making things happen is all about the question

I’m Adrian Fleming and for me the most important element when living and working as entrepreneur and marketer is the question.

Questions are something that we all ask of ourselves and others and are something that it’s almost impossible to not take notice of and as such…

…they are incredibly powerful in almost every area of life, especially if you’re entrepreneur.

Let’s start with the fact that before you take action you ask a question.

If you want to try something new, you will not only internally ask questions but also…

…ask questions of others on the subject to confirm or dispel you internal opinions.

If you ask yourself “Are you happy with your current financial situation?” you can almost instantly get an answer; it may not be right but it is based on your feelings.

If you then wanted to change your financial situation then you ask another question, such as “How do I change this situation?”

You see questions generate opportunities and give us the ability to choose between options, and we humans actually love a choice…

…when we don’t feel we have a choice we get frustrated, stressed and all sorts of other negative feelings creep in too.

What about in marketing and questions?

Well you can use the question to trigger a response from a prospect because when you ask a question people will act on it.

They may not give you the answer but they will process the question and that has real power in marketing.

So what does this concept of using questions mean to people like you and I, people who are entrepreneurs?

Well the strategy to take away from this is that…

…results are the outcome of asking the right questions and using those questions in the right way. Let me give you specific examples.

As an entrepreneur, we should always be striving to, as I put it, move the game on, differentiating ourselves from the competition and…

…avoiding the problems associated with competing on things like price in our chosen markets.

So the question I ask multiple times a day is…

How can I improve that?

I also ask “How can I add more value to the customer here?”

Each of these questions makes the assumption that improvements can be made and that I can make them…

…both simple concepts but both very powerful because I’ve realised that when I ask myself a question I open up to new possibilities and opportunities …

…and the more of those I have the better.

What about in a sales and marketing context, well, just think what would happen if you just asked a prospect…

what do you want?

It doesn’t matter on what subject, if they give you an answer you then have a place to work from.

The other type of question you can use is a leading question, where you are looking to stop somebody in their tracks and get them to take notice.

A great way to do this is just by saying…

are you…

or even…

how to…

The “How to…” statement may not be a question, but it does suggest you are answering a question…

And if it’s a question your target would like answered they will take action.

So if I asked you “Are you happy with your current income?” this will cause you to answer yes, no or some derivation of this…

And if my next line is right, I can entice you to take action, depending on what I am looking to provide you and…

…whether I want to talk with people who answered either yes or no.

If I said “How to make more money while working less hours”….

…this assume that you are interested in this statement and want to know more…

…if you don’t want to work less or earn more then you will not take action and that’s OK too.

So you see, the power of using questions on a personal and marketing level can’t be underestimated.

So I encourage you think of questions you can ask to all those people around you and also that you ask yourself that can have a positive impact in almost everything you do.