SPIN Selling
A sales methodology using Situation, Problem, Implication, and Need-payoff questions to uncover buyer needs.
Also known as: SPIN sales method, SPIN questioning
Category: Methods
Tags: sales, methodologies, communication, questioning, businesses
Explanation
SPIN Selling, developed by Neil Rackham from research on 35,000 sales calls, transforms selling from pitching to diagnosing. The four question types build progressively: Situation questions gather facts about the buyer's current state. Problem questions explore difficulties and dissatisfactions. Implication questions develop the seriousness of problems by exploring consequences. Need-payoff questions get buyers to articulate the value of solving their problem. The key insight is that in complex sales, buyers convince themselves—your job is asking questions that lead them there. SPIN is especially effective for high-value, consultative sales where understanding needs matters more than persuasion techniques.
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