Wishy Washy Words & How To Deal With Them
By Intrigue
You are meeting with a client and just finished the best presentation of your life. You were meeting with the decision maker, found the perfect solution to their pain and even managed to come in under budget!
After a few moments of consideration, the decision maker says “I think I like what I am hearing and it looks like we are moving in a good direction. Let me get back to you after I’ve discussed with my team”
You shake their hand, leave the office…..and never hear from them again.
Has this ever happened to you before?
If so, you’re not alone. It’s happened to me too. Heck, I’m willing to put money on the fact that it has happened to everyone who has ever done sales!
So what happened?
Maybe….just MAYBE….it’s your fault for not finding out the true meaning of what your prospect just said to you.
Unclear communication or “Wishy Washy Words” is all around us. It’s in our everyday lives, in every social interaction and we get it from almost every person we have a relationship with.
In sales, it is LITERALLY our jobs to find out what our clients are saying, why they are saying it and what they truly mean.
So how do we stop this from happening? By asking for clarifying questions.
“Mr/ Mrs. Prospect, what was it about the presentation that you liked?”
“When you said, you think we’re moving in the right direction, what exactly does that mean?”
Some words / phrases to beware of:
|
Try |
Probably |
Possible |
|
Right Direction |
I think… |
should |
Questions to ask:
-
When you said _____________, what did you mean?
-
Help me understand what you meant by _____________.
-
Maybe you can elabourate on ______________.
By developing an antenna for wishy washy words and knowing to follow up with a question, it will allow you to become more confident knowing that you fully understand what people are actually telling you.
Not only does it build understanding, it also builds rapport with people because they know that you’re listening. Last but not least, by seeking to understand and using some of the questions above…it might even help you do more business.
