Sometimes a simple ‘are you interested in buying our great product/service’ is not enough. You need to be more convincing than that – customers need more than just an offer and that’s why most salespeople face some common sales objections in their selling process.
Qualifying and scoring your leads is just the beginning of the story. Salespeople have to wear multiple hats throughout any given day, most notably, playing the role of a problem solver to potential clients.
Here, taking a proactive approach is best – salespeople need to know what type of sales objections they might face in order to solve them, make a sale and save the day.
Without further ado, here are some common sales objections that salespeople face on a day to day basis.
Common Sales Objection 1 – “I think your service is too pricey”
Make sure you mention value first and then price. It’s very easy for a prospect to say “your service costs a lot”, however if you give them justifications, they will see the bigger picture.
This is the oldest and most common sales objection objection in the book. There are several ways around this:
-
-
- Ask the prospect: “why do you feel this way?” or pause for 2-3 seconds: This question can reveal a lot. Prospects often disclose a lot. Getting an answer here will help you understand what’s needed to do to get through.
- Break down features and give some undisclosed comparisons: Who knows maybe the prospects talking to the competition after you.
- Be concise when justifying
-
Common Sales Objection 2 – Aversion to change-complacency or “we’re looking for a less complicated process”
Does your product require training? Or does your prospect need more supplementary resources necessary to implement your solution?
Some people don’t like stepping out of their comfort zone, even when making business decisions. For this reason, share a use-case scenario. Also, you can recommend supplementary resources. Sometimes selling is about consulting too.
Often, fear of change is a big obstacle in decision making. They may be complacent with how they run their business but you can show them how the market has changed over the course of the years and how these changes can be positive for their businesses.
Common Sales Objection 3 – “Why should I choose you over {Competitor}”
For this sales objection, you need to focus on the “why”. This usually happens when your prospect doesn’t understand how you’re different. You need to explain that it’s not just different brand colors it’s also value and features.
Sometimes reviews and references from your current customers can also help remove resistance, hesitance and uncertainty.
Common Sales Objection 4 – Trust: “My boss knows another vendor, we’re considering them”
This is a tough objection. Often prospects prefer to use products/services referred to them by colleagues or friends whether out of obligation or personal choice. However, by building trust and being persistent, you certainly can. To overcome this common sales objection, you should try the direct approach. You’ll need to:
-
-
- Ask the prospect: “Can I understand the offer you’re getting through your boss?”
- Find data on the decision makers involved and call them up
- Say something like: “Hey, I’ve been in touch with [name] regarding [ABC] and I was told that you were leaning towards another company. Just wanted the chance to understand if there was a mistake I made or if I could clarify anything?”
-
Questions are by far one of your best tools for overcoming common sales objections.
Common Sales Objection 5 – “Our team is still deciding on this, will get back to you if I get word.”
When a client tells you they need to discuss it with others, this can be a confusing sales objection. This could mean any of the following:
-
-
- The pain-point your solving is not of top priority to the prospect
- The person you’re dealing with isn’t completely handling this decision
- It’s truly just a waiting game now
-
To make sure the deal doesn’t end, it is better to stay in the loop while they decide and try and include yourself in order to assist with and queries or concerns.
Common Sales Objection 6 – Time: “Could you come back to us in X months”
For this sales objection you need some strong reassurance. If your client is not ready to talk and wants to put you off for later, you need to tactfully request them for a demo or short meeting.
This way you can show them that if they are actually not in need of the service, then they will save the hassle of being contacted some time later.
Another way you can solve this objection is by asking a question. For example, at Cloudlead we ask, “Are you not prospecting for new clients at this time?”
Common Sales Objection 7 – The brush-off: “Just email me the details” approach
You can sense if the prospect is interested or not. However, this particular objection, out of the myriad of common sales objections brought up by prospects, can vary from customer to customer.
It may come up before you have pitched your proposal or before you ask questions, or right after you have answered queries. We call this objection style “the brush-off.”
If the client immediately says something like ‘just send me some information’ then they are declining you. Although in many cases where they let you ask questions and complete your proposition, it means they may see some potential in the future.
There are however ways to tackle this sales objection, here are some scenario-based replies:
-
-
- Pre-pitch: “Let me explain to you what our service entails before you make up your mind”
- Pre-qualification: “Can we inquire about your business and guide you as to how we will be of help?”
- Post-qualification: “let us present a demo for better understanding of our product and its services”
-
How to handle objections in sales calls
Now that you know how to overcome sales objections, these quick tips from a study by Gong will get you amazing results:
-
-
- Pause when told your price is expensive:
-
The above graph summarizes that top performing SDR’s pause 5X longer.
-
-
- Don’t speed up:
-
The above graph showcases how top salespeople perform when talking. This will support the next point as well.
-
-
- Ask Questions:
-
If this point wasn’t stressed enough above let’s facilitate it with hardcore data by Gong.
In conclusion, stay motivated, be thoughtful and vigilant and maybe your prospect will give you enough hints for you to counter their objection. Always remember that the devil is in the details and that objections are an actual blessing in disguise.
