3 step process to resolve objections

In almost all sales classes I teach and every time I meet a new sales person, they always love to talk to me about additional training on how to resolve objections.  I guess it should technically be my one of my favorite subjects since so many people and companies buy sales training for this reason alone.

I like to keep things simple.  I am simple person and the more simple I can keep things the better off I am.

Here is a the process I teach.  The scenario: You just heard the objection, how do you respond:

1st:  Instead of instantly replying with your answer.  You respond to the individual letting them know that you heard them.  You would say something like:  “Bob, I understand pricing is a consideration for you in this purchase.”   This lets the buyer know you heard what they said and you acknowledge it being a concern.

2nd: Clarify:  “Bob, since the budget is a consideration, what are your parameters of your budget.”  This question allows you to seek clarity to what the budget concerns are. Maybe he has an exact budget number.  Maybe they have a fiscal year coming up, maybe it is the end of the month cycle. It could be all of these things.  So your job as the sales person is to seek clarity around this budget.

3rd:  Dive a little deeper:  So you have fleshed out the budget constraints.  You now need to seek out if there are any other things that could prevent the sale from moving forward.  So you would ask Bob.  “Bob, outside of the budget considerations, is there anything else that we should look at before moving forward?”  This is his opportunity to tell you if there are any other things he may be unsure of.

Once you take a prospect through these questions you should have an understanding of where they are.  In each of the above scenarios your job is to clarify and explain to them how your product will meet their needs they have.  But you first have to get all of the possible objections out on the table and that is what this process does.

The key in dealing with objections is first asking the right questions and understanding their needs before you ever get to the objections.  Are they really a buyer.  Think about it.  When you need something really bad, you go and buy it, right?  Have you ever purchased something you didn’t need?  Sure you have, we all have.  Why is that? Because after seeing it you wanted it.  Maybe the sales person was able to show you how you could benefit from buying the product.  Keep something in mind, we all love to buy things.

Remember all sales begin with relationships, and once you have a strong relationship established it creates the right environment for someone to want to buy your product.

Brian Willett