How To Probe for More Information from your Client

The art of probing or rather questioning someone, requires you occasionally to get into deeper detail about some particular issue or problem. You must also spot the signals they are sending that there is more here than meets the immediate eye. 

 Before you begin probing (in this case a client), you need a road map, and the only way to get that information is to extract it from your 'initial' conversations. Unfortunately, if you come right out and ask, it can sound like you're being nosy and, worst case, you can end up sounding like a police interrogator.  

These are some steps to put in consideration when probing:

• Do your research. Never ask a client a question that you can get answered somewhere else.   

• Ask creative questions. To keep the conversation from sounding like an interrogation, sprinkle it with questions that have built-in, positive assumptions. 

• Listen. Really listen. Listening is not a part of questioning; questioning is a part of listening. Listening -- completely and intently -- shows respect for the contact's knowledge and provides an opportunity for the contact to expound upon his or her experience. The more carefully you listen, the more you'll learn.

When seeking more detail from your client, there are a number of types probes you can use, depending on what they are saying and what you want to discover. Remember... you do get what you ask for!  

Here are some probing questions:

1. Seek for Clarification

When they use vague or unclear language, or when you just need more detail, seek to further understand them by asking for clarification. What exactly did you mean by 'XXX'? What, specifically, will you do next week? Could you tell me more about YY? 

2. Purpose

Sometimes they say things where the purpose of why they said it is not clear. Ask them to justify their statement or dig for underlying causes. Why did you say that? What were you thinking about when you said XX?

3. Relevance

If they seem to be going off-topic, you can check whether what they are saying is relevant or salient to the main purpose of inquiry. Is that relevant to the main question? How is what you are saying related to what I asked?

4. Completeness and accuracy

You can check that they are giving you a full and accurate account by probing for more detail and checking against other information you have. Sometimes people make genuine errors (and sometimes deliberate), which you may want to check. Is that all? Is there anything you have missed out? How do you know that is true? How does that compare with what you said before?

5. Repetition

One of the most effective ways of getting more detail is simply by asking the same question again. You can use the same words or you can rephrase the question (perhaps they did not fully understand it first time).

Where did you go?... What places did you visit? You can also repeat what they have said ('echo question'), perhaps with emphasis on the area where you want more detail. He asked you to marry him??

6. Examples

When they talk about something vaguely, you may ask for specific examples. This is particularly useful in interviews, where you want to test both their truthfulness and the depth behind what they are claiming.

Sorry, I don't understand. Could you help by giving an example? Could you give me an example of when you did XXX? Tell me about a time when you ...

7. Extension

When they have not given you enough information about something, ask them to tell you more.

Could you tell me more about that, please? And what happened after that? Then...

8. Evaluation

To discover both how judgmental they are and how they evaluate, use question that seek evaluation:

How good would you say it is? How do you know it is worthless? What are the pros and cons of this situation?

9. Emotional

Particularly if they are talking in the third person or otherwise unemotionally and you want to find out how they feel, you can ask something like: And how did you feel about that?

When you do this, do be careful: you may have just asked a cathartic question that results in them exploding with previously-suppressed emotion.

Asking questions is a fundamental part of finding information and for subtle (and otherwise) persuasion. Use positive words and be energetic and enthusiastic in your delivery, as you need to motivate someone to consider the questions you are asking. Ideally you want to inspire them to respond in a likewise manner and to open up the call into a conversation rather than a set of questions and answers.

Again, use your voice to project professional confidence as your client needs to have confidence in you.  Always write down what you want to say and recite this so that you are prepared. Attention should be given to ensuring that conversations are natural and not forced. Listen to what your client has to say and link the answers into the next question.