1. Chapter 4 – Communication Skills

2. Trust-Based Sales Communication: Talking with rather than at the customer. A collaborative and two-way form of communication that allows buyers and sellers to develop a better understanding of the need situation and work together to co-create the best response for resolving the customer’s needs.

3. Verbal Communication: Questioning
Open-end Questions: Questions designed to let the customer respond freely; the customer is not limited to one-or two-word answers but is encouraged to disclose personal and/or business information.
Closed-end Questions: Questions designed to limit the customer’s responses to one or two words.
Dichotomous Questions: A directive form of questioning; these questions ask the customer to choose from two or more options.
Probing Questions: Questions designed to penetrate below generalized or superficial information to elicit more articulate and precise details for use in needs discovery and solution identification.
Evaluative Questions: Questions that use the open- and closed-end question formats to gain confirmation and to uncover attitudes, opinions, and preferences the prospect holds.
Tactical Questions: Questions used to shift or redirect the topic of discussion when the discussion gets off course or when a line of questioning proves to be of little interest or value.
Reactive Questions: Questions that refer to or directly result from information the other party previously provided.

4. SPIN Questioning System
SPIN: A questioning system that sequences four types of questions designed to uncover a buyer’s current situation and inherent problems, enhance the buyer’s understanding of the consequences and implications of those problems, and lead to the proposed solution.

5. SPIN Questioning System
Situation Questions: One of the four types of questions in the SPIN questioning system used early in the sales call that provides salespeople with leads to develop the buyer’s needs and expectations fully.
Problem Questions: One of the four types of questions in the SPIN questioning system that follows the more general situation questions to further probe for specific difficulties; developing problems, and areas of dissatisfaction that might be positively addressed by the salesperson’s proposed sales offering.
Implication Questions: One of the four types of questions in the SPIN questioning system that follows and relates to the information flowing from problem questions; they are used to assist the buyer in thinking about the potential consequences of the problem and understanding the urgency of resolving the problem in a way that motivates him or her to seek a solution.
Need-Payoff Questions: One of the four types of questions in the SPIN questioning system that is based on the implications of a problem; they are used to propose a solution and develop commitment from the buyer.

6. ADAPT Questioning System
ADAPT: A questioning system that uses a logic-based funneling sequence of questions, beginning with broad and generalized inquiries designed to identify and assess the buyer’s situation.

7. ADAPT Questioning System
Assessment Questions: One of the five stages of questions in the ADAP questioning system that do not seek conclusions but rather should address the buyer’s company and operations, goals and objectives, market trends and customers, current suppliers, and even the buyer as an individual.
Discovery Questions: One of the five stages of questions in the ADAPT questioning system that follows up on the assessment questions; they should drill down and probe for further details needed to develop, clarify, and understand the nature of the buyer’s problems fully.
Activation Questions: One of the five stages of questions in the ADAPT questioning system used to “activate” the customer’s interest in solving discovered problems by helping him or her gain insight into the true ramifications of the problem and to realize that what might initially seem to be of little consequence is, in fact, of significant consequence.
Projection Questions: One of the five stages of questions in the ADAPT questioning system used to encourage and facilitate the buyer in “projecting” what it would be like without the problems that have been previously “discovered” and “activated.”
Transition Questions: One of the five stages of questions in the ADAPT questioning system used to smooth the transition from needs discovery into the presentation and demonstration of the proposed solution’s features and benefits.

8. Verbal Communication: Listening
1. Pay attention – Listen to understand, not to reply. Resist the urge to interrupt and receive the full message the buyer is communicating.
2. Monitor non-verbals – Make effective eye contact and check to see if the buyer’s body language and speech patterns match what is being said.
3. Paraphrase and repeat – Confirm your correct understanding of what the buyer is saying by paraphrasing and repeating what you have heard.
4. Make no assumptions – Ask questions to clarify the meaning of what the buyer is communicating.
5. Encourage the buyer to talk – Encourage the flow of information by giving positive feedback and help the buyer stay on track by asking purposeful, related questions.
6. Visualize – Maximize your attention and comprehension by thinking about and visualizing what the buyer is saying.

9. Using Different Types of Listening
Social Listening: An informal mode of listening that can be associated with day-to-day conversation and entertainment.
Serious Listening: A form of listening that is associated with events or topics in which it is important to sort through, interpret, understand, and respond to received messages.
Active Listening: The cognitive process of actively sensing, interpreting, evaluating, and responding to the verbal and nonverbal messages of current or potential customers.
SIER: A model that depicts active listening as a hierarchical, four-step sequence of sensing, interpreting, evaluating, and responding.

10. Nonverbal Communication
Nonverbal Communication: The conscious and unconscious reactions, movements, and utterances that people use in addition to the words and symbols associated with language.

11. Nonverbal Communication
Facial Expressions
Eye Movements
Placement and Movement of Hands, Arms, Head and Legs
Body Posture and Orientation
Proxemics
Proxemics: The personal distance that individuals prefer to keep between themselves and other individuals; an important element of nonverbal communication.
Variations in Vocal Characteristics
Speaking Rates and Pause Duration
Pitch or Frequency
Intensity and Loudness
Nonverbal Clusters: Groups of related nonverbal expressions, gestures, and movements that can be interpreted to better understand the true message being communicated.