Part of the fun in selling is that you never know what to expect. What works well with one customer can be a death knoll for another. Another fun part of selling is that you are continually challenged. Some customers raise objections just because they are expected to. Others are expressing their true reasons for not buying. Regardless of what your customer says, you can view these stated objections as the means to bringing you closer to the sale.
By definition, objections are the stated reasons why potential customers don’t want to buy your product. Once you reach this part of the conversation, you should be able to overcome this roadblock by effectively responding to the objection. If objections become more of a brick walk, then if makes sense to see how you can be more effective in handing them.
Most reps are knowledgeable in how to respond to objections and use the time-tested 3 step process:
1. Acknowledge- Make certain that you acknowledge the concern/issue and show understanding.
2. Respond- It’s your time to reframe the issue or deal with misperceptions
3. Confirm- Check back with the customer to insure that you have adequately addressed the concern.
Did you employ this method? If not, how did you respond to this objection? To be able to improve, you need to analyze what you are currently doing and evaluate what is working well—and what is not. Start by answering these questions:
• Was your response effective?
• Did you choose words that made your response easy to follow?
• Were you able to support your response with data?
• Did your customer find your response believable?
When evaluating, it helps to delve a bit deeper for each of these (above) questions and ask:
• If so, why?
• If not, why not?
Part of this process can involve asking your peers and/or your manager for their feedback. The odds are if you encountered this objection, they probably have too. Sometimes it is as easy as adding an analogy or tweaking the words you use to explain your response. The main point is to continue to try to improve—find out ways to break through that brick wall. This way you will continue to develop on your path to selling excellence.
