The Secret to B2B Selling: How to Identify the Pain Points of Your Customers

Why do B2B buyers decide to buy from you? Is it "Price"? "Product"? "Promotional" efforts? I would argue that the single most important factor in B2B sales is a totally different word that starts with the letter P—"Pain."

B2B buyers usually don’t want to buy. The status quo is usually very comfortable to them; they don’t want to waste money or time, or look bad to their bosses by going out on a limb for betting on the wrong product.

It's hard to persuade B2B customers to buy unless they have a major problem on their hands that is causing big-time frustration and pain—some kind of inefficiency with their current system that is creating delays, some recurring glitch with software that is forcing them to incur costs, or some inadequate level of service with a current vendor that is driving them to look for a new service provider.

Probing for Pain

Whatever “it” is, the key to remember is that B2B buyers are motivated by pain. They often decide to switch service providers, switch vendors, or install new systems not because they’re enamored with the new solution, but because their current solution has disappointed them or failed them in some way.

Keep in mind: switching vendors incurs significant costs. Even aside from the outlay for a new system or solution, the company often has to learn a new system, deal with implementation issues, perhaps retrain employees, or maybe even restructure parts of the company around the new solution.

None of this is done lightly! Companies often prefer to avoid incurring those costs unless there is a very compelling value proposition (or an incumbent vendor has screwed up badly enough) to make it worthwhile.

What does this mean for your B2B sales process? You need to get better at asking good questions to “probe for pain.” Just like a diagnosing physician, you need to learn how to solicit feedback, assess symptoms, and “read between the lines” to uncover problems that customers might be withholding from you, or that customers might not realize they have.

Here are a few good questions to help you probe for pain when talking with prospective customers:

• Why did you decide to contact us? This question (for inbound sales leads) helps assess a customer’s overall motives and agenda. Find out what they already know about your company and how you might be able to help address their issues.

• What are you currently using for (your type of solution/system)? Try to understand more about what current vendor/system/solution is in place at the prospect’s company. Maybe they’re using a competitor, maybe they don’t have a formal system that is comparable to what you sell, and maybe they are doing things “wrong” or inefficiently by using manual processes or outdated tools. This simple question can help you quickly understand the prospect’s business, and open up lots of potential for talking about pain points.

• What issues are you having with your current solution/vendor? This is simple enough, but lots of salespeople don’t ask it! Find out more about the big picture scenario of how the company is currently getting by.

• Which business processes are being affected by your current solution’s issues? Get a broader view of how the overall business is affected. Take notes about stakeholders and department names; these people can be your future allies in making a sale.

Probing for pain points is a delicate balancing act. You don’t want to make customers feel like you’re drilling them for information. Keep it casual and friendly, and let them know that you’re on their side and you’re trying to learn more about how their business could benefit from some new ideas.

By just asking a few simple questions, you can uncover many details about how a prospect’s business works, which painful issues they’re dealing with, and how your solution might be able to help.