Sales Objections =Sales Opportunities

As a salesperson, you dedicate a lot of time to preparing and learning your products so you can fire off all the right answers for the buyers that walk through your doors. But more often than not, you will be faced with objections before moving the prospect to closing a sale.  Sometimes this is a frustrating process, when it should be seen as a sign of interest.  If they weren’t interested, they wouldn’t be asking you for more information, right?   Sales people see objections as a reason not to buy.  Be confident!  Stand ready to anticipate and handle objections.  The way you respond to a prospect could make the difference in whether they become your customer, or walk away to become someone else’s.

The ability to overcome objections is a learned skill. There will always be objections from every prospect that you didn’t anticipate and managing a professional plan for responding is key. An objection is usually a twisted way of saying, “I don’t understand.” This gives the sales person a great opportunity to determine the cause and deal with the challenge.  If you welcome the objection as a learning opportunity, both parties win. This is an example of the CAR process in handling objections:

CHALLENGE – ACTION-- RESULT  

- Mr. Customer, I understand what you’re saying. Another client asked me the same question. Here is how I worked with him to satisfy his concern …’ Or

- I am glad you mentioned that because it gives me the chance to show you how our product will solve that problem.’

Never respond immediately to an objection. Let the prospect speak!  Very often the prospect will continue talking to clarify his position and offer more information. When this happens, wait for a few seconds and think about what he has said. Your pause shows a level of respect for what the prospect said and indicates you are giving serious thought to their concerns instead of giving a “scripted or canned” response. One of the top objections in the business world is “not ready to buy.”  This is a great opportunity to look at this as the prospect looking for more information or to have you justify why they should buy.

Next week, we’ll talk about some other major objections sales people face, and some ideas on how to manage them.  Bottom line…be interested in your customer’s goals…not yours.  That’s always the right answer..

Sales Objections =Sales Opportunities

As a salesperson, you dedicate a lot of time to preparing and learning your products so you can fire off all the right answers for the buyers that walk through your doors. But more often than not, you will be faced with objections before moving the prospect to closing a sale.  Sometimes this is a frustrating process, when it should be seen as a sign of interest.  If they weren’t interested, they wouldn’t be asking you for more information, right?   Sales people see objections as a reason not to buy.  Be confident!  Stand ready to anticipate and handle objections.  The way you respond to a prospect could make the difference in whether they become your customer, or walk away to become someone else’s.

The ability to overcome objections is a learned skill. There will always be objections from every prospect that you didn’t anticipate and managing a professional plan for responding is key. An objection is usually a twisted way of saying, “I don’t understand.” This gives the sales person a great opportunity to determine the cause and deal with the challenge.  If you welcome the objection as a learning opportunity, both parties win. This is an example of the CAR process in handling objections:

CHALLENGE – ACTION-- RESULT  

- Mr. Customer, I understand what you’re saying. Another client asked me the same question. Here is how I worked with him to satisfy his concern …’ Or

- I am glad you mentioned that because it gives me the chance to show you how our product will solve that problem.’

Never respond immediately to an objection. Let the prospect speak!  Very often the prospect will continue talking to clarify his position and offer more information. When this happens, wait for a few seconds and think about what he has said. Your pause shows a level of respect for what the prospect said and indicates you are giving serious thought to their concerns instead of giving a “scripted or canned” response. One of the top objections in the business world is “not ready to buy.”  This is a great opportunity to look at this as the prospect looking for more information or to have you justify why they should buy.

Next week, we’ll talk about some other major objections sales people face, and some ideas on how to manage them.  Bottom line…be interested in your customer’s goals…not yours.  That’s always the right answer..