Your prospect is not returning your calls? Does he seem to be in a hurry to attend an important meeting every time you get him on the phone? He is requesting information comparing your product/service to the competition?
Be alarmed….your sale may be in danger. These may be unspoken objections that need to be handled efficiently and effectively.
It is true, an objection usually presents a problem for you. However, objections are part of the everyday life of a salesperson and can be very useful since they express your customer’s true feelings about your product. He or she is actually providing you with useful, albeit negative information to change your customer’s attitude from objection to acceptance. When a customer voices an objection to your product or service, you must HANDLE IT IMMEDIATELY.
What are Objections?
- Objections are a necessary part of the selling process
- They are like the hurdles in a hurdle race
- Guideposts to the progress of a sale
- They are an opportunity- successful handling often leads to close
- They give important feedback whether positive or negative and add to the knowledge
- May take the form of
- Questions
- Statements
- Comments
- Criticism
- Remarks and even
- Compliments
Attitude towards Objections:
- Objections are not a personal attack
- Signify interest-require convincing, even reassurance
- Provide an opportunity to learn from the feedback
- Welcome objections and adopt a positive approach towards them
- Lower the barriers. Do not attack to prompt the customer to raise barriers further
- Disagree agreeably. Create a relaxed, warm, friendly atmosphere
Types of Objections & Handling Objections
Customer objections usually fall under the following categories:
1. Misunderstanding about your product due to lack of information
- When you answer this type of objection, you must provide the information necessary to clear up the misunderstanding. Sometimes this information will be in the form of a benefit. Be prepared to offer proof as the customer may be skeptical about the benefit.
- Rephrase the objection in question form. It helps to clarify the objection and also shows the customer that you’re listening carefully and are concerned about his feelings about your product.
- Answer it directly to clear up the misunderstanding. By doing this you’ll actually be providing a benefit
2. Perceived Drawbacks of your product; drawbacks that exist in your customer’s mind and could result from:
- Your product failing to provide a benefit the customer considers important
- Your customer simply not liking something about your product
To encounter such an objection you may
- Rephrase the objection in question form
- Minimize the objection by stressing the relevant benefits of your product. These benefits can be the old ones already accepted during the sales call or new ones you’ll need to provide by further probing and supporting or a combination of old and new.
3. Non-verbalised Objections (difficult to handle)
- Absolute silence
- Break the silence-probe, ask questions
- Postures/Gestures
- Watch out for signals- Body language
4. Verbalised (easier to handle)
To get rid of the salesperson
- Hidden objections
- Statements, comments, remarks, even compliments
- Foreclosing
- I know the product
- No need to detail
- I know the company
- Already using the product
- Very busy
- Just leave the brochure/catalog, etc.
The feedback is that the customer is either not interested in you or your company or low credibility. So make the interview interesting, sustain interest and raise the desired level.
Seek information
- Misunderstanding:
- False perception
- Competitors
- Wrong information
- Other sources
Accept it as your fault and help the customers correct themselves by seeking their agreement on facts and provide evidence.
- A genuine drawback with the product:
Admit it (No product is perfect)- outweigh it with benefits
- More information:
usually questions and easiest to handle by providing desired information.
I will rest this blog here and let the reality of objection and objection handling sync in. In my next blog, we will uncover some common sales objections and how to handle them. See you here next Tuesday 🙂
