In this pandemic, I’ve been taking notes on the objections that salespeople have shared with me as they call and ask for my help. Here are the top seven objections related to how to overcome sales. I will also share strategies and tactics that you can use to tackle each objection, specifically in the pandemic.
Are they in order? Yes and no. Yes, they are in order; however, they may not be in the right order for your industry. I say this because I’ve found that objections salespeople are hearing very dramatically based on the industry and the type of customer they’re selling to.
First, have you read my books, A Mind for Sales and High-Profit Prospecting? If not, grab a copy today! Also, I want you to check out our new online program, The Sales Hunter University. Alright, let’s dive into the top objections:
1. “Call me in a couple of months!”
This isn’t an objection we’re just hearing right now; we hear it all the time. You probably hear it a lot. So, when you hear this, go back to the person and ask what will change in a couple of months. Confront the customer. Don’t just sit there and be ok with this statement. They may sit there and say, “Well, by then we’ll know what’s happening with the pandemic.” If so, your response should look like this, “Didn’t we all think this was going to be gone back in late March or April when it first came on the scene? Yes, we did. But it’s still here today.”
When people tell you to call them in a few months because they think things are going to change, you have to question how they know things will change. Share with them that you’ve heard assumptions about things changing from other companies in the initial months of the pandemic. However, those companies have since seen nothing change so they are deciding to move forward and engage customers. When you hear this objection, share examples of other companies that are no longer subscribing to the philosophy of just calling their customers back in a couple months without questioning why.
2. “We are going to wait this out.”
Yes, some people are still sitting there saying we’re going to wait this out. Your response must be very similar to the first one, but here’s the spin you want to put on it.
Ask them, “What happens if this goes on for another year? Then, what happens?” Again, share that we all thought this pandemic would pass by in a couple months, but it hasn’t. Tell them that they can’t sit there and wait this out forever. In the meantime, business is happening and unless they have a tremendous amount of cash reserves or existing customers, their business is not going to stick around. It’s rarely feasible to wait this one out.
3. “The last thing I want to do is switch suppliers.”
I hear this a lot, especially from salespeople who are in consumable businesses where the customers purchase on a regular basis.
I totally understand not wanting to switch suppliers; however, if the customer can see how you can save them money, how you can do something better, whatever it might be, it’s in your best interest to go ahead and make that move. Share the advantages that you can provide them with your product or service.
4. “I’m not buying until I have to.”
I see salespeople cowering when they hear this, so you have to ask, why is this any different than any other time?
This is one of the big reasons why you have to make sure that you tie everything you sell back to time and money. In other words, the reason the customer should make the decision to buy from you now is because they can save more money and avoid risk by doing it in a timely manner. You have to overcome their excuse of not buying until they have to.
They may have an excuse in terms of cash flow or other things, but again, you want to press into their reasons. Ask them, “When do you think that time will be?” and that will help validate their reason as to why they’re saying they’re not buying until they have to. That will help give you a response. One of the worst things you can do it back off and not respond at all.
5. “You need to lower your price.”
We hear this all of the time but especially in our current circumstances. People are constantly saying that you need to lower your price because that’s what everybody is doing right now. In a pandemic, you do not want to lower your price.
Price adjustments are ok in certain situations. If you’re changing your value outcome, you can change your price. If you’re changing the product that you’re offering, you can change your price. However, if you choose to lower your price, you have to figure out if you’re taking it out of your salary, commissions, etc. You probably won’t know.
When a customer tells you that you need to lower your price, it means that you haven’t gone back to sales one-on-one and created enough value to warrant the price you want them to pay. Therefore, you need to ask yourself these questions:
- What is the solution?
- What’s the outcome?
- What’s the gain?
- What is the risk avoidance?
- What will the customer receive as a result of buying from me?
I’ve had several customers in very difficult situations agree to make major investments with me because they know the rewards that they will receive from working with me. They know the specific outcome I will bring them. Yes, they did ask me for a price discount, but I didn’t give it to them. You know what? They still bought.
6. “This is too risky.”
Again, people are using this objection more right now as we’re wrapped up in the pandemic, but they use it all the time. Nobody should ever be expected to make a risky decision.
It’s your job as the salesperson to show them the clear, concise way that they can avoid risk. That is why they want to go with you, and that is a confidence factor. It’s one of the trust factors that you create right away, starting in the prospecting phase.
7. “I will buy now if I can pay you in three months.”
We hear this objection all the time, but it seems like a pop-up. Now, ask them if they’re a business owner. If so, ask them if they are allowing their customers to slow down their purchases when they pay. Probably not. Most likely, that is not the case.
Now you may go ahead and let them pay you in three months; however, you must factor in the cost and risk of that buying situation. In other words, they’re not going to buy from you if they can’t pay for it for three months. You may need to increase the price, and that’s ok. You can do that.
Tell them that the price is now “X,” because you need to increase it to help cover the risk factor and cost of money. If you let them pay over the course of three months, it’s important to make sure they pay something up front. You need to get the customer to invest with you right now.
Those are the seven objections I’m hearing right now in this pandemic. As you tackle each one, I would encourage you to pick up my books, High-Profit Prospecting and A Mind for Sales. Also, check out my website and YouTube page. Subscribe now. We post new videos like this all the time.
Copyright 2020, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter” Sales Motivation Blog. Mark Hunter is the author of A Mind for Sales and High-Profit Prospecting: Powerful Strategies to Find the Best Leads and Drive Breakthrough Sales Results.
