What do you do, as a sales rep, when your prospect says, “It looks great, but the price is too high.” “I want to talk to X” or “Looks great, call me in a few weeks?” You need to understand that when you’re selling, handling objections requires you to skillfully isolate the real objection and create a bridge that keeps your conversation alive even as the prospect throws the curveball in the form of an objection. From Sales 101 training, you know that the first objection is rarely the real one, so if you’re trying to answer the first objection, you’re probably taking your sale right into the “cemetery of dead sales.” Objections should be welcomed as they are a way of allowing the prospect to share valid opinions and concerns. Objections are just a higher level version of two-way conversations.
It is natural for intended buyers to object. A great example is when you go to the store, do you instantly send the helpful sales clerk off by “just looking” instead of letting them help you find the perfect solution for the reason you came to their store in the first place? Everyone seems to be conditioned to do that, so they don’t rush to a decision.
So before you as a sales rep get caught up in how to overcome an objection, there’s a sales step you need to take to make sure it’s a genuine objection. Before you go down the road of answering that first objection, recognize that the first objection is rarely the true one. You must stay in control and respond with transition statements and open-ended questions to get to the real issue. Transition statements and questions may sound like these two samples.
1. “You obviously have a reason to feel this way, can you share some details about your experiences with me?”
2. “Suppose that wasn’t a problem, would that be something I’ve been talking about that you could use?”
A great salesperson will identify objections and concerns early in the sales process. If he gets objections at closing or after asking his prospect to buy, then there’s a good chance he missed a step in his sales process. A sales rep must have the ability to not only capture prospect information in a way that is interesting to them. This is done by asking thought-provoking questions that create a mental picture of what might happen instead of telling them about your problems and pains. If you tell people what their problems are so you can present your solution, they may not believe you. If you ask questions in a way that gets them thinking about their situation as well as sharing their opinions and experiences, you’re more likely to get objections early in the sales process. That is the time to handle objections, not when it comes to closing the deal.
When looking for objections from your desired customer, don’t argue with them as this will immediately turn them off. Remember that your words make a difference and that there are words that connect with your prospect and other words that can turn them off. There are two words that can put you right in the middle of a fight with your prospect. Those two conflicting words to avoid are “but” and “however.” Too often, salespeople use these words when someone has an objection, concern, or complaint.
How can poor word choice happen so often? The client expresses his possible objection, you feel that you know that he is not right or your idea is much better so you respond quickly. It is not your intention to get on the wrong side of the customer. However, without thinking and instead of transitioning correctly, you may mistakenly say something like “I understand how you feel, but…” Once you say “but”, it is at this point that all your client hears is “you are wrong”. followed by insistent “blah, blah, blah”.
So remember not to put your client in a fight situation by using the wrong words. Before you promote your product or service as your best solution, let the potential customer participate in your sales process. Instead of always presenting, you must handle their objections to close the deal by being more persuasive and learning to really understand their need.