Why Customers Never See Their Biggest Problems

Most sales conversations follow a predictable pattern. The customer mentions a challenge, and the sales professional jumps straight to presenting their solution. But what if the customer's stated problem isn't their actual problem?

This is where inattentional blindness comes into play. Not your blindness – theirs.

Customers have blind spots. And finding them requires a fundamentally different approach than what most sales training teaches. It's not about telling customers what they're missing. It's about helping them discover it themselves.

The Blind Spot Paradox

The most valuable problems to solve are often the ones customers don't recognise they have. These are their blind spots – challenges they're unaware of that significantly impact their business.

Think about this. We all know what we know. And we all know what we don't know. But the most dangerous territory is what we don't know we don't know.

That's where opportunity lives.

When you point out these blind spots directly, customers naturally become defensive. Nobody enjoys being told they've missed something obvious. Your expertise becomes a threat rather than an asset.

Discovery Without Declaring

The key difference between average and exceptional sales professionals is their approach to these blind spots. Average performers tell customers what they're missing. Exceptional performers lead customers to discover it themselves.

This isn't semantics. It's fundamental.

When a customer discovers a blind spot through your thoughtful questioning, they own that insight. It becomes their discovery, not your declaration. The distinction transforms resistance into receptiveness.

You're no longer the sales person pushing a solution. You're the trusted advisor helping them see more clearly.

The Framework for Finding Blind Spots

Uncovering blind spots requires curiosity backed by a structured approach. You need to explore the customer's business environment, challenges, and strategies more deeply than they expect.

The most powerful questions are those that make customers pause and think, "I hadn't considered that."

Start with context questions that explore their broader business environment. Then move to impact questions that help quantify the cost of their current approach. Finally, ask future-focused questions that help them envision a different path forward.

Our Thinking Planner tool provides this framework of course, but the principle matters more than the specific tool: guide discovery through structured curiosity.

From Blind Spot to Breakthrough

When customers discover their own blind spots, something remarkable happens. Their energy changes. Their engagement deepens. The conversation shifts from skeptical evaluation to collaborative problem-solving.

One client recently told me, "I came into this meeting thinking I needed a specific solution. I'm leaving realizing we've been solving the wrong problem for months."

That's not just a sales win. It's a fundamental shift in how they view their business – and your value to it.

The Practical Path Forward

To apply this approach in your next customer conversation:

First, prepare questions that explore context beyond the stated problem. What business pressures is this person facing? What metrics are they measured on? What happens if they do nothing?

Second, resist the urge to present solutions early. Even when you see the answer clearly, focus on guided discovery rather than declaration.

Third, listen for inconsistencies or gaps in their thinking. These often signal blind spots they're not aware of.

The goal isn't to make customers feel uninformed. It's to create an environment where they can safely discover new perspectives that truly matter to their business.

When you help customers see what they were previously blind to, you become more than a vendor. You become invaluable.

And that's the difference between transactional selling and transformational partnership.