“Unleash the Power of Questions,” defined

How many Zoom (and in-person) meetings end with the leader asking if there are any questions? Hearing none, the meeting breaks up so everyone can get to their next call or to lunch.

 How many of you have been on calls where more than half – maybe even 75% -- of the participants turned their cameras off because they’re either worried about looking bored, eating on camera, or getting caught working in a concert shirt or on other deliverables? No wonder there are no questions.

Have you sat in on partner meetings where someone reads a list of questions in the tone of a disengaged restaurant server reciting tonight’s specials? Are we too focused on addressing the problems we’re having with a partner program and not considering how to resolve the client’s pain points, even if that will solve our problems?

The Big Question

Annie Schiffmann recently asked me through LinkedIn what my “Unleash the Power of Questions” headline looks like when I’m working with a client.

Quick answer first: Unleashing the power of questions means deploying open-ended questions that identify someone’s pain points so you can find ways to resolve them.

Slightly longer answer: Unleashing the power of questions is about triggering ideas for new products, services, and experiences. You can solve problems, reduce customer complaints, improve products, shorten sales cycles, and increase revenue through better questions.

And an even longer answer extracted from Marcus Sheridan’s incredible book, They Ask, You Answer: Unleashing the power of questions is about being obsessed with knowing what your customer, employee, or family member is thinking. Customer ignorance is no longer a viable sales and marketing strategy. It’s about capturing the questions your sales teams and representatives are asked and ensuring they’re answered on your website, in sales presentations, on the phone, or in online chats. Powerful questions are open-ended and empower the person responding to choose the direction they take.

Most of us don't leverage that power. This is particularly true if we feel we’re short of time, worried about our own problems or needs, or just frustrated by the limits of Zoom, email, or places like Slack. As a result, our questions become transactional and close-ended.

To Get What You Want…

Too many people go into internal or external meetings, forgetting the adage, “To get what you want, help them get what they want.” I’ve built relationship planners to help you think through your approach. It’s ungated, but I also offer deal coaching services to provide a fresh perspective.

Here are some tips from the books, posts, and podcasts from people like Terry Fadem, Hal Gregersen, Sheridan, Derek Thompson, Jay Acunzo, and many more you’ll find in my Frictionless newsletter, where I attempt to provide you with twice-monthly roundtables on this topic (you can subscribe at the bottom of the page):

• I teach clients the WHAT strategy I learned from Ron Shapiro and Mark Jankowski: W is Ask Open-Ended Questions like What, Why, and How; H is Hypothesize; A is Answer Questions with Questions (without being irritating); and T is Tell Me More.

• Get the other person comfortable so both of you can be vulnerable and build trust.

• If you hear a great comment or insight, ask yourself what question was asked that led to such great insight.

• Stop asking questions like you think you’re the smartest person in the room (even if you are), because you just look insecure, and everyone knows you’re trying to establish you’re on an equal intellectual footing. Or do you just want the person to acknowledge what a great question it was (validation)?

• Avoid narrow and specific questions with a preamble and some jargon. Avoid business terms and acronyms. The other person isn’t going to tell you more if they think you are smart, and they may use jargon if they don’t think you’re smart.

• Many successful brands have been built on the question, Why isn’t someone doing (X)? Or, What if we tried (Y)? Use that.

• Remember the old Columbo TV show, where the main character was known for turning to the smug killer and saying “one more thing,” demonstrating the power of questions and persistence? Keep asking.

• Ask the “fatal flaw” question about every plan, every new technology, every new service, every product, and every opportunity.

• One of the best questions you can ask is “Because?” It shows you were listening to the previous answer and that you care enough about that answer to understand the reason behind it.

• Make questions directives: Instead of asking, “How did you get your first customer,” say, “Tell me how you got your first customer.”

• Ask the dumb question. Others have the same question and will appreciate you.

• Ask some variation of “What have I missed” or “What question should I be asking.” The experts in the room know the most important things to talk about, and if you’ve built rapport, they’ll want to be helpful.

• Brainstorming questions for a meeting with your team and other business areas can be helpful. The Question Formulation Technique (QFT) recommends four rules: (1) Ask as many questions as you can; (2) Do not stop to discuss, answer, or judge any questions; (3) Write down every question exactly as stated; and (4) Change any statement into a question. That approach will reinforce the value of questions; you can go back and fine-tune them later. 

You’re not giving clients or co-workers the questions. You’re equipping them to ask questions that fit the unique situation and forcing them to listen to the answer. Make your questions as clear to the person you are asking as they are to you.

Unleashing the power of questions helps you develop better website content and sales presentations and deliver better (and faster) service. That builds greater trust, which leads to shorter sales cycles, which means happier sales teams, leadership teams, and customers/prospects.