Adam KayRevenue executive, experienced in scaling early stage startups, fundraising and hiring and developing world-class teams

Salespeople: here’s how to ask deal closing sales questions to C-SUITE executives.

Name: Salespeople: here’s how to ask deal closing sales questions to C-SUITE executives.
Uploaded: 2025-03-29T20:42:18+00:00
Duration: 1 min 25 s
Channel: Adam Kay
Description: A brief YouTube monologue by Adam Kay advising salespeople on how to adapt discovery questions for C‑suite executives. The speaker argues that C‑suite…

29 Mar 2025 · 1 min

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1:25

A brief YouTube monologue by Adam Kay advising salespeople on how to adapt discovery questions for C‑suite executives. The speaker argues that C‑suite expect sellers to already know basic facts, so sellers should use "context‑led questions" — share a concise observation or insight first (e.g., citing a press release), then ask a targeted strategic question — to demonstrate business acumen and avoid wasting executive time. The clip includes a concrete example phrasing and explains why this approach leads to more productive conversations.

Chapters

Hey, salespeople. If you ask the same discovery questions to C suite executives as you do to mid level buyers, they will embarrass you. You cannot ask the same who, what, when, where, why, how questions to a C suite executive because they expect, rightly so, that you already know the answers to those questions by the time you get there. So instead you can use a technique I use called context led question. It is where you share an observation, an insight or some form of context before the question you're about to ask. Okay, so that could be like, hey John, I noticed in your company's recent press release that your company plans on entering the sales engagement space. I'll make it clear while it's why it's relevant for us to talk about this in a minute, but maybe we could get started there. What are some of the key decision factors that drove that market decision? Okay. That kind of question signals business acumen. It signals that you're not going to waste their time. It signals that you've done your homework, your research, and that's what leads to productive conversations with C suite executives. Far more than what keeps you up at night or tell me about your process or what are your biggest challenges or whatever.