Page 53 - Part-A

Information, Advice or Guidance

Section 2: The importance of effective communication skills
in the delivery of information, advice or guidance

This section will explore the following:

• A range of appropriate questioning styles to encourage communication
with clients

• A range of effective listening skills
• A range of effective non-verbal communication skills.

A range of appropriate questioning styles to encourage
communication with clients

You have probably used many different questioning techniques before in your everyday
life, at work and at home. But, by consciously applying the most appropriate kind of
questioning, you can encourage communication with your clients.

Asking the right question is at the heart of effective communication. By using the right
question when dealing with a client, you can gather better information, build stronger
relationships, and be more helpful to clients.

Open and Closed Questions

A closed question is one that can be answered in a single word. For example, “Have
you used our service before?”. These are normally used to get factual responses from
clients.

Open questions require the client to give you a more in-depth answer and are normally
used to find a client’s opinion or feelings. For example, “What do you think would be
helpful for you?”, or, “What are your thoughts on a particular organisation?”.

Open questions help develop conversations and ensure a flowing discussion between
a client and advisor. Overuse of closed questions can make conversations difficult or
short, and result in the advisor not fully understanding the client’s requirements.

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