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Uncover and solve your clients` issues
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Uncover and solve your clients` issues
Recruiters who ask probing questions to get to the heart of clients` issues will find it easier to sell their solutions, according to trainer Michael Dimopoulos.
Before you can consider offering your services to a client or prospect you need to establish what their current situation is, says Dimopoulos, the managing director of Recruitment Academy and RecruitMeNow.
Your questions should cover the client`s:
workplace culture and environment - for example: "Could you tell me a bit more about the makeup of the team and their personality styles? Who leads the team and what type of person are they? Thinking about people who have been there a while, where did they come from? What has made them so successful in the team environment?"
benefits - "What`s in it for a candidate who chooses to work here? What does the organisation offer to employees? Apart from remuneration, what other benefits might be positive triggers for candidates to join?"
future plans - "What projects are coming up? What is the current operational status? What is the workload like? What are the organisation`s goals and desired outcomes?"
turnover - "What is the current attrition rate? What roles are difficult to recruit for? What bottlenecks does the company face? What skills gaps exist? What is the volume of recruitment?"
Before asking these questions it`s important to do some research of your own, Dimopoulos says, but it`s even more vital not to let this cloud your view of what the client actually tells you.
Use active listening skills, he urges, and clarify every point to ensure you understand correctly. Use positive body language and a positive tone of voice.
"Don`t just listen to what they say - find out how they think."
Reveal their issues
About 20 per cent of clients will reveal their issues easily, Dimopoulos says, but the rest need probing.
To uncover the problems they face, he advises, "move the client`s thinking from their current situation to their desired future". Think of your services in terms of the problems they solve, instead of their features. "The gap between where they are now and where they want to be is the issue/problem you need to solve."
To do this, ask questions such as:
"In a perfect world, what would you like to see?"
"What are the best things your current agencies do? How could they adjust their service delivery to better meet your needs?"
"You mentioned your turnover was running at 28 per cent... Where do you want to see it in six months` time?"
Sometimes, Dimopoulos says, "the client might not even be aware that the issue you`ve identified is a real problem".
In these cases: "You need to raise their awareness of the issues and thereby increase the value they will place on the solution you provide. To do this you need to understand what [the client] values."
To do this, ask how the issue affects:
the client personally;
the organisation`s productivity, revenue generation, achievement of desired outcomes and bottom line;
morale, working conditions, hours etc; and
budgets, deadlines and service delivery.
Finally, explore the consequences of the issue with the client and develop a sense of urgency about solving the problems:
"It must be difficult having such a high turnover of temps. Does that affect your service delivery? If you lowered turnover, how would that affect your department?"
"It sounds like you`ve been looking for a team leader for a while. Have you been picking up the extra duties? Moving forward, how would finding a team leader take the load from you?"
"I can understand how frustrating it is to be seeing candidates who you don`t think are up to the role. What have the candidates lacked? How many have you seen? You must have spent a lot of time interviewing; if you were more confident in the consultant you were working with, how do you feel that would benefit you?"
Source:
http://www.recruiterdaily.com.au/nl06_news_selected.php?act=2&stream=3&selkey=39
Before you can consider offering your services to a client or prospect you need to establish what their current situation is, says Dimopoulos, the managing director of Recruitment Academy and RecruitMeNow.
Your questions should cover the client`s:
workplace culture and environment - for example: "Could you tell me a bit more about the makeup of the team and their personality styles? Who leads the team and what type of person are they? Thinking about people who have been there a while, where did they come from? What has made them so successful in the team environment?"
benefits - "What`s in it for a candidate who chooses to work here? What does the organisation offer to employees? Apart from remuneration, what other benefits might be positive triggers for candidates to join?"
future plans - "What projects are coming up? What is the current operational status? What is the workload like? What are the organisation`s goals and desired outcomes?"
turnover - "What is the current attrition rate? What roles are difficult to recruit for? What bottlenecks does the company face? What skills gaps exist? What is the volume of recruitment?"
Before asking these questions it`s important to do some research of your own, Dimopoulos says, but it`s even more vital not to let this cloud your view of what the client actually tells you.
Use active listening skills, he urges, and clarify every point to ensure you understand correctly. Use positive body language and a positive tone of voice.
"Don`t just listen to what they say - find out how they think."
Reveal their issues
About 20 per cent of clients will reveal their issues easily, Dimopoulos says, but the rest need probing.
To uncover the problems they face, he advises, "move the client`s thinking from their current situation to their desired future". Think of your services in terms of the problems they solve, instead of their features. "The gap between where they are now and where they want to be is the issue/problem you need to solve."
To do this, ask questions such as:
"In a perfect world, what would you like to see?"
"What are the best things your current agencies do? How could they adjust their service delivery to better meet your needs?"
"You mentioned your turnover was running at 28 per cent... Where do you want to see it in six months` time?"
Sometimes, Dimopoulos says, "the client might not even be aware that the issue you`ve identified is a real problem".
In these cases: "You need to raise their awareness of the issues and thereby increase the value they will place on the solution you provide. To do this you need to understand what [the client] values."
To do this, ask how the issue affects:
the client personally;
the organisation`s productivity, revenue generation, achievement of desired outcomes and bottom line;
morale, working conditions, hours etc; and
budgets, deadlines and service delivery.
Finally, explore the consequences of the issue with the client and develop a sense of urgency about solving the problems:
"It must be difficult having such a high turnover of temps. Does that affect your service delivery? If you lowered turnover, how would that affect your department?"
"It sounds like you`ve been looking for a team leader for a while. Have you been picking up the extra duties? Moving forward, how would finding a team leader take the load from you?"
"I can understand how frustrating it is to be seeing candidates who you don`t think are up to the role. What have the candidates lacked? How many have you seen? You must have spent a lot of time interviewing; if you were more confident in the consultant you were working with, how do you feel that would benefit you?"
Source:
http://www.recruiterdaily.com.au/nl06_news_selected.php?act=2&stream=3&selkey=39
