1. Obtaining
Commitment
Demonstrating
Capability
Investigating
Opening
SITUATION
QUESTIONS
Questions that uncover background and
facts about buyer’s operation/organisation
PROBLEM
QUESTIONS
Questions about the buyer’s problems,
difficulties or dissatisfaction
IMPLICATION
QUESTIONS
Questions about consequences or seriousness of a
buyer’s problems (ie. making the buyer feel the pai
NEED PAY-OFF
QUESTIONS
Questions about the value, usefulness payoff or
importance to the buyer of solving a problem
P
S
N
I
NEED
NEED
NEED
NEED
It’s almost
perfect
It’s a
problem
but I can
live with it
It’s a
bigger
problem
than I
realised
I want
to take
action
to
resolve
it
It’s almost
perfect
Solution here
has LOW impact
Solution here
has HIGH impact
It’s a
problem
but I can
live with it
It’s a
bigger
problem
than I
realised
I want
to take
action
to
resolve
it
©2007 Huthwaite Inc.
SPIN®
Selling
Four Stages of a Call Seller’s Dialogue
• Establish a buyer
centred purpose
• Provide a brief
agenda
• Check for time
• Gain the buyer
agreement to ask
questions
• Benefits
• Advantages
• Features
• Check key concerns have
been covered (does
the buyer have
any questions?)
• Summarise the
Benefits
• Propose the highest
realistic, appropriate
commitment (an Advance)
(failure here is often due
to incomplete Investigating)
Always apply the 3 C’s:
Concern, Candour and Competence
Call Outcomes
✔ SUCCESSFUL
• Win
• Advance
X UNSUCCESSFUL
• Continuation
• Loss
• The most
important stage
of the call
Obtaining
Commitment
Demonstrating
Capability
Investigating
Opening
SITUATION
QUESTIONS
Questions that uncover background and
facts about buyer’s operation/organisation
PROBLEM
QUESTIONS
Questions about the buyer’s problems,
difficulties or dissatisfaction
IMPLICATION
QUESTIONS
Questions about consequences or seriousness of a
buyer’s problems (ie. making the buyer feel the pain)
NEED PAY-OFF
QUESTIONS
Questions about the value, usefulness payoff or
importance to the buyer of solving a problem
P
S
N
I
NEED
NEED
NEED
NEED
It’s almost
perfect
It’s a
problem
but I can
live with it
It’s a
bigger
problem
than I
realised
I want
to take
action
to
resolve
it
It’s almost
perfect
Solution here
has LOW impact
Solution here
has HIGH impact
It’s a
problem
but I can
live with it
It’s a
bigger
problem
than I
realised
I want
to take
action
to
resolve
it
Draw out buyer needs
Obtaining
Commitment
Demonstrating
Capability
Investigating
Opening
SITUATION
QUESTIONS
Questions that uncover background and
facts about buyer’s operation/organisation
PROBLEM
QUESTIONS
Questions about the buyer’s problems,
difficulties or dissatisfaction
IMPLICATION
QUESTIONS
Questions about consequences or seriousness of a
buyer’s problems (ie. making the buyer feel the pain)
NEED PAY-OFF
QUESTIONS
Questions about the value, usefulness payoff or
importance to the buyer of solving a problem
P
S
N
I
NEED
NEED
NEED
NEED
It’s almost
perfect
It’s a
problem
but I can
live with it
It’s a
bigger
problem
than I
realised
I want
to take
action
to
resolve
it
It’s almost
perfect
Solution here
has LOW impact
Solution here
has HIGH impact
It’s a
problem
but I can
live with it
It’s a
bigger
problem
than I
realised
I want
to take
action
to
resolve
it
Needs vary from
Weak to Strong
IMPLIED
NEEDS
Buyer
statements of
difficulty or
dissatisfaction,
acknowledging
that a
problem
exists
EXPLICIT
NEEDS
Buyer
statements
of desire or need,
indicating intention
to resolve the problem

2. HUTHWAITE ASIA PACIFIC AUSTRALIA T 1300 856 068 W www.huthwaite.com.au E info@huthwaite.com.au SINGAPORE T +65 6735 8566 W www.huthwaite.com.sg E info@huthwaite.com.sg
SPIN®
Selling
IMPLICATION 3
IMPLICATION 2
IMPLICATION 1
Seriousness
of Problem
Cost of Solution
‘to buy’ ‘not to buy’
Obtaining
Commitment
Demonstrating
Capability
Investigating
Opening
SITUATION
QUESTIONS
Questions that uncover background and
facts about client’s operation/organisation
PROBLEM
QUESTIONS
Questions about the buyers problems,
difficulties or dissatisfaction
IMPLICATION
QUESTIONS
Questions about consequences or seriousness of a
client’s problems (ie making the client feel the pain)
NEED PAY-OFF
QUESTIONS
Questions about the value, usefulness payoff or
importance to the client of solving a problem
P
S
N
I
Value Equation The Buying Cycle™
Why are Benefits more Powerful?
Sample Questions:
Problem Questions
“How concerned are you about...?”
“Does it worry you that...?”
“How difficult do you find it to...?”
“Is there a risk of...?”
“What sort of problems do you get with...?”
“How happy are you with...?”
“Are you satisfied with the level of...?”
“Is it hard to cope with...?”
“How well are you able to cope with...?”
“What sort of dissatisfaction do you have with...?”
“Isn’t it worrying to have such a high level of...?”
“When does X reach intolerable levels?”
“Can your current equipment deal with all functions
you need?”
“Other clients tell me Y is a problem
- do you find that?“
Implication Questions
“How often do you find X results in problems
with Y?”
“Does that lead to difficulties with X?”
“Do you also find that can affect X?”
“What effect does that have on X?”
“When that happens does it sometimes also
cause X?”
“What sort of consequences does that lead to?”
“Does that have any knock-on effects with X?”
“What implications does that have for X?”
“You say you have problems with X - does that
also lead to Y?”
“Am I right that when X problem occurs,
it sometimes results in Y?”
Need Payoff Questions
Identifying
“Are you saying it would help if we could...?”
“So, are you looking for some way of...?”
“Am I right that it would help if...?”
“Are you looking for a way of...?”
“Would you be interested in X...?”
“If I could show you a better way of dealing with X,
would you be interested?”
“Would you like to be able to...?“
Clarifying
“Why is X so important to you?”
“What sort of savings would X produce?”
“What do you regard as the main benefits of Y?”
“Do you think that would produce significant savings?”
“Would you see Y as a significant improvement?”
“How important is it for you to improve X?“
Extending
“How else could Y help you?”
“Are there are other ways in which Y could help?”
“Would Y also help you to achieve X?”