As we gear up for the 4th quarter of the calendar year and prepare to finish strong, sales teams are digging deep into their tool bag to close business. For those deals that have stalled, how do you ‘provoke’ your customer to think differently and move forward? Join us in this complimentary webinar to discover how to craft appropriate anxiety questions and 3 ideal times to ask them.

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Using Anxiety Questions to
Finish the Year Strong
This document contains proprietary information of ValueSelling Associates. Its receipt or possession does not convey
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disclosure, or use without specific written authorization of ValueSelling Associates is strictly forbidden.

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Ever had one of these prospects?

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Feel you’re running around in circles?

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What is an anxiety question?
How to create good anxiety questions
Three key opportunities to use an anxiety question
Five specific tactics to improve prospect engagement
throughout the sales cycle
Today’s Objectives
Objectives for today

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Designed to surface customer’s view of
current conditions.
Aimed at getting prospect to momentarily
experience the consequences of not having
your product or service.
Verifies shared understanding and confirms
what we heard customer say.
Raises issues that didn’t surface on their
own. Used to differentiate and create need
for your products and services.
Anxiety
Confirming
Probing
Open
Key question types

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anx·i·e·ty
/aNGˈzīədē/ noun
a feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease, typically about an imminent event or
something with an uncertain outcome.

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Anxiety questions are designed to:
Cause an emotional response
Open an unexpected dialogue
Shift the prospect’s thinking purposefully and productively

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Anxiety?
What happens if...
What’s the impact of...
How does this affect me...
Have we thought of
everything...

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Anxiety questions
May be only way some prospects will respond to you,
your product or service
Aimed at getting prospect to momentarily experience
consequences of not having your product or service
Should create an emotional impact or an emotional
response with the buyer:
– Tune into their motivation,
their WII-FM!

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“What is the impact of not meeting
your target this year?”

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Poll
How many of you are using anxiety questions today?

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Creating anxiety questions
First:
Think of a feature of your product and capabilities it enables
Relate those capabilities to difficulties your prospect is facing, or would like to
avoid
Then:
Create lead-in that relates to consequences of your prospect not having your
product's capabilities
"Have you ever wondered how to improve/achieve ....”
"Have you ever wondered if there was a way to avoid/prevent …”
"I understand you are under pressure to control costs; have you thought about
if there were a way to solve _____(insert problem your capability solves) it
could improve your return on investment and reduce overall costs?”
Follow a positive response with:
“We’ve got some experience in this area, can we talk about how you're
dealing with this now?”

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Anxiety question test points
1. Does it cause anxiety?
2. Does it get them to think about the future?
3. Does it risk rapport?

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14
Anxiety questions should be…
Not confrontational, but instead
educational or instructional
Knowledge / expertise-based
Respectful

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When to use anAnxiety Question

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Maintaining Engagement

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Five tactics to maintain engagement
Prepare
Focus on customer / prospect needs, wants, and process
Listen actively
Never leave without the next meeting
Create a timeline, beginning with the first meeting

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An excellent anxiety question
“Do you want to spend the rest of your life
selling sugared water
or do you want a chance to change the world?”
Steve Jobs to John Sculley (Pepsi executive), 1983

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“You’ve gotta ask yourself one question: ‘Do
I feel lucky?’…..
- Clint Eastwood, Dirty Harry
…..Well, do ya, punk?”

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Summary
Anxiety questions
– Get prospects to momentarily experience the consequences of not
having your product/service
Follow an anxiety question with a positive response
– “Can we discuss some options for dealing with this issue….?”
Use anxiety questions to
– Uncover additional problems
– Disrupt prospect’s view of the solution
– Create urgency

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Questions

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Save the date!
Conquer the “No Decision” Blackhole
October 6, 2016 | 11:00AM PDT
Closing: Take Control of When They’ll
Buy
October 20, 2016 | 10:00AM PDT

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Thank you!
Natalie Pitchford | Managing Partner, ValueSelling Associates
natalie.pitchford@valueselling.com
+1 954 494 5537
www.linkedin.com/in/nataliepitchford