ver put yourself in the prospect's shoes? There's value in walking a mile in someone else's moccasins. Here's what you might hear while wearing them.

"So, you want to sell me the latest and greatest payment-processing solution. You say you have the answer to my particular business prayer. You swear the secret to solving my processing problems lies in your services. OK, but before we get into it, can you answer a few questions for me?

• Do you know what my company sells?
• Do you know who my customers are?
• What specific area of retail do we specialize in?
• Have you estimated our annual sales?
• Do you know how many employees I have?
• Do you know how many locations we service?
• Do you know our hours of business?
• Have you visited our Web site?
• Are you familiar with our target market?
• Do you work with any of our competitors?
• Have you determined where our biggest problem lies?
• What will you get out of this partnership?

If you can answer these questions correctly, you'll be that closer to making a deal. Granted, it takes more than a preliminary questionnaire, but if you fail this first-level test, there's no makeup exam. At least not with that prospect.

So, before you meet your next potential customer, hit the books. Bone up on that business and be ready to hear what the customer says. The opportunity to be heard will be a welcome surprise to a prospect anticipating a hard sale.