by asking questions and listening closely to the answers.
To conduct a proper needs analysis, you must know the questions you will ask. And you need to ask these questions in a logical order. Keep track of the questions asked. And at the same time, take notes on the prospect’s answers. Questions, answers, tangents new areas of investigation must all be juggled.
Questions to Include in Your Needs Analysis
Ask and answer the following questions before the first meeting.
- What are their goals?
- What are their challenges?
- What solutions have they tried?
- What is the problem costing them?
- What are the consequences if the problem continues?
- What is their timetable?
- What is their budget?
- Who else are they talking to?
- Who, in addition to the person you are meeting with, will be involved in the decision making?
- What are your concerns?