What are objections? If you’re a sales professional, then you know that objections are part of the job. But what do you do when you hear them? It can be tough to stay calm and collected when someone is saying no to your product or service.
I remember early on in my career, I would get so frustrated when I heard an objection. I would take it personally and think that the person was just trying to waste my time. But over time, I’ve learned that there are ways to respond to objections that can actually turn them into a sale.
In this article, you will learn what are objections and how to respond to them and turn them into a sale.
What Are Objections?
An objection is a statement raised in opposition to something.
In sales, a prospect raising an objection is an indication that you have more work to do in the sales process.
A buyer’s lack of resources, ability, or interest in buying from you is the typical reason for an objection.
Sales objections can be frustrating, but they don’t have to be deal-breakers. Let’s explore some ways to overcome potential roadblocks.
Sales objections are the reasons that a prospect is hesitant to buy your product. These can include concerns about price, value, relevance, or purchasing ability. If a prospect didn’t have any reservations, they would have already bought your product.
Handling sales objections is an inevitable part of the sales process, but accepting them and sending a break-up email to the prospect right away is a big mistake.
But to succeed, you need to learn both how to discover and deal with these objections.
How to Handle Sales Objections
When a customer expresses concern, the salesperson should respond in a way to alleviate those concerns and move the sale forward.
Price, product or service, and competition are typical objections.
Handling objections is all about changing the mind of your buyer or alleviating their concerns about your product or service.
Some sales reps will argue or attempt to force their prospect into changing their mind, but this isn’t the proper way to handle an objection.
In those situations, the salesperson ends up undermining the trust and rapport that they have built with the customer.
Rather than tell a prospect they’re wrong about something, try to help them reach the same conclusion on their own. If you can’t convince them, that’s a sign they’re not a good fit.
It’s important to distinguish between genuine and fake objections to your sales pitch. While real concerns are legitimate, phony ones are just excuses for not buying.
An objection is when someone sees the value in your product but has a specific concern that’s holding them back from making a purchase. A brush-off, on the other hand, is simply an excuse to avoid talking to you. Objections are far more serious than brush-offs and should be treated as such.
Brush-offs aren’t as bad, but objections are much worse.
Why is Objection Handling Important?
Nothing can be more detrimental to closing a sale than allowing a buying objection to go unanswered until the final stages. The stronger the buyer’s opinion on a subject, the more difficult it will be to convince them otherwise.
Welcome the objection. Instead of avoiding it, you can anticipate it and handle it with grace.
It’s important to handle objections because they allow you to address a potential customer’s concerns and objections before they become deal-breakers. By proactively identifying and addressing objections, you can build trust and confidence with potential customers, which can lead to more sales.
Types of Objections in Sales
Some common objections that salespeople face are lack of budget, lack of trust, lack of need, and lack of urgency. While it can be difficult to overcome these objections, it is important to remember that the customer may just need more information before they are ready to make a purchase.
By staying positive and providing helpful information, you can increase the chances of making a sale.
The most successful sales happen when your product or service is within their price range, you have the authority or credibility to convince them, that they need the services or products, and the timing of your offer is right.
BANT refers to the process of qualifying a lead. It stands for budget, authority, need, and timing — all important parts of this process.
Sales objections, on the other hand, are the opposite of BANT.
1. Lack of Budget
“It’s too costly.”
Price objections are the most common because every purchase comes with some level of risk.
As a sales representative, you’ll want to consider the position of your product and how to demonstrate its value. This will turn the discussion into a discussion about risks versus rewards.
By offering value, you can convince your prospect that the risk of buying from you is outweighed by the rewards.
2. Lack of Trust
“I haven’t heard of [company name] before.”
People like to do business with other people they know, like, and, trust.
In an inbound marketing scenario, a prospect will have already engaged with your online content, or will at the very least be familiar with your company.
If you’re having trouble overcoming an objection, jog their memory or consider your sales cycle. It might be feasible to nurture them through it.
Not all phone calls are from customers, and you may have to convince them of the value of your product. This is when you pull out your “elevator speech” and explain why your product is so great.
Emphasize how your company is an authority in the industry.
3. Lack of Need
“I don’t understand how this can help.”
This may seem like a legitimate objection, but it’s actually an opportunity for you to give information (and receive information from the prospect).
4. Lack of Urgency
“[problem] isn’t important to me right now.”
One way to find out if the timing is the issue or if they’re just blowing you off is by asking them why it’s not a priority or what other things are currently occupying their time.
Listen to their responses carefully. If they’re making excuses, you might have an opportunity to present your solution.
If you’ve tried everything and you still can’t get through, set up an appointment to talk to them later.
How to Overcome Sales Objections
When faced with an objection, it’s important to remain calm and collected. Here are some helpful tips for responding to common sales objections.
1. Practice Active Listening
As your prospect is sharing their concerns with you, it’s important to use active listening skills to take in what they’re saying. This means avoiding interruptions, letting them speak freely, and trying to understand their perspective. By doing so, you can more effectively address their concerns.
2. Repeat What You Hear
Once the prospect has stated their objection, repeat what they said to make sure you’re both on the same page.
Not only will clarifying their point help you, but it will also help them to feel understood and listened to, which is an important part of developing trust in the relationship.
3. Validate the Prospect’s Concerns
After you have confirmed that you understand your prospect’s situation, continue building trust by empathizing with them and validating their point of view. No, this does not mean agreeing with everything they say or recommending a competitor’s product.
If your prospective client is concerned about your ability to integrate your solution into their existing systems, you could say something like:
“I completely understand that integrating new solutions into complex systems can be a big challenge. Thankfully, our incredible tech team has experience working with similar organizations and can handle a seamless transition for you.”
With this answer, you are acknowledging their valid concerns, and offering a solution to them.
4. Ask Follow-Up Questions
When you hear objections, you want to do your best to keep the conversation flowing naturally. If you sense your lead is backing away, you can ask them a few follow-up questions that will hopefully keep them engaged.
Don’t ask questions that can be answered with a simple yes or no. Instead, ask open-ended questions that allow your prospect to continue expressing their thoughts on your product. This will give you more information to work with and potentially turn the sale around.
The more information they provide, the more you have at your disposal to possibly make a sale.
5. Leverage Social Proof
If your prospect is worried about whether or not your product can deliver on its promises, sharing the story of another customer who had similar reservations and went on to see success can be a successful approach. This type of social proof can help ease your prospect’s concerns and show them that others have found success with your product.
If you’re in B2B sales, one way to overcome objections is to share relevant information about your prospect’s competitors. If those competitors have been successful in overcoming similar objections, that story can help sway your prospect.
6. Follow Up at a Specific Date and Time
If your lead requests more time, respect their wishes and give them the space and time they need. But make sure you don’t leave the conversation in limbo.
Set up a specific date and time to follow up with them in the future, and answer any questions they have as they mull over their decision.
7. Anticipate Sales Objections
When you are anticipating objections, you are less likely to be thrown off your game. You can proactively address them and keep the sale on track.
If you take the time to listen to your buyer and understand their rationale, they will usually be open to hearing your solution. This way, you can keep the sale moving forward instead of getting stuck in an objection.
Knowing the most common objections to your sales pitch will help you prepare and practice your responses ahead of time.
We recommend that reps practice their sales skills by role-playing. Have another sales rep pose an objection, then answer it, and then give each other feedback on how they did.
Handling Objections Will Help You Sell Better
As a salesperson, you’ll encounter objections from your prospects. Some are valid reasons not to buy, while others may simply be a stall tactic.
If you’re familiar with common objections and know how to answer them, you can quickly figure out which prospects have potential and which ones you need to move on from. This makes you a more efficient salesperson.
When an Objection Means No
The prospect rarely gives you the chance to explain your value proposition. They are busy and have little time for the hordes of SDRs who reach out daily.
Salespeople need to be assertive and persistent when encountering knee-jerk objections from prospects.
Prospects may have had negative experiences in the past with salespeople who wasted their time, so it’s important to break through those barriers.
That said, at a certain point, no means no. The responses to the common objections above give you a way to pierce through the reactionary objections prospects give and get to what they are thinking.
However, if you have said your piece and the prospect still objects, it may be best to let it go.
People won’t buy something they don’t want. Try to figure out what your buyer is worried about, but don’t press them too hard.
If the objection comes up more than once, it’s most likely legitimate. No really means no.
Objections are an inevitable part of sales. If you want to be successful in sales, you need to know how to handle objections from prospects. The key is to get to the root of the issue, show empathy, and understand where the objection is coming from.
By doing this, you’ll be able to read these interactions appropriately and resolve the issue.
Conclusion
If you’re a sales professional, then you are familiar with what are objections and consider them a part of the job. But what do you do when you hear them? It can be tough to stay calm and collected when someone is saying no to your product or service. We have outlined some effective ways to respond to objections and turn them into a sale.
