Image by oberazzi (Tim O’Brien)

A quick note to thank everyone for giving Lindsey and me a week’s break from blog posts for the birth of our son, Ethan. He was born on 4/8/08 and yes, we no longer sleep!

Is a question just a question or is there a deeper meaning behind it?

When someone asks me a question, I try to look beyond the surface of what they are asking and try to find out what they truly are meaning. I find many times people don’t know how to ask for what they really want.

As an entrepreneur, it’s your job to solve problems. When people ask meaningless questions, you need to figure out what it is they truly want and then fulfill those needs for them. That’s how you win.

Let’s look at an example.

I own a web development company, so I’ve been surfing around online answering a lot of questions lately. As usual, I keep seeing the same questions being asked over and over again. Here’s an empty question I always see:

What’s the best web hosting company that will give me the most disk space and bandwidth for my money?

Ok, simple question, right? Maybe hard to answer being that there are hundreds of web hosting companies out there but still a simple question.

The first thing I ask myself is if this is the only goal this person is trying to accomplish. Is their only goal in getting online to find the cheapest web host with the most disk space? For most people, the answer is no – especially if they are new to doing things online.

When I dig a little deeper and ask them what they plan to do once they get online, it’s usually to start some kind of business and they are asking because they don’t know anything about starting a website.

Do you think then their question is what they are really meaning to ask?

Nope.

What they are really asking is for someone to help them find a web host that will get them online for not a lot of money and will give them everything they need to succeed in their online business venture. Disk space and bandwidth alone does nothing to help this person’s ultimate goal.

Here’s the question (or statement) they should have asked and is the question you, the entrepreneur, should answer:

I want to start a business online and want to know which affordable web hosting company provides everything I need and will help me learn and succeed in my ventures.

This question of course is geared toward my entrepreneurial experience. I answered by showing them how eVentureBiz has all those hosting bells and whistles for shopping carts, blog platforms, and so on; but I also showed how eVentureBiz could socialize with this person in the community forum and help them develop a winning website. They could also take part in discussions on this blog and learn from there.

Notice I answered this person’s question by showing the benefits my company has to offer, not just the features, such as bandwidth. You have to know which to market, features or benefits. You have to know what kind of person they are.

So – how does one answer questions as an entrepreneur?

My answer is you have to first evaluate the question at hand and find out what the person is actually asking you. Then, figure out how you should answer them. This may include you asking them a question or two first. Once you figured out if they are a newbie or professional, you’ll know which direction your answer should lean toward, benefits or features.

Answer their question so that it answers their ultimate problem and not just what they are asking for, if possible. You’ll find they will appreciate the extra attention you’re giving them and that appreciation will be returned by an interest in you.

When it comes to your business, do you simply answer questions like a robot or do you take the time and try to discover (and answer) a person’s true motive behind their question?