Handling sales objections with these eight tips will help salespeople overcome some of the hurdles customers put in the way in the sales process. Objections aren’t necessarily a bad thing, as lots of the time they are a means by which the buyer is seeking clarification or raising concerns.
Objections and their appropriate responses usually fall into one of four general categories:
- Misconception—You need to clarify and explain.
- Skepticism—Provide proof, references, and case studies.
- Real drawback—demonstrate value and cost of doing nothing.
- Real complaint—Validate, offer a solution to the specific complaint.
Skilled salespeople, however, train their minds to view objections as opportunities to test their selling skills. Objections not only make the sale more interactive but also prevent buyer’s remorse and confirm an appropriate fit that the change will lead to a better place. Treat objections as opportunities for education and relationship-building, not as personal attacks.
1. Respond, do not react.
Never react emotionally to any sales objection or concern. Pause, reflect, clarify, and then answer. Always get agreement that the concern raised has been answered. We know that objections activate a threat, so we want to respond quickly. The brain interprets the concern as rejection, which creates tension and urgency, so we tend to react. This leads to rushed explanations and lack of clarity.
Successful salespeople pause after an objection and slow down the reply. When you “pause,” you allow yourself two to five seconds to engage your logical brain and decide on a better response than simply reacting to the situation or objection. “Going to the balcony” is used as a metaphor for adopting a detached state of mind, allowing you to see an objection or buyer response clearly from afar. The technique is used when you need to take a pause to respond to a customer or regain control of your emotions. You can think constructively for both sides and look for a satisfactory way to overcome the objection.
2. Clarify, never ignore.
Objection scenarios can be loaded with misunderstandings. If you don’t clarify them, you might address the wrong issue or look like you are ignoring the concern, which will raise even more objections. The first, and by far the most important, step is to clarify the objection. Avoid falling into the trap of making yourself “right” and the other person “wrong.” The goal is to tactfully remove an impending obstacle of personal ego and get back on track to influencing behavior. Put their concerns in context or share a perspective.
Remember: a strong answer to the wrong objection makes the objection worse. Instead, top sellers follow up objections with questions. So, what question should you ask to clarify objections? So, try using the “AIOA Method,” short for Agree, Isolate, Overcome, and Ask. The AIOA helps you approach the sales objection from a place of understanding and curiosity rather than defensiveness. Take a look at how the AIOA would work in a scenario in which the customer claims they’re too busy.
Agree with your customer that their concern is valid—”I completely understand where you’re coming from.”
Isolate the concern by asking a clarifying question—”It sounds like your main concern here is that you don’t have the time to chat right now; is that correct?”
Overcome the objection by posing a new plan of action—“I totally understand if you are very busy right now; we could reschedule this call for tomorrow at 3 p.m.”
Ask the customer if they’re satisfied by the new plan—”Would that work for you?”
3. Acknowledge their concerns, do not dismiss them
Firstly, welcome objections and concerns as the only means to get to the other side of the customer’s doubt, disruption, and decisions to become a star salesperson. Start by actively listening to the customer’s objection without interrupting. Show that you understand and acknowledge their feelings or concerns. This can be as simple as saying, “I understand how you feel about this…”
Also, when you have heard them, acknowledge the person, their right to object, and the validity of their objection. If you do not do this, they may take your response personally, and the conversation will descend into a failing duel.
4. Get to the true objection or concern – not the red herring.
Some sales objections are textbook smoke screens or red herrings. A red herring objection is a question or words your potential customer throws at you that could make you lose your train of thought or conversation. Is this a real concern, or is there something else lurking in the back of the buyer’s mind? Many objections can be vague; in many cases, no definite truth value attaches to what they are objecting to. Answers such as “I understand. Why do you think that? I understand. How did you come to that conclusion? . I understand, so what will it take to move beyond this “name objection”?
If the answer is something else than the original objection, chances are those are the REAL things you need to overcome. If their answer is the same, then the first objection they voiced is the right one. Congratulations, you’ve isolated the objection. Now you can make a real determination about whether it can be overcome or not.
5. Build trust – reduce objections.
You overcome a lack of trust by building it. The buyer needs to believe that you can do what you say you’ll do. When the buyer believes you, you reduce their perception of risk and get closer to the sale. Prepare relevant stories and examples. Show how you’ve helped similar businesses in the past. Make past results as tangible as possible and offer to put the buyer in touch with your past clients. This builds credibility. Good salespeople get their customers to focus on an issue that is clearly and simply stated and find out what the emotional value of the issue is to them. How do you feel about that? How would this positively affect you? They seek solutions that satisfy the people who are needed to make the solution work. Their style is to “walk the talk” because what they say is congruent with what they do. Good salespeople are effective because they create trust, which enables others to make decisions. Their habit of communicating, informing, and including others builds loyalty.
6. Reframe the future state.
A reframe is an insight that gets buyers to change how they think about a problem or opportunity. Used well, a reframe gets buyers to see things through a new “lens” (ideally, your lens). Many purchasing decisions are more likely influenced by what the buyer has already invested in their current state. This can cause buyers to stick with a vendor, product, or service that is failing them even though there is irrefutable evidence that change is necessary. Buyers ignore logical facts in favor of emotional attachments and objections. You need to put everything into context for the future state to get them to anchor to your proposal. Reframe the situation with positive outcomes and how things will work out for them in the longer term. The opportunity for improvement must have a greater pull than their current state.
There are different ways to reframe an objection. Here are some suggestions on how to start your sentence:
- If I understand you correctly, you’re looking to…”
- OK, just to clarify, you need to…”
- So, what you are telling me is that your problem is…”
You then complete it according to the identified problem and information provided by your contact. You’ll have the tools to continue to answer and assure the customer.
7. Get objections our early- clarify intention.
A buyer’s interest is different from intent. Intent requires commitment and actions; interest can just be a fob-off, as in “send me your brochure.” ” Nothing is costlier than investing time on a deal that will not progress to a close. Remember that objections can arise for a multitude of reasons. They could be surface-level concerns related to price or time, or deeper psychological reservations about trust, commitment, or perceived value.
When you have all the potential roadblocks out in the open, you are more effective at developing a proposal and message that minimizes those concerns.
Objections are part of the decision-making process; when stakeholders talk about concerns early, it helps them break through their natural status quo and safety biases. It builds trust because it demonstrates that you confidently stand by your product or service. It deepens the relationship because you are willing to be open and collaborative.
Examples
- How does your organization typically make decisions about bringing in new vendors like my company?
- How are decisions made internally?
- Would you tell me more about the approval process for purchases like this?
- Just so I am clear, can you tell me what happens next?
- Whose advice do you value or rely upon when making decisions like this?
8. Ask “What else?"—maximize your effort.
“What else?” can make the prospect or customer feel more in charge of their response and less likely to feel judged on it, which can also put them more at ease and open the door to a more free-flowing conversation when objection handling. At a high level, asking “What else?” is about keeping the spotlight on the client and keeping them talking as they spin out the details of what’s on their mind. Often, it is the answer to that last “What else?” that contains the biggest barrier to moving the sale forward. But unless you go through all of the other “What else?” replies, the real barrier continues to exist. Forms of Asking “What else?”
- “What else is bothering you?”
- “What else does that affect?”
- “What else is on your mind?”
- “What else do you need to consider?”
NUT$ to closing sales objections.
Nearly all objections boil down to one of four types:
Need: Lack of need as the buyer does not yet perceive, or does not admit, the need to solve a problem
Urgency: Lack of urgency, as the Buyer does not yet see the impact and value of your solution
Trust: Lack of Trust as the Buyer feels uncertainty about you, your solution, or your company
$: Lack of Money: The Buyer communicates that there is no budget or money for your solution
Remember, top salespeople know to gravitate towards more business-oriented topics on their calls. It’s your job to steer the conversation to where you’re going to be able to demonstrate value. This means understanding:
- Your ROI
- Their business challenges
- The business environment
- The decision-making ecosystem
- Value-related topics
- How to tell stories that build trust
These topics get brought up a whopping 52 percent more often by top-performing salespeople. It weeds out the interest from the intent with customers. and helps progress deals that actually stand a chance of closing. Just as the sales process has multiple steps and you are required to make multiple commitment requests to advance your deals through the process, objections come in multiple forms and at different points along that path.
Facing these roadblocks and getting past them at each point on the sales process journey is the key to getting in the door, shortening the sales cycle, increasing the pipeline, avoiding stalled deals, and, of course, closing the sale. Objection Handling Training Preview.
