Handle Objections in 7 Steps!
“Be a person before being a salesperson.” In other words, focus on making a genuine connection. That wins out every time.
We rapidly discovered that the largest barrier to closing new deals, isn't the objections themselves, but how the team handles the objections.?
Using a question-based approach that puts the prospect at ease is the key to good objection management. When done properly, the prospect will come to the conclusion that moving forward is the best option
?In this newsletter, we’ll walk you through the steps to managing common objections, including diving deeper with a simple questioning framework and following objections with gratitude and empathy.
First, let’s tackle a few basics:
What is objection handling?
During the sales process, objection management is how a seller answers a prospect's reservations about acquiring a product or service, which are frequently connected to timing, pricing, or stakeholder buy-in. Objections are generally thought to arise after the sales pitch, however they can occur as early as a cold call and as late as contract discussions.
Why is objection handling important?
Without objection handling, deal opportunities (and ultimately revenue) would disappear at the first mention of a concern or problem. When consultants are trained to handle objections successfully, it’s more likely that deals will continue to move through the pipeline and close.?
It’s also critical for building trust and long-term relationships: “An objection shows that the prospect is not ready to buy and you need to build more trust,” sales coach Niraj Kapur said.?
Successful objection handling addresses their fears and concerns, creating loyalty that can lead to multiple sales.?
What are the 4 main types of objections?
While customers may object for many reasons, here are the most common ones:
When prospects raise an objection at the end, the initial objection is generally a surface-level worry with several potential underlying objections . Many sales consultants make the mistake of attempting to tackle what they assume to be the issue only to be met with many more objections, resulting in increasing sales resistance.
7 steps to perfect objection handling?
The procedures outlined below address all of the most prevalent objections. Begin by identifying your prospect's primary reasons and roadblocks, then go further with the correct questions to discover their "why." Combine this with appreciation and empathy to demonstrate your commitment to finding a solution. When you understand their specific issue or requirement, you can provide a solution that works and overcome the obstacle.
Here's how it goes down:
Step 1: Run an effective discovery process before closing objections arise
Before you even get to the demo or ask for their business, spend time on strong, thoughtful discovery that will set you up with a virtually objection-less close. Even if you do get objections at the end, you are now armed with intelligence that you can use to manage them.
It is critical to employ a framework since it acts as a "cheat code" to close at the end. To guide this, I utilize the P.O.W.E.R.F.U.L. structure, which is explained below. Deepen your prospect discussions by inquiring about:
P – Pain Is it so serious that they must act right away? Maybe it's latent pain, which means they're aware of the pain but aren't thinking about it. To get them to level 10+ agony, ask the correct questions.?
O – Opportunity costs What are the opportunity costs? Let’s say they don’t take action for a year — what would the implications be?
W – Wants What company-related desires does your prospect have, and how do they connect to business objectives? Perhaps the CEO aspires to be named to the INC. 5000 or to increase the size of the firm. Discover these so you can relate your answer to those objectives.
E – Executive-level influence Who makes the decisions? Understand who is involved in the purchasing process, who the stakeholders are, what is vital for their degree of power and influence, and what they truly desire.
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R – Resources. Who controls the budget? That person can change the budget in your favor if they see the value of your solution.
F – Fear of failure. Does your prospect fear that their current solution will lead to failure? Meaning, if they do absolutely nothing (status quo), do they believe they will be in trouble?
U – Unequivocal trust What does the prospect require to believe in you and your solution? How can you earn trust by providing value and service? This is significant since trust is at the center of every sale or relationship. Deals and relationships slow down when there is a lack of trust.
L – Little things ?Are you letting little things distract you from securing executive buy-in? A lot of sales consultants get caught up in the specifics, like, “We have this feature. We could automate this,” and so on, but executives might not be impressed by these. How do you show value and impact instead?
With a basic discovery framework in place, you'll move through the rest of the sales process until the point of asking for the sale. That's when the closing arguments begin. Use the remaining steps to go around them.
Step 2: When objections arise, thank your prospect
An objection is preferable to a flat "No," so when you receive one, respond with a "Thank you." This recognizes the prospect's worries, which creates confidence and rapport while also allowing for more discussion about their requirements and pain spots. Keep it short and sweet, such as "I really appreciate you sharing that."
Step 3: Empathize to put your prospect at ease
Say anything to validate their objection, such as, "I hear this a lot. I'm sorry you're feeling this way. It seems like this has been quite irritating," or "I understand what you're saying and believe I can assist." By empathizing with the consumer, you increase the likelihood that they will open up and give you information that will help you create a useful solution.
Step 4: Ask open-ended questions to uncover the root cause of the objection
If you follow steps 2 and 3, the prospect should feel more at ease, and you should now take the time to figure out what's actually going on. You want the prospect to disclose as much information as possible, and one-word replies don't give you anything to work with. Use what you learned in step 1 to guide your inquiries and use open-ended questions to help you grasp what's on their mind.
For example, if the objection was “I can’t get approval on this,” you might ask, “When you say ‘I can’t get approval on this," what do you mean, specifically?” Next, you want to make sure that once you overcome this specific objection, they do not come back and hit you with another objection, forcing you to go back and forth with them. This can be as simple as, “Aside from X concern, is there anything on your mind that’s holding you back from being less than 100% certain this is the exact solution your company needs?”
This is where you should devote the most of your time. Consider the argument to be an onion and your inquiries to be a knife peeling back the layers to reveal the onion's core.?
Proceed to the next stage after you believe you have completely grasped what they are thinking.
Step 5: Urge the prospect to tell you what they like about your product
Yes, you read that right. You'll define the value again, but this time the prospect will do it. "Remind me again: What did you like the most about our solution?" That's all. Stop speaking. It will help to reframe their thoughts once they start telling you what they enjoy. And you'll notice if you did a good job communicating the value your product or service provides and how it corresponds with what you discovered throughout your exploration process.
Step 6: Tie it all together
Fill in the blanks and connect the dots. If they forgot something that they liked but noted earlier, bring it back up. Reiterate some of your key talking points. Show them how your product will address the pain points articulated in step 4 or get them to their desired result.?
Step 7: Back your claims up with proof and customer references
Claiming your product is the perfect solution is one thing, but backing your statements in step 6 with industry research, customer references, social proof, or case studies is more effective. The more personalized these are to your prospect's needs, the better. Show them how your solution will truly function for their use case and why their argument is invalid.
End Note- Improve your objection handling today!
It is easier said than done to handle objections well. But, at the end of the day, it all comes down to putting the consumer first