Questions for prospecting on Social Media that help people make Decisions NOW!

In a pervious post I gave you three great pre-closing questions. Today, I’m going to give you tips on prospecting on Social Media — questions that help prospects make decisions now!

Let’s look at a typical situation that comes up when we are prospecting on Social Media. Here is an example conversation with a prospect as well as what is going through their mind.

—We meet a prospect on Facebook that has come through from one of our curiosity posts.

—We start out in our conversation with the prospect on Facebook Private Chat with the usual formalities…

“Thank you for personally connecting with me on my post about “Being Your Own Boss.” Just curious, what was in the post that caught your attention?”

—The prospect says,

“I am tired of working 40 hours a week for a less than competent boss…always telling us how to do our job but never able to do his.”

Now where do you go from here? Where do we take the conversation?

By asking more important questions.

These more important questions will answer all the objections that are going through the prospect’s mind:

“What if this turns out to be a big mistake?”
“Am I making the right decision talking to this person or the wrong decision?”
“Let me think it over and maybe something will happen so I don’t have to commit.”
“What if I try it and it’s a disaster?”
“How long can I put off this decision?”

Our prospects don’t like to reveal too much on social media. It is safe to hide behind a computer screen where no one can see your flaws.

They don’t like making decisions. They don’t realize that “not making a decision” is “making a decision” to keep things as they are. Yes, a “think it over” decision is really making a “no for now” decision.

We network marketers know this. Our prospects don’t. Our prospects don’t’ realize that when they delay making a decision about our business, they are making a decision to keep their lives the same.

Keeping their lives the same is okay. But, they should be consciously making that decision instead of having that decision made by default.

I often get the question,

“My prospect wants to think it over. How do I get my prospects to make a decision?”

My answer? I say,

“Your prospect made a decision already. Your prospect made a decision to stay where they are, to keep their life the same.”

There are only two ways our prospects make decisions. They either make a decision to move forward now, or they make a decision to stay where they are.

There are no other possibilities.

Here are some more important questions that we can ask our prospects on social media to move them forward. They are innocent, non-aggressive questions. These questions help our prospects make a CONSCIOUS decision on what is best for their lives.

The Most Important Part

The most important part of the equation… we can ask these questions BEFORE our presentation and not after.

These questions reduce the “I need to think it over” objection.

As a bonus, they also PRE-CLOSE our prospects before we start our presentation.

“Awesome. I Have a Couple of Ways to Go for Helping You.”

This statement is not a question but it does break the ice. It lets the prospect know you have options. You are not going to stick them with just one way which may not work. It gets the prospect to relax. Instead, with you they have options. They will be wanting to know more.

You may tell me, “Dale, my company has only one way of helping people.”

No, not really. Because every Network Marketing company has two sides… a product or a service side and a business side. So, you have more than one way for helping people.

“Would it Be Okay if I Asked Some Questions so that I Know the Best Place for Where to Send You?”

This is one of the more important questions.

Because you have options, it is only natural that you ask them some additional questions.

This question asks them permission to proceed with your additional questions.

That way, you don’t look like your trying to get too invasive.

“What is the Biggest Challenge Which You’ve Had About ________?”

Fill in the blank with the information which they told you.

“What is the biggest challenge which you’ve had about getting leads on social media?”
“What is the biggest challenge which you’ve had about losing weight?”
“What is the biggest challenge about your Network Marketing business that you are in?”

The question helps get to the root of the problem quickly. The quicker we know the problem, the more information we have for helping them.

Does this question work 100% of the time?

No.

It does work 95% of the time.

“Is _______ the Biggest Challenge Which You Face? Or, Is There Something Else More Important to You Which I Might Be Able to Help?”

One of the more important questions to consider is this one.

This question helps to uncover additional problems that they may have not revealed. We want them to bring their pain out front and let them digest on it. This question helps to uncover it.

Fill the blank in with the problem that they have revealed from our question about the biggest challenge which they have had.

“Is getting leads the biggest challenge which you face? Or, is there something more important to you which I might be able to help?”
“Is losing weight the biggest challenge which you face? Or, is there something more important to you which I might be able to help?”
“Is not making sales in your Network Marketing business the biggest challenge you face? Or, is there something more important to you which I might be able to help?”
“Is working 40 hours a week and having no vacations in 5 years the biggest challenges which you face? Or, is there something else more important to you which I might be able to help?”

“How Long Have You Had This Problem?”

Most prospects never take the time out to realize they’ve carried their problems with them for quite some time.

This question gets the prospect to confront the truth.

If the problem has been going on for months and years, you can offer an option with your products or business opportunity for getting them out of their rut.

“What Are the Likely Consequences if the Problem Persists?”

This question most likely will get you a “Nothing” answer. There will be silence. We let this question make the prospect think. They will think:

“Well, if we walk away, our lives will be the same. Tomorrow, we’ll have the same problems we have today. We will wake up to our alarms, fight traffic going to work, come home late after more traffic, grab a quick meal, watch a few minutes of television and… go to sleep. We hate this routine. Something has to change.”

Not a very pretty picture, is it? Now, if the prospects choose to leave everything the same, if they choose to avoid our opportunity… that is okay. They are making a decision. And that is all we ask.

Want a few questions like this? Let’s see if these one of these more important questions fits our style or situation.

“What will happen if you don’t join our business?”
“If you don’t start your own business now, do you see yourself always working for someone else?”
“What do you think will happen next year if you decide not to make any changes this year?”
“Do you think your job routine (five days a week, three weeks of vacation every year) will ever change?”
“I sense you are stressing out about risking a change in your daily life. Why not relax and keep your life as it is?”
“You don’t have to make a decision to start your own business tonight. Instead, make a decision not to start your own business, and keep your present job routine forever.”
“You know, you might be thinking, ‘My daily routine isn’t so bad. Maybe I will keep living this way.’ And that is also a good decision. Do you think that might be the best for you?”
“Would it be okay if you never had to go to work again?”
“How many more days can you put up with commuting?”
“Life is not forever. What would you really like to do?”
“How else are you going to get that extra $500 you need every month to get caught up with your bills?”
How else do you think five pounds a month will go away?”
How else do you think you can keep your skin from wrinkling more every evening?”
How else do you break the pattern of six-day work weeks?”

“If I Can Help You Solve the “Pain,” What are You Looking to Achieve?

This one of the more important question to help us determine whether our products or our opportunity are a match for our prospect.

We have located the pain. Do we have a product, service or benefit from our opportunity which can relieve it?

“When Would You Like to Have this Problem Solved?”

This question creates urgency. If they are serious about solving their pain, they will say, “Immediately!”

If they are not serious, it is better to know before getting too far into the conversation… but don’t give up on them quite yet at this point.

Let’s look at other questions like it:

“Where does this stack up in terms of priority and urgency?”
“What do you expect to get from a home-based business?”
“So, what is important about having a part-time business for you?”
“Are you okay with getting up at dawn and commuting to work and returning at dusk for the next 40 years?”
“What would happen if you didn’t have to wake up every morning to go to work?”

“How Much Money Have You Set Aside to Start a Home-Based Business?”

This question needs to be asked before the presentation. This is one of the more important questions which need ALWAYS to be asked in the private chats or during video chats.

Many prospects have been sold a lie. They have been sold that joining a Network Marketing business requires little or no money.

Or, they’ve been told that this is job, and what we are doing by asking questions is a job interview.

They need to know upfront that there is a cost involved.

You may find that their amount set aside from asking this question is higher than the amount required to join your business.

How much easier is it to close them knowing that before the presentation?

If your presentation covers the cost for joining, let the presentation answer the question.

If the prospect persists on the cost, here is how I would present the cost for joining the business.

“The name of the company is XYZ. The cost is $1,200, which, when you think about it, is less than $3.30 a day, less than the cost of a happy meal.”

“Most people join XYZ company because they like that money coming into their bank account month after month working only 12-15 hours per week. Some people don’t join because frankly they can’t afford the $3.30 per day and they’d rather spend the money on that happy meal.”

“I am just going to present the facts. If you like them, that is okay. If you don’t, that is okay too. Alright?”

On social media, I prefer covering the cost either during the follow-up and close or letting my presentation do the heavy work for me.

“The Information is ___ Minutes to See, if That is Okay?”

Always let the prospect know the amount of time it normally takes to see all the information. And add this question at the end of the statement, “If that is okay?”

You will find by adding that one simple question at the end, they will agree to see it 99% of the time… even if the presentation is three-hours long.

“The information is one hour to see, if that is okay?”
“The information is two hours to see, if that is okay?
The information on the website is 3 hours to see, if that is okay?”