How to Understand Your Prospects’ Needs and Solve Their Problems

Does this happen to you? You sit down with a client expecting to hear what they need, but instead, they start jumping from one issue to another, sharing specific events and challenges. Before you know it, the conversation ends, and you’re left unsure of what they truly need or expect from you.

To understand your prospects’ needs, guiding the discussion is essential. Ask targeted questions to uncover their core challenges, priorities, and goals. By actively listening and steering the conversation, you can ensure you leave with a clear understanding of their needs and how you can help.

If you feel confused, that’s because your client is confused too. They know they need help but they’re not sure what the source of the problem is.

We’ve all been there ourselves, haven’t we? We know something is wrong but we can’t seem to be able to pinpoint what it is.

Effective communication helps uncover your client’s true needs.

I used to be in this situation often, especially when I was staring off. And I know a lot of service providers have been there too.

If that’s the case for you, here’s what you can do to understand/help better:

• Ask your client to keep a journal of the issues that arise during a period (say 2 weeks) and analyse them together.
• Talk to employees – sometimes people on the front line have a better understanding of the issues but are afraid to speak up.
• Identify the most common problems your niche market is facing and create a short questionnaire to lead your client to the underlying problem rather than the symptoms.

Remember – it is all about reading between the lines.