50+ Sales Questions to turn B2B Prospects into Buyers

Effectively handling the b2b sales questions will help you turn potential clients into reliable customers for your business.

Through asking the questions, you will learn how the prospects want the solutions and what problems they are facing.

That’s why, in this article, we will discuss some of the important and commonly used sales questions related to rapport, discovery, need, decision making, and budget, solution & value-based, etc.

What Makes a Sales Question Powerful?

B2B sales questions are strategically built queries that are used for understanding the potential clients’ needs, pain points, queries about products and services, challenges, and decision-making abilities.

An effective and powerful B2B sales question must be insightful, open-minded, and actionable, which encourages the prospects to tell their needs.

50+ B2B Sales Questions to Convert Prospects Into Buyers

Through the right questions, you can easily turn the b2b sales leads into paying customers for the long term.

We are going to break down those sales questions part by part according to their purposes, like discovery and need, objection handling, decision maker, budget, solution, and value-based, etc.

 

 

Icebreaker & Rapport Questions

Open the conversation by creating some comfort and rapport. These questions are conversational, and they provide you with helpful context about where the other person is in their life.

• “What did your team do when (specific challenge) last quarter?”
• “What caused your company to specialise in (industry or goal) this year?”
• “Any changes to how your team is navigating the volatile market?”
• “What is one success your team has been particularly proud of recently?”
• “What is your process for evaluating new tools or solutions?”
• “What are you focusing on this quarter and why?”
• “In what way is your role likely to expand in the next year?”

Purpose: Openers that are intended to break the ice and demonstrate that you’re interested in their business, not just your product.

Discovery & Need-Finding Questions

After some rapport building, start digging deeper into their pains, struggles, and goals. These questions help you discover what your prospect really values.

• “What is stopping your process or results today?”
• “Where are you spending the most time or money as a team?”
• “What measurable results are you working to improve this quarter?”
• “What systems or tools do you have in place?
• “Things that are going well and things that aren’t?”
• “How would a delay or an inefficiency affect your bottom line?”
• “What issues do your customers usually complain about?”
• “If there is one thing you could fix in your process, what would it be?”
• “What are the KPIs you use to measure success?”
• ‘Have you attempted that before? What happened?”
• “What is your perfect workflow?”
• “What would create less friction for your team on a daily basis?”

Purpose: These questions will help you understand their primary pain points so you can craft your pitch around real business needs.

Decision-Maker & Budget Questions

Before travelling too far, establish who is in charge and which resources are available.

• “Who runs point on looking at something like this?”
• “Who is the person who makes a decision for that type of purchase?”
• “Do you have an amount in mind?”
• “When are you planning to roll it out?”
• “What is the traditional way that a new solution gets approved internally?
• “Who is this solution for the most?”
• “Are there any budgetary considerations that would affect what we can do?”
• “How have you thought about making similar investments in the past?”

Objective: These allow you to vet the lead, get a sense of their organization, and make plans to propose effectively.

Solution and Value-Based Questions

Now, it’s time to present your offer as the perfect solution for their problem.

If there were an ideal solution for your team, what would it look like?

• ‘What would success look like for a project like this?’
• “What are the features or outcomes most important to you?”
• “What potential effects do you see this remedy having on your objectives?
• “If we removed (unique problem), what would your team be able to accomplish?”
• “What type of return on investment or performance gains are you seeking?”
• “How do you quantify the value of new tools?”

Is it a quick win you want, or a longer-term strategic benefit?

Purpose: These questions lead the discussion to the value and relevance of your product.

Objection-Handling & Closing Questions

As you near the close of your conversation, use these to handle any b2b sales objections and guide the interaction toward a confident “yes.”

• “What would give you confidence going ahead with this plan?”
• “Is there something that’s holding you back from going to the next stage?”
• “What are your implementation concerns?
• “How does this compare to other alternatives you’re thinking of?”
• “If we could take away (this one thing), would you want to proceed?”
• “Who else should have a say about completing the decision?”
• “Well, and would you like a customized proposal of what we talked about?”
• “Now that the world is about to end, when should I begin?”

Some Additional B2B Sales Questions

• “What is the single biggest challenge your team most often deals with when scaling up operations?”
• “How do you choose projects or solutions when money is tight?
• “What if it’s not resolved in a few months?”
• “How can technology help advance your business to the next step?”
• “Who are the other team members who could most use this type of solution?”
• “What is your perfect vendor or partner relationship like?”
• “How do you measure the success of a new tool after it’s been deployed?”
• “What kinds of in-house feedback have you gotten on your system so far?”
• What would you change first in your current process if you could start it all over again?
• “What type of after-sales support or onboarding is most important for you?”
• “Where does this project fit in with the overall strategy of your firm?”
• “What’s the largest risk you want to ensure against in making this decision?”

Final Words

So, is it easy to deal with the prospects’ queries in b2b business? Well, the answer is yes if you follow the right and well-structured way. In this article, we have discussed some of the commonly practiced questions depending on factors like discovery and needs, decision maker and budgets, solution and value-based, etc. Apply them based on your purposes to turn your b2b prospects into trusted clients.