With the economy showing signs of life, now is the time to be sitting down with customers and plan how you’re going to be a strategic partner to ensure their success in 2010.

To win more sales, the one question you should be asking your customers is:

“Tell me about your goals for this year and the action steps you’ll be implementing to achieve them.”

The answer you get will reveal what’s important, the resources they’ll need, and how you can play a role in helping them to achieve their goals. Anyone can give lip service to goals. What you want to find out is how they’re going to make it happen. What’s their game plan? And how do you fit in?