Top Secrets on How to Confidently Win Sales Objections

Sales objections happen all the time and are a normal part of the sales process. So what do you need to combat sales objections? Strong objection handling skills.

Take a look at the chart below to get an idea just how common sales objections are for salespeople.

All the sales challenges mentioned above are solid proof that customers will say NO to an offer in a heartbeat.

Pay closer attention to the first three challenges - Urgency, Connection, and Price.

I agree that when you fail to establish urgency, fail to connect with customers, and when the price isn't right, customers will turn a blind eye.

Why? Because these gaps aren't your challenges as a salesperson, but they are the challenges of the customers, and you need to find a way to bridge the gap to make a successful sale.

Today is your lucky day because I will:

1. Define what sales objections are.
2. Explain why objection handling is essential.
3. Discuss a simple process to overcoming objections.
4. List ways on how to overcome common sales objections.

All aboard? Let's hop to it!

1. What is a Sales Objection?

A sales objection is when a buyer explicitly says "NO" to an offer. When a buyer rejects a sale, a barrier exists between the current situation and what needs to be satisfied. 

Just because a buyer rejects your offer, doesn't mean it's the end of the world. An objection means that:

• The buyer is engaged.
• You need to add more value to your current offer.
• The buyer might not be qualified.

With that said, strong sales objection handling skills are essential.

2. Why is Objection Handling Important?

Objection handling is sales 101! It's one of the most important sales skills that a salesperson must possess.

Objections will always come up. There's not a single soul in the sales world that hasn't been rejected by someone.

I know, sales objections are a stinger! However, the truth of the matter is that there's more to objections than meets the eye. 

You must learn how to handle them in the best way and as quickly as possible. It's imperative to have the right objection handling skills when the needs arise. 

Why? Here are a few reasons why objection handling is a matter of life and death:

• An objection is an opportunity for you to learn more about a customer. It lets you discover their needs, wants, aspirations, and problems.
• It demonstrates credibility. Clients want to test to make sure you know what you are doing. They need to see if they can put their trust in you.
• You will never make the sale if you can't overcome the client's objections. When a client is objecting, they are saying something isn't where it needs to be for them to move forward. Unless you overcome the objection, they will never feel comfortable enough to take the next step.

Objection handling is super important, and I'd like to teach you a straightforward 3-step process on how to overcome sales objections.

3. Simple 3 Step Process to Overcoming Objections

When a customer shows that he or she is not ready to buy, don't get pessimistic. Use the following 3-step process to overcome sales objections and move closer to the sale.

Step 1: Listen & Make Sure you Completely Understand the Objection

Active listening is a powerful skill that you can use in sales objection handling or your personal life.

When a customer says NO to your offer, don't react immediately! You may be blinded by your eagerness to jump into the situation. It's also affected by negative emotions.

What you need to do is to take the time to listen to the objection fully.

Focus on what the customer is saying and the problems you need to solve. Read between the lines by actively listening with the intent of fully understanding the buyer's concerns.

Let your body language and words communicate to the buyer that you are listening and paying attention.

After listening to the customer's reasons for objecting, confirm your understanding by paraphrasing and ask questions like:

• What else?
• Why?
• Can you tell me more?

Step 2: Respond to the Objection

Appropriately responding to an objection will determine your chances of moving closer to a sale.

After actively listening and making sure that you understand your customer's concern, it's time to address the objection.

If the customer has multiple reasons why he or she is not interested in your offer, address the first concern, and then move on to the next ones.

Remember, YOU MUST DO EVERYTHING to resolve the issues right away! Time is a vital resource in responding to sales objections. Also, always keep your answers precise and to the point.

Step 3: Confirm you've Satisfied the Objection

After responding to the objection, confirm you've addressed their concerns completely.

Ask questions like:

• Does that address your concern?
• Are you still concerned about this?
• Is this still a concern for you?

Once you confirm you've satisfied all of their concerns, it's time to ask for the sale.

Never pressure or force a customer to commit. If they're not ready and willing to commit, give them the time they need to make up their minds.

4. Common Sales Objections and How to Handle Them

Now that we know what sales objections are and the importance of objection handling, it's time to talk about common sales objections and how to handle them.

1. Price

Price is the most practical reason why customers turn down an offer. Why? Because money is valuable and customers want to know their hard-earned money will not go to waste.

I mean, not all of us are rich. There’s only a small group of people across the globe that can say “I’ll buy that!” all the time.

In sales, customers will usually say, “I can’t afford that.” 

It’s discouraging, especially when you need to meet a certain quota. 

Cheer up! Here's one way to overcome objections on price:

• “I can’t afford that.”

Use the product’s value as a selling point instead of the price. When you do this, you become a less transactional and more transformational salesperson.

You might find this article helpful if you'd like additional tips on how to handle objections about price.

2. Complacency or Lack of Motivation

It’s hard to bother anyone who feels and thinks that everything is working perfectly at the moment. If ’there’s complacency or a lack of motivation to listen to your pitch, then your offer will be shut down quickly.

Clients will say, “Things are working fine right now.” or “We're happy with our current vendor.”

What do you need to do? Give them the motivation to give your company a try.

Here are a few tips on how to handle objections related to lack of motivation:

• “Things are working fine right now.”

Keep in mind that there’s no such thing as a “perfect world.” If the client says that everything is running smoothly right now, determine if there are existing problems that only your company can resolve. If the client still insists, leave your contact information, and then move on to the next prospect.

• “Your product is just a fad.”

Your best weapon to handle this type of objection is to pull out testimonials, customer case studies, and online reviews to show how your offer can affect their ROI. Do a live demonstration if you can to back up your claims.

3. Fear of Change

Change can be a scary thing, don’t you agree?

Many people reject the idea of change instead of embracing it. The same behavior applies to sales.

Clients will say, “We don’t want to change what we’ve been using.” or “We’re doing great in X area.” 

Here are a few tips on how to handle objections related to fear of change:

• “We don’t want to change what we’ve been using.”

Walk them through the F-A-B (Features - Advantages - Benefits) of your product. The reason they don’t want to change anything is that they don’t have sufficient knowledge of what you’re offering. Tell them how your product can enhance their processes or make their lives, both personal and professional, easier.

• “We’re doing excellent in that area.”

This type of sales objection requires a little more push. Ask your clients about their goals, ask them about their progress with their current system, process, product, service, or company.

4. Trust

Trust, or the lack of it, is another objection that you must prepare yourself for if you are planning to be a salesperson.

As customers, companies need to show us that they’re trustworthy. Trust is the ultimate reason we take out our wallet and spend.

In a sales conversation, you may hear customers say, “I’ve never heard of your company.” or “I’ve heard complaints about your company.”

Relax! These things are normal. All you need to do is to handle it properly.

Here are a few tips on how to handle objections from customers with trust issues:

• “I’ve never heard of your company.”

It’s an excellent time to introduce your company. Go ahead and present a rapid summary of your value proposition. Be straightforward about who you are and what you do.

• “I’ve heard complaints about your company.”

Dig deeper on the complaints to understand what the exact issues were in each case. Then you can respond to each complaint in detail. Using testimonials and reviews from past clients may also help you overcome this type of objection too.

5. Timing

Let me repeat this; time is a vital resource to you and especially to your clients. We are all busy. During a sales pitch, you will hear reasons like “I’m busy right now.” or “We don’t have the time to focus on this right now.”

You must know how to handle sales objections related to time constraints.

Here are a few tips on how to handle objections related to time constraints:

• “I’m busy right now.”

Let your customer know that the conversation won’t take long. When the customer lets you in, don’t take more than 5 minutes to explain your offer.

• “We don’t have the time to focus on this right now.”

First, respect their time. Then, arrange a meeting time for a follow-up call and send over helpful resources via mail or email temporarily to stay in touch with your client.

6. External Input

There are times when the person on the other end of the phone is not authorized to buy. 

You will hear people say, "I need to run this by my partner." or “I'm not authorized to sign off on this purchase.”

These types of objections are not dead ends. Look at it as part one of a two-part series.

Here are a few tips on how to handle objections related to external input:

• "I need to run this by my partner."

Thank the person for taking the call and politely ask if you could talk to his or her partner. If the partner is not available during the call, leave your contact information, and then set a follow-up call.

• “I'm not authorized to sign off on this purchase.”

It's time to get the contact information for the person who can decide so that you can set a meeting with them. You can't close the sale if you aren't meeting with the decision-makers.

7. Budget

Budget issues come up ALL THE TIME!

You might hear stuff like, “We don’t have any money left this year.” or “We don’t have the budget for that.”

Here are a few tips on how to handle objections due to budget constraints:

• “We don’t have any money left this year.”

There are two things you can do to handle this type of situation. Either help your client secure money to buy now or set a follow-up call for when they expect to have the budget available.

• “I don’t have the money.”

You might want to get back to your client from time to time and track if your offer would fit into their business' needs in the future.

8. Competition

Always remember that you’re not the only one offering the same product. There’s competition which might provide a lower price or better product.

When talking to clients, you might hear sales objections like:

• “I’m already subscribed to [Vendor X].”
• “[Vendor X] said that your company is [false statement about your product].”
• “I’m happy with [Vendor X].”

Here are a few tips on how to handle objections due to the competition:

• “I’m already subscribed to [Vendor X].”

Talk about your product in full detail. Just because a client subscribed with a different company, doesn’t mean they’re satisfied with them.

You can ask questions like why did they choose this service? What’s working well, and what’s not? Actively listen to gaps that can be bridged by your company. It’s a great way to build up your company.

• “[Vendor X] said that your company is [false statement about your product].”

Just say, “That’s not true.”, pause, and then provide more helpful information to prove your competitor wrong.

• “I’m happy with [Vendor X].”

Ask your client to tell you more about why he or she is happy with the current company and find out problems that only your company can solve.

9. The Brush Off

Don’t feel sad when a customer says, “I’m not interested.” or “Check back with me in 6 months.” These unimportant reasons, aka brush-offs, happen all the time.

It’s a customer’s way to get off the sales conversation quick and easy.

Here are a few tips on how to handle brush-offs sales objections:

• “I’m not interested.”

Offer to mail or email some valuable resources and schedule a follow-up call at your customer’s best time to talk.

• “Check back with me in 6 months.”

Circumstances change. Although a client may be happy or not interested now, you never know what may happen when you reach out in 6 months. Reaching out is also an opportunity for you to show the client you do what you say you are going to do.

Here's one more bonus tip. Sometimes you may not want to overcome objections. Say what? There are times when customer objections are signs that a prospect is not or will not be a good client for you. As a salesperson, you need to have the wherewithal and sound judgment to recognize when it's time to walk away. 

Sales isn't easy. There will be days when you feel down, but stick with it and keep a positive mindset and a growth mindset to help you get through tough days with a massive smile on your face.

Check out the other recommended objection handling resources below to learn more about this subject.

Recommended Objection Handling Resources

• Overcoming Sales Objections: 9 Winning Strategies
• 20 Best Sales Objections Handling Techniques
• How to Resolve and Handle Common Sales Objections

So what do you think about these objection handling techniques? Are you ready to handle sales objections?

Header courtesy of Pexels.

About the Author Tim Fitzpatrick

Tim Fitzpatrick is the President of Rialto Mobile Marketing. At Rialto Mobile Marketing, we help take the guesswork out of marketing so your small business can grow. Marketing your business shouldn't be a constant challenge. If you are ready to eliminate the uncertainty and confusion of marketing your business, we can help.

Let me know in the comments section.

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