1.
How to Teach Salespeople to
Always Ask the Right Questions
Michael Halper
Founder and CEO
SalesScripter

2.
The Way Things Usually Work
Most Companies Don’t Teach What Questions to Ask
Company Info Product Info
Internal
Processes
Sales
Methodology
Quota Territory
Go Make it
Happen

3.
The Way Things Usually Work
Salespeople Have to Figure Out What Questions to Ask
• Leads to on-the-job learning
• Learning through trial-and-error
• Opportunities are missed due to not asking
the right questions
• Deals are lost
• Sales performance is not what it could be
• Long new hire ramp up time
• Can lead to some of the sales staff turnover
Product and
Company
Knowledge
Experience
Personality
and
Instincts
Hard Work /
Activity

4.
Core Concepts
The best salesperson is the one the asks the best questions.
• Makes calls and meetings more interactive
• Makes a better impression
• Extracts valuable information
• Will Minimize “All About Me”
• It is the opposite of what bad salespeople do

5.
Core Concepts
Asking good questions can be taught/learned.
• A salesperson can learn to ask good questions regardless of:
– Their level/years of experience
– Sales skills they currently have
– Personality style

6.
Core Concepts
The questions are easier to teach than the answers.
• It can take a very long time for a sales person to learn the answers to all of the
questions that a prospect may ask – months to years.
• With the right sales tools, a salesperson can learn what questions to ask in a matter
of days.
• A salesperson can sound credible by asking good questions even without knowing
the answers to the prospect’s question.
• You can shorten new hire ramp up time by focusing more on teaching the questions
to ask.

7.
Core Concepts
Good salespeople can be developed and created.
• Does not matter the level of experience, sales skills or personality type
• Requires ability to learn, follow a process, motivation ability to communicate at a
professional level
• Providing clarity around the right questions to ask will have a direct impact on
improving sales performance

8.
Types of Questions to Ask
• Pre-Qualifying
• Hard Qualifying
• Meeting Questions
• Networking Questions
• Closing Questions

9.
Pre-Qualifying Questions

10.
Pre-Qualifying Questions

11.
Pre-Qualifying Questions
Example: SalesScripter for Sales Managers
• How concerned are you about the amount of time it takes to
get new sales hires ramped up and performing?
• How confident are you that all of your sales resources are
saying and asking the right questions when talking with
prospects?
• How important is it for you to get under-performing sales
resources to meet or exceed their objectives?

12.
Pre-Qualifying Questions
Example: SalesScripter for Salespeople
• How do you feel about your sales pitch and talk tracks?
• Do you think that you are saying the right things and asking
the questions when talking with prospects?
• How important is it for you to improve your ability to generate
more leads and have more success prospecting?

13.
Pre-Qualifying Questions
Building Your Pre-Qualifying Questions
Step 1:
Identify Target
Prospect
Step 3:
Identify Prospect’s
Benefits
Step 4:
Identify Prospect's
Problems
Step 5:
Develop Probing
Questions
Ex:
Sales Manager
Ex:
get new sales people
trained quicker
Ex:
it takes a long time
and is difficult to get
new sales resources
trained and ramped
up
Ex:
How concerned are
you about the amount
of time it takes to get
new sales hires
ramped up and
performing?
Step 2:
Identify Product to
Sell
Ex:
SalesScripter

14.
Pre-Qualifying Questions
When to Use Pre-Qualifying Questions
• Cold calling
• Networking
• Responding to objections
• Talking to gatekeepers
• In first conversations (appointments/meetings)

15.
Hard Qualifying Questions
Need vs. Want Questions
• What happens if you do not do anything and do not make a purchase or make any
changes?
• What improvements will you see if move forward with this purchase?
• Is there at date when this purchase needs to be made?
• What happens if the purchase is not made by that date?
• What is the time frame that the project needs to work along?

16.
Hard Qualifying Questions
Availability of Funding Questions
• Is there a budget approved for this project?
• What is the budget range that the project needs to fit in?
• Have the funds been allocated to this purchase?
• What budget (department) will this purchase be made under?
• Are there other purchases that this funding may end being used for?
• How does the project fit with other initiatives from a priority standpoint?

17.
Hard Qualifying Questions
Decision Making Authority Questions
• What is the decision making process?
• What parties will be involved in making the decision?
• What functional areas (departments) will be impacted by the purchase?
• Who is the ultimate decision maker?
• Who is the person that will need to sign the agreement/contract?

18.
Hard Qualifying Questions
Level of Intent Questions
• Why did you take time out of your schedule to meet with us? Why did you contact us?
• What other options are you considering?
• How do you feel about their solution (product)?
• What do you like about their solution (product)?
• What do you not like about their solution (product)?
• How does their solution (product) compare with what we have to offer?
• Is there a reason why you would choose us?
• If you had to make a decision today, which way would you lean?

19.
Closing Questions
Trial Closing Questions
• What do you think of what we have discussed so far?
• How would that feature help your operation?
• Is this something you could see your employees (organization) using?
• Are we heading in the right direction?

20.
Closing Questions
Soft Closing Questions
• What would you like to do next?
• What direction would you like to go in?
• Do you want to continue talking about this?
• When would you like to talk again?

21.
Closing Questions
Hard Closing Questions
• What would you need to be able to make a commitment to move forward?
• If you had everything that you want, are you prepared to move forward?
• When are you going to make your final decision?
• (If delaying the decision) What will change or be different at that time that will make
that a better time to look at moving forward?

22.
Meeting Questions
Intro Questions
• How is your day going so far?
• How long have you been here? What did you do before?
• Where are you originally from?
• I have our meeting going to 2pm. Does that still work for you?
• I know why I would want to meet with someone in your role. Can you share with us
why you agreed to take time out of your day to meet with us?
• Our plan for this meeting is to discuss ____, _____, and _____. Does that match up
with your expectations?

23.
Network Questions
Intro Questions
• How is your day going so far?
• What do you do?
• How long have you been doing that?
• What did you do before?
• What do you like most about what you do?
• Is there something that motivated you to get into that type of work?
• Where are you from?

24.
Network Questions
Partnering Questions
• What brought you to this event?
• Have you found this to be a productive event for you?
• Are there any other networking events that you recommend?
• How can I help you to be successful?
• What does a good prospect look like for you?

25.
Tools – Question Lists

26.
Tools – Sales Scripts

27.
Tools – Scripting Software

28.
Tools – Question Trees

29.
What is SalesScripter?
Cold Calling
Objections
Gatekeepers
Sales Messaging
Voicemail
Qualifying
Closing
Sales Process
Rapport
Building Interest
Cold Emailing
Setting Appointments
Building Credibility
Call Cadence
• Provides complete clarity for what a
salesperson should do and say
• Very practical and easy to understand /
implement / adopt
• Consultative selling approach
• Many tactics are counterintuitive
One Half - Sales Methodology

30.
What is SalesScripter?
Cold Calling Scripts
Objection Responses
Key Questions
Marketing Tools
Voicemail Scripts
Meeting Scripts
Cold Email Templates
• Software platform that provides
all the tools needed to execute
the methodology
• Campaign-based (buyer
persona) structure
• Makes it extremely easy to
implement and reinforce the
methodology
One Half – Prospecting Platform Software Application

31.
Complete Sales Training Solution
Cold Calling
Objections
Gatekeepers
Sales Messaging
Voicemail
Qualifying
Closing
Sales Process
Rapport
Building Interest
Cold Emailing
Setting Appointments
Building Credibility
Call Cadence
Methodology
Salesperson
Manager
Cold Calling Scripts
Objection Responses
Key Questions
Marketing Tools
Voicemail Scripts
Meeting Scripts
Cold Email Templates
Software PlatformResources and
Services
Books
Training Videos
One-on-One Coaching
Sales Consulting
Live Training
Completely
Aligned

32.
Resources
• Five ebooks
– Found at https://salesscripter.com/ebooks/
– Do’s and Don’ts of Cold Calling
– How to Get around Cold Call Objections
– How to Build a Value Proposition that Generates
Leads
– How to Build Sales Campaigns that Sell
– How to Build Email Drip Campaigns that Convert
Sales
• The Cold Calling Equation – PROBLEM
SOLVED
– Found at http://www.amazon.com/The-Cold-
Calling-Equation-Problem/dp/1468173545
Our Books

33.
Training
• Week 1
– Understanding the Ideal Sales Process
– How to Make Cold Calls
– Appointment Setting Tactics
– Voicemail Messaging Methodology
• Week 2
– Sales Messaging Workshop
– How to Get Prospect’s on the Phone
– How to Get Around Objections
– How to Incorporate Buyer Personas into Your
Selling
– Overview of a 2-Step Qualifying Process
New Hire Onboarding Training Program / Sales Prospecting 101
• Week 3
– How to Build Your Value Proposition
– How to Focus on Prospect Pain
– How to Get Around Gatekeepers
– How to Perform the Perfect Takeaway
• Week 4
– How to Build Rapport, Interest, and
Credibility
– How to Improve Mental Strength When
Selling
– How to Be a Better Closer
* Available through e-learning videos, live virtual, or live in-person
* Can be tailored to your business

34.
SalesScripter
What do you sell? ___________
How does it help? ___________
What problems do you fix? ___________
What questions should you ask? ___________

35.
SalesScripter

36.
SalesScripter

37.
If You Want More Help
• https://www.youtube.com/user/LaunchPadSol
• Or search Sales Scripter
• Over 130 videos
• Sales Prospecting 101 Training Program
• Webinars
• Sales Tips
• SalesScripter demo videos
• Subscribe
Step 1 – Go to our YouTube Channel

38.
Resources
• Five ebooks
– Found at https://salesscripter.com/ebooks/
– Do’s and Don’ts of Cold Calling
– How to Get around Cold Call Objections
– How to Build a Value Proposition that Generates
Leads
– How to Build Sales Campaigns that Sell
– How to Build Email Drip Campaigns that Convert
Sales
• The Cold Calling Equation – PROBLEM
SOLVED
– Found at http://www.amazon.com/The-Cold-
Calling-Equation-Problem/dp/1468173545
Step 2 – Get Some of Our Books

39.
If You Want More Help
• Free 30 day trial
– Found at https://salesscripter.com/members/signup
• Scripter Walk-Through
– 2 hour coaching session
– We answer all of the questions with you
– Included with an annual subscription
Step 3 – Sign up for SalesScripter Trial

40.
If You Want More Help
• One-on-one Sales Coaching
• Sales Consulting
– Script development
– Strategy development
– Sales process development
• Sales Training
– Custom sales training programs
– Content aligned with your information in SalesScripter
– Delivered virtually or in-person
Step 4 – Contact us for Coaching, Consulting, or Training

41.
Questions?
Michael Halper
Founder and CEO
SalesScripter
mhalper@salesscripter.com
www.salesscripter.com