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Objection Prevention. A new way to enjoy safe sales.
“Your price is too high.” Rats. Don’t you hate when you hear that? It’s the number ONE objection in the world of sales. Why do salespeople continue to listen to it? Beats me.
There are no new objections. You’ve heard them all before. I mean can you imagine the prospect saying “your price is too high, and you responding, “Really, I’ve never heard that before.” (actually that response may be better than the one you’re using) Whatever business you’re in, there are between five and twenty reasons why the customer won’t buy now.
Some objections are stalls. Delay tactics or hesitation by the prospect to tell the salesperson “no.” Both objection and stall are defined by salespeople in a single word: frustration.
Well, here’s the way to cure what ails your sales: Prevent them by discussing them in your presentation before the prospect has a chance to voice them. Prevention is the best medicine to cure objections.
Here’s how the process works:
Identify all possible objections. Meet with sales reps and customers. Brainstorm objections. Ask them for the top ten objections they get. They’ll flow like water.
Write them down. Make a detailed list of every objection you have identified. Often the same objection is are given in a variety of ways.
Script objection responses with closing questions for each. In order to prevent, you must prepare. It may take some time to complete this task. Do it with your team and perhaps a few customers in the room. Create several scenarios for each objection.
Develop sales tools that enhance and support every response Items like testimonial letters, testimonial videos, comparison charts, and support documentation could enhance the “objectiontoclose” process. Companies must develop whatever is needed to make the salesperson feel confident, supported, and able to make the sale easier.
Rehearse the scripts in roleplay. After the responses are written, schedule several roleplay sessions to get familiar with each scripted situation, and try to make it sound natural.
Tweak the scripts. After you roleplay there will be revisions to the scripts. Make them immediately.
Try them out on customers. Go to a problem customer or two. Tell them what you’re doing they’ll be flattered that you had the courage, and they’ll most often give you truthful responses.
Make final revisions based on real world situations. The real world always changes a script or approach. Be sure to document revisions every time you make them.
Keep the documents in a master notebook. Give all salespeople a copy. There is an added bonus to this system when you hire a new salesperson, he or she has a training manual that will provide immediate insight and income.
Meet regularly as a group to discuss revisions. There is always someone inventing the new best way possible.
It’s so simple, it works. The key is to know the objections that are likely to occur, and script the answers or responses into your regular presentation so that when you come to the end of your pitch, there’s nothing to object to.
Here are 7.5 tools and phrases of objection prevention you might consider adding to your scripts and incorporating into your presentation as part of this process:
1. Tell of similar situations. Stories about customers who had the same or similar problem or objection who bought in spite of the objection.
2. Testimonial letters. Some of them can be closer’s for example: “I thought the price was too high, but after a year of lower maintenance cost, I realized the overall cost was actually 20% lower than last year. Thanks for talking me into it.”
3. A story or article about your product or your company will build support, build credibility, and build confidence.
4. A comparison chart. Compare the competition apples to apples and use it when the prospect says he wants to check around.
5. Say, “Our experience has shown…” One of the most powerful verbal leadins to preventing an objection.
6. Say, “We have listened to our customers. They had a concern about…. Here’s what we did…” This gets the prospect to see his potential objection disappear, and how you listen and respond.
7. Say, “We used to believe…, we have changed and now we…” Use this as a method of preventing a myth from recurring (reputation for poor service, high price, etc.)
7.5 Prepare yourself. You know the objection is coming. You’ve heard it before. Be ready with questions, answers, and sales tools when it arrives.
If you can overcome an objection in your presentation before the prospect raises it, you are more likely to make a sale.
If you can anticipate objections, you can prevent them from occurring. Sounds simple, it just ain’t easy. It takes time, creativity, and superior talent to make it happen. Please try it. Your reward for superior effort will be superior sales which leads to a superior wallet.
FREE GitBit …The real objections and two scripts for “price too high” and “satisfactory supplier” are yours for the asking. Just go to www.gitomer.com click FREE STUFF then GitBit register and enter the secret words, “REAL OBJECTIONS”.
Jeffrey Gitomer, author of The Sales Bible, and Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless. President of Charlottebased Buy Gitomer, he gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings, and conducts training programs on selling and customer service. He can be reached at 704/3331112 or email to salesman@gitomer.com
1999 All rights reserved Don’t even think about reproducing this document or it’s contents without
the written approval of Jeffrey Gitomer or Buy Gitomer 704/3331112 salesman@gitomer.com
