Characteristics of Great Open Ended Questions

Questioning take on two basic forms: OPEN-ENDED and CLOSED-ENDED. Let's start our discussion with open-ended questions. 

Open-ended questions are phrased in such a way as to draw out a wide range of responses on a broad topic. They attempt to involve the buyer in conversation by asking for opinions about a topic. They allow the sales or service personal to generate information that will help close the sale or suggestion the appropriate solution.

Open ended questions usually have the following characteristics:

• They cannot be answered by a simple "yes" or "no". 
• They usually begin with the following words: who, how, why, when, which, where.
• They do not lead the buyer in a specific direction.
• They increase dialogue by drawing out the buyer's needs and feelings.
• They encourage the buyer to elaborate on objectives, needs, wants and problems.
• They can be used to stimulate the buyer into thinking about your ideas and products.