Asking questions to a customer can sometimes be daunting. You need to get the customer to like you, but if you don't qualify the lead, sales productivity goes for a toss. Asking questions on decision making authority, budgets and long term plans at the outset can put off some customers. Here are some nice ways to ask the tough questions.


Figuring out the decision making authority:
 - "Besides you, who else would be interested in this solution?" This question is better than the more direct "Who is the decision maker?" question as it gives importance to the person you are taking to while you ask for more details. It also de-personalizes the question by focusing on interest in the solution as opposed to decision making authority itself. The flip side is that the customer might end up giving you a list of names that you might need to sort out.  
- "I would like to give you a comprehensive presentation on our solution and also discuss commercials. Besides you, who else should I invite to the discussion?". Putting commercials into the question would likely get you the name of the person who signs the cheque.

Figuring out budgets:
This is one area where direct questions sometimes are like a complement to the customer. So shoot straight. "How much do you want to spend on the solution?". The "you" is critical as you are putting the customer into centre stage. If you feel awkward, you may want to try this:
-"An online trading portal is a large, multi year initiative for most investment banks I have dealt with and many of them have a staggered budgeting process. Would your budgeting cycle permit a large fixed price quote?" Depending on the answer you can ask further questions to get an idea of the number. The idea is to avoid a direct numbers question. Ask for a range rather than a number. Also make sure the number is the amount they want to spend on services rather than the entire budget.

Urgency of the solution:
This area should always be explored after you have done enough digging on the problem itself. Jumping to the solution timeline without "building up" the problem can backfire. Assuming you have done the groundwork, try something like this:
-"The trading platform is clearly important for your business and will start paying back from day one. We have delivered a similar solution in under twelve months for a large swiss bank. How soon are you looking at a solution going live?" This question reinforces the need, plays back the benefits and builds credibility before popping the timeline.

Asking qualifying questions can be tricky and requires practice. But knowing what questions to ask and how to ask them is a must for sales success.