As business owners, salespeople and marketers we face an uphill battle in our business development process. 

The reality is, that the majority of prospects who enter our pipeline will have some form of guard up. Sometimes that guard is subtle, other times it's like Fort Knox. 

Ultimately, most buyers are in a situation where they have a plethora of options on who to select as their service provider or worse, have been burned by other service providers in the past making them even more cautious about who they should trust. 

Either way, skepticism is something we must accept and dare I say embrace when engaging with potential clients. We must find ways to navigate skepticism and earn trust. Trust is the deciding factor when it comes to their decision in doing business with us. 

The problem is, the old school 80's sales framework of asking a series of leading questions to get the prospect to say "yes" and then following up with a slick sales presentation, followed by a closing tactic - simply doesn't cut the mustard in the modern age. 

People have higher BS detectors now and also the information at their fingertips to educate themselves on what is available in the market. 

This means we need to go deeper. We do need to ask great questions both to gather insight and qualify potential clients, however, the back and forth question & answer framework has become irrelevant. Instead, we must strive to create dialogue and within that dialogue provide deep insight for our prospects. 

I was recently in a conversation with a prospective client, and in the process of providing insight, she stopped me and said: "Wow, you've just given me an aha moment"... This is exactly the feedback that you want from prospects. 

The goal should be to provide them with an experience that genuinely enriches them. An experience that challenges their current thinking pattern and causes them to grow their knowledge. If they leave the conversation feeling more informed, inspired, and motivated then you've done your job right. 

This is the kind of situation that you should strive to provide in every sales conversation. Why? Because it is what separates you from others in your industry. 

By boldly challenging the way somebody currently thinks, you go from just another salesperson to a thinking partner and collaborator. 

People don't want to buy from tick box salespeople going through the motions, they want to buy from experts. By providing an 'aha moment' and then sparking dialogue around that topic, you become that expert. 

The catch to all of this is that you genuinely need to be an expert. You must have the relevant background, track record and experiences to provide that insight. And that's part of the power of this approach. Only a genuine expert could provide such insight, which further adds to the authentic and memorable interactions that you have.