How Do They Buy Today?
Twenty practical ways to learn how customers buy today, so your approach fits their real process.
Buying has a pattern. Learn it and walk beside them.
10 tips that really help
These ideas come from SPIN Selling (Neil Rackham), Gap Selling (Keenan), The Sandler Rules (David Mattson), and everyday practice. The first six help the most. Pick one and try it today.
Buying habits reveal fit
How they buy today tells you what a new provider must match.
Ask about their process.
Ask where they look first
Search, referrals or events show their path.
Learn channels.
Ask about approvals
Know steps like quotes and sign-off.
Map them.
Ask about the last purchase
Recent experience shows what worked.
Ask what they liked.
Ask about problems with past buying
Pain points show how to be better.
Learn what to avoid.
Ask about preferred payment
Terms can decide a deal.
Check early.
Ask about contract style
Some like short trials, others long contracts.
Offer choices.
Document the journey
Record the path for future reference.
Update your notes.
Every buyer has a process
Knowing the steps helps you help them.
Ask to learn it.
Ask what decided it
Key factor.
Ask.
Easy things to say
When you are stuck, pick one of these. They work in many sales conversations.
“How did you choose your current supplier?”
“What are the steps from need to purchase?”
“How long does it usually take?”
“Who gets involved?”
“Is that typical?”
“That helps me plan.”
Your first week
One small action a day. Each day is only a little bigger than the last.
Ask about their last purchase
Map the steps
Ask about timing
Ask about approvals
Ask about information they use
Prepare for each step
Review your map
Further reading
- SPIN Selling (Neil Rackham)
- Gap Selling (Keenan)
- The Sandler Rules (David Mattson)
The tips above are written in our own words and are general guidance. The books are suggestions for further reading.
More lessons in “Ask Better Questions, Sell More”
Keep going. Small steps every day make a big change.
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- Stop Pitching, Start Asking
- The 70/30 Rule: Listen More
- Curiosity Is a Sales Skill
- Questions Show You Care
- Make Customers Talk About Their World
- Pitch Only After You Understand
- Questions Are Not Interrogations
- Situation Questions Without Boring People
- Problem Questions That Find the Pain
- Implication Questions That Show the Cost
- Need-Payoff Questions That Spark Desire
- Build a SPIN Question Bank
- Use SPIN on a Small Sale
- Common SPIN Mistakes
- Ask "Why Is That Important?"
- The Power of "Tell Me More"
- Find the Hidden Problem Behind the Problem
- Ask About the Cost of Doing Nothing
- Ask About Feelings, Not Just Facts
- Turn One Answer Into Three Questions
- The Pause That Gets the Truth
- Who Decides and Who Influences?
- How Do They Buy Today?
- What Does Success Look Like to Them?
- Find Their Budget Without Awkwardness
- Discover Their Deadline
- Ask About Past Experiences With Sellers
- Find Out What They Tried Before
- Research Before You Ask
- Write Your Top Five Questions
- Set the Agenda Together
- Take Notes Without Losing Eye Contact
- Summarise What You Heard
- End With a Clear Next Step
- Great Questions for Phone Calls
- Questions to Use in Email
- Questions for a Group Meeting
- Questions for Small Customers
- Questions for Big Customers
- Questions That Win Repeat Business
