Four Ways To Go Beyond Info Gathering And Build Real Rapport With Your Prospects
by Brian Signorelli, author of “ Inbound Selling: How to Change the Way You Sell to Match How People Buy “ If you’ve been a salesperson for a while, there’s a good chance you swear by the “BANT” approach. Asking questions around Budget, Authority, Needs, and Timeline has long been the framework for qualifying prospects. But BANT alone isn’t enough to make the sale anymore. These days buyers are more informed and empowered than they’ve ever been before. They don’t need qualifying — in fact, they’ve probably already qualified themselves. This means you can’t just go into ‘data managing mode’ and expect it to drive a sale forward. You can’t just tick off the questions on a checklist and assume you’re done. Your job is to help your prospect achieve their goals. Today, that often means digging deeper and going beyond BANT — sometimes far beyond it. The old, outbound approach to sales — aggressive, intrusive, product/company-centric — is becoming obsolete in a world where people can see...