What is SPIN? Introducing tips for B2B sales!
Posted: Wed Dec 04, 2024 5:14 am
In this article, we will introduce the "SPIN method," a sales technique that captures customer needs.
Even if you understand "SPIN," it can be difficult to put it to good use. This time, we will introduce the tricks in an easy-to-understand way with our own commentary.
*You are free to use it however you like. Please use this article as a reference.
A spinning motion!!
I'm sure it's not that.
It's said to be a great sales technique!
...And it's also connected to customer success!?
What is “SPIN”?
SPIN is a method of interviewing customers to reveal their needs, which was published in the book "SPIN Selling" by British author Neil Rackham, and is often used in B2B sales. By
skillfully constructing the flow of questions, it is easy to create a flow where "customers themselves need a product or service to solve their problems."
The simple flow is as follows:
Situation:
Check the customer's situation.
Problem:
Share a problem.
Implications:
We will then think together about the possible impacts of leaving the issue unattended.
Need payoff (image of solution)
Finally, we ask the customer to have an image of the solution themselves.
The acronym SPIN is made brazil telegram phone number list up of the first letters of each stage. Because the SPIN method
is not about selling products, but is based on getting the customer to realize something themselves, it can be said to be a questioning technique that effectively advances business negotiations.
lighted carnival ride
brown and white pomeranian puppy on macbook
Situation
First, confirm the customer's situation.
What I recommend here is to make a hypothesis in advance and then check the differences between the hypothesis and the customer's situation while listening to the customer .
Of course, the quickest and most reliable way to find out about a customer's situation is to ask
them directly. Also, the SPIN method is a way to get the customer to feel their own needs through questioning, so it is best to ask questions to the customer and understand their situation together.
However, most customers do not fully understand what services your company provides. Even
if you simply ask "Is there anything I can help you with?" without any restrictions, customers may not know what to ask about, and if you spend a long time trying to get to the point, they may feel that they have wasted their time.
Also, your company's solutions may be useful in a different way than the services we would like to introduce this time.
In order to connect the needs of your customers with your company's services, it is necessary to conduct accurate interviews.
What is effective in this case is to thoroughly research the customer's situation in advance, predict the current issues, and formulate a hypothesis .
By formulating a hypothesis in advance, you can critically confirm the necessary information and proceed smoothly with the negotiations.
By preparing additional useful information in advance, you can also confirm the situation in more depth.
Of course, this will likely leave a good impression on the customer, who will think, "You've done your research well" and "You understand well."
Before interviewing directly, I think it is necessary to at the very least check the service details listed on the website and the latest news, and then make a hypothesis about their needs.
Of course, the more information you gather, the
better your hypothesis will be!
people walking on street during daytime
Problem
After confirming the situation, we will share the issues. The key point at this stage is to clarify
the issues the customer has by asking questions
. This will be an important element in the following stages as well.
The ideal situation would be for the customer to realize the problem themselves, but in reality this is difficult.
However, arbitrarily limiting and presenting the problem as "The customer's problem is ____" is not an effective way of speaking, as it is the same as selling your own product.
I believe it's easier to get things done if you confirm your customer's issues in a "question format."
When presenting an issue to a customer, always ask in question form (?) and it's great if you can get a "That's right" response from the customer.
Conversely, even if the customer has recognized the issue beforehand, always ask additional questions.
I think that if you clarify the issue by repeating the process of asking and answering questions, it will be easier to create an awareness of sharing the issue together, in other words, solving the issue together.
These are important points in the next stage, Implication.
Even if you understand "SPIN," it can be difficult to put it to good use. This time, we will introduce the tricks in an easy-to-understand way with our own commentary.
*You are free to use it however you like. Please use this article as a reference.
A spinning motion!!
I'm sure it's not that.
It's said to be a great sales technique!
...And it's also connected to customer success!?
What is “SPIN”?
SPIN is a method of interviewing customers to reveal their needs, which was published in the book "SPIN Selling" by British author Neil Rackham, and is often used in B2B sales. By
skillfully constructing the flow of questions, it is easy to create a flow where "customers themselves need a product or service to solve their problems."
The simple flow is as follows:
Situation:
Check the customer's situation.
Problem:
Share a problem.
Implications:
We will then think together about the possible impacts of leaving the issue unattended.
Need payoff (image of solution)
Finally, we ask the customer to have an image of the solution themselves.
The acronym SPIN is made brazil telegram phone number list up of the first letters of each stage. Because the SPIN method
is not about selling products, but is based on getting the customer to realize something themselves, it can be said to be a questioning technique that effectively advances business negotiations.
lighted carnival ride
brown and white pomeranian puppy on macbook
Situation
First, confirm the customer's situation.
What I recommend here is to make a hypothesis in advance and then check the differences between the hypothesis and the customer's situation while listening to the customer .
Of course, the quickest and most reliable way to find out about a customer's situation is to ask
them directly. Also, the SPIN method is a way to get the customer to feel their own needs through questioning, so it is best to ask questions to the customer and understand their situation together.
However, most customers do not fully understand what services your company provides. Even
if you simply ask "Is there anything I can help you with?" without any restrictions, customers may not know what to ask about, and if you spend a long time trying to get to the point, they may feel that they have wasted their time.
Also, your company's solutions may be useful in a different way than the services we would like to introduce this time.
In order to connect the needs of your customers with your company's services, it is necessary to conduct accurate interviews.
What is effective in this case is to thoroughly research the customer's situation in advance, predict the current issues, and formulate a hypothesis .
By formulating a hypothesis in advance, you can critically confirm the necessary information and proceed smoothly with the negotiations.
By preparing additional useful information in advance, you can also confirm the situation in more depth.
Of course, this will likely leave a good impression on the customer, who will think, "You've done your research well" and "You understand well."
Before interviewing directly, I think it is necessary to at the very least check the service details listed on the website and the latest news, and then make a hypothesis about their needs.
Of course, the more information you gather, the
better your hypothesis will be!
people walking on street during daytime
Problem
After confirming the situation, we will share the issues. The key point at this stage is to clarify
the issues the customer has by asking questions
. This will be an important element in the following stages as well.
The ideal situation would be for the customer to realize the problem themselves, but in reality this is difficult.
However, arbitrarily limiting and presenting the problem as "The customer's problem is ____" is not an effective way of speaking, as it is the same as selling your own product.
I believe it's easier to get things done if you confirm your customer's issues in a "question format."
When presenting an issue to a customer, always ask in question form (?) and it's great if you can get a "That's right" response from the customer.
Conversely, even if the customer has recognized the issue beforehand, always ask additional questions.
I think that if you clarify the issue by repeating the process of asking and answering questions, it will be easier to create an awareness of sharing the issue together, in other words, solving the issue together.
These are important points in the next stage, Implication.