Doing Discovery – The Importance of “Why” Questions

 

    Prospect asks, “Can your software do xxx?”

 

    Vendor replies, “Yes, absolutely.”  

 

I can’t tell you how many things that brief conversation has occurred – without any follow-up questions from the vendor…!  What’s missing?  Asking, “Why?”

 

Far too often vendors execute Discovery by simply asking questions about the prospect’s needs, without asking any clarifying questions – this is a huge lost opportunity…!

 

Let’s review the conversation again, this time with a more engaged vendor:

 

    Prospect asks, “Can your software do xxx?”

 

    Vendor replies, “Yes, absolutely – why is this important for you?”

 

    Prospect responds, “Oh, it’s really difficult to do today – largely a manual process that takes hours and it is a key requirement for us.”

 

    “I understand,” says the vendor, “How often do you have to do this – and what else does it impact?”

 

The conversation continues, with two intriguing outcomes:

1. The vendor gains a much richer understanding of the prospect’s situation along with the associated value of the capability.
2. And the prospect feels the vendor has much richer understanding of their situation, making the prospect more comfortable about working with that vendor. 

“Why” questions are delightful triggers – don’t miss these opportunities in your Discovery dialogs!