Why you should Welcome Sales Objections

A successful sales person welcomes objections, because they see them as an invitation to sell. If the client was not interested they would not be asking questions, would they? View an objection as the client thinking aloud, offering you the opportunity to overcome objections. And so the more objections there are, the more interested the client is. We will review some typical objections, show you how to reply directly and remove the problem.

Most sales people dread objections. The client saying “yes, but it is more than I wanted to pay “or “why would I need that “or even “I don’t need that” often fill sales people with dread.

But a successful sales person welcomes objections. They see them as an invitation to sell.

If the client was not interested they would not be asking questions, would they?

View an objection as the client thinking aloud, offering you the opportunity to overcome objections. And so the more objections there are, the more interested the client is.

So –you guessed it-you need to practice overcoming objections. You should have everything you need in your material we have put together so far.

Make a list of the objections you have had in the past, or can imagine, and write a paragraph for each. Don’t just overcome the objection-go further. Bring in supplementary benefits, other things the client will be able to do, achieve, feel because of the product. Consolidate things you know that they want, from your original questions to them.

Quote back to them the things they said they wanted to achieve and remind them how you will do that.

Ask for more objections, welcome them.

Research has shown that most sales people will stop selling after the second or third objection, and by seven or eight, very few are still selling. But they are the successful ones!

Just be conscious of the time you are investing in any one client. Handle objections within reason-each sale should be time and cost effective.

The key is understanding what is stopping your potential client from making a decision in your favor. Once you know why they are hesitating, you can reply directly to that specific objection and remove the problem.

Some typical objections

Price.

You need to help the client to understand and justify the price, either in their own mind or to a partner or manager. If you compare well to competitors, say so, comparing like with like. Try breaking down your total cost into amounts that are attached to each part of the product or services so the client can see why your price point is what it is. Focus on the buying/selling points of your products and services.

Unwilling to switch current supplier or service.

Use fear to get the client to see why they need to start thinking about making changes. Share some research about the competition (yours or theirs) and some of the changes they have made in their businesses. They won’t want to get left behind.

Fear of Change.

This makes the decision-making process a difficult one for many people. Can you demonstrate past examples of positive change? This can help them be less fearful and more confident about changing things.

Established supplier relationship or politics

.Trust is something that takes time to build, so if it is a problem for your potential client to trust you and your product, you need to be honest and consistent to overcome the objection. Can you use testimonials, case studies and references that will take away some of the uncertainty and give the client confidence in your product or service. Maybe they will let you prove yourselves with a small order?

Need to get agreement from partner, manager.

This may still result in a positive outcome, if the client is genuinely consulting with others and not using it as an excuse. Try to stay in the process by suggesting a further meeting between the client and their third party to answer any questions and help facilitate the decision.

Timing

This will be a problem next time as well! To overcome this objection, you need to make the decision to use you an easy one. Be patient. List all the benefits of working with you, outline the value of the products and services you offer, and explain how easy it is to deliver the product and the achieved benefits. Make the decision a no-brainer to remove this objection.

Your potential clients may have more than one objection so just work through them one at a time. Once you know what the problem is, you can come up with the right arguments.

Don’t get defensive about your product. Acknowledge their objection is valid and listen carefully so as to be sure you addressing their actual objection, not your perception of it. This is an extremely important point in the process, success or failure depends on this point.

Be careful though, to differentiate between an objection and a refusal. There are few things more irritating than a sales person who will not accept a “NO”. You will destroy any potential future relationship.

If you are talking to a professional buyer they may not be willing to share the reasons behind their refusal-perhaps that spot in their ranging is taken up with a product they can’t discuss with you for fear of breaching a non-disclosure agreement. Or maybe they just don’t have the time, energy or patience to justify their decision to you.

Move on gracefully!!

Exercise

Practice overcoming objections. You should have everything you need in your material we have put together so far.

Make a list of the objections you have had, or can imagine, and write a paragraph for each. Don’t just overcome the objection-go further. Bring in supplementary benefits, other things the client will be able to do, achieve, feel because of the product. Consolidate things you know that they want, from your original questions to them.