Discovery Question Bank

Sixty open questions for finding out what a customer really needs, organized by stage of the conversation, each with what to listen for in the answer.

Who it is for

• New salespeople and people who sell as part of another job

• Small-business owners who handle their own sales conversations

• Front desk staff, estimators, service advisors and account managers

• Sales managers coaching new staff

• Anyone who wants to stop pitching and start asking

The problem it solves

Customers trust people who ask about them, not people who talk well about products. But in the moment, it is easy to run out of good questions, ask closed questions that get one-word answers, or jump to a product too early. This bank gives you sixty tested open questions in the order a conversation happens, and tells you what to listen for in each answer, so you know what to do with it.

What is inside

• Guide (2 pages): what discovery questions are and why they matter, open and closed questions (with closed questions rewritten as open ones), six habits for asking and listening, what to do when a customer asks the price first, signs you have stopped listening, and common mistakes

• The question bank (5 pages): 60 questions in nine stages (why now, their situation today, problems and past experience, what matters most, decision and people, timing and budget, follow-up questions, say-back and checking fit, and agreeing the next step), each with what to listen for. Five questions are marked as the place to start. Space to add your own

• Question plan (2 pages): filled in for a real conversation (a cleaning company and a dental lab), and blank to copy

• Editable Word version: the full bank and the question plan

How to use it

1. Read the two guide pages once.

2. Before each conversation, pick three to five questions and write them on the question plan.

3. Ask one at a time, listen for what the bank describes, and ask a follow-up about each answer.

4. Say back what you heard before you suggest anything.

Formats and file types

• PDF, 10 pages, US Letter

• Word (.docx), editable

• Licensed for use within your organization

Frequently asked questions