Tag: sales objections

If you’ve done any sales conversations at all, you know that the number-one objection that prospects present as a reason not to buy your product or service is money.

You get to that point in the sales conversation, and they say, “I don’t have the money,” “Our funds are allocated elsewhere,” or “We’ve got medical bills or tuition or too much debt.”

No matter how they phrase it, the solution for banishing that problem forever from your sales process is the same.

Don’t Buy Into Their Lie
The first key to dealing with any kind of objection that prospects present is to discern the real ones from the excuses.

The real objections are challenges, so you deal with them as such. Excuses are lies or beliefs in a false reality.

“I don’t have the money” is a lie.

How do you deal with this lie?

Well, first, you have to apply Pillar 1 and influence yourself.

You have to accept that money is never the problem. The problem is always urgency.

For instance, imagine a homeless drug addict, somebody who is really down and out. That person is a lost soul, trapped inside a reality that the addiction has created.

Have you ever heard of addicts who can’t get the money to buy their next fix?

No, because they always find a way.

Now, don’t get into the judgment of how they do it. That doesn’t matter. The point is that they do. And that homeless addict’s reality is much more dire than any prospect’s you’re going to be talking to.

They come up with the money, because the urgency is so great. They’ll do anything to get the money for their next fix.

So, when prospects tell you that they don’t have the money, remember that drug addict, and don’t buy into that excuse.

Instead, work on your prospects’ sense of urgency, because the urgency isn’t great enough for them to do what they need to do to get the money.

Whether that’s negotiating with their spouse to reallocate savings or getting a loan or raising their rates.

If you deal with their objection from a money place, you’re dealing with it from their reality.

And you will never influence them from their reality, because their reality says that they can’t get out of that reality.

So how do you influence them?

Remember Clarity?
You bring them clarity, which, in turn, will create urgency.

So when you encounter the money objection, ask your prospects this question:

“What’s going to happen if this problem doesn’t change?” and have them see what the exact outcome will be.

Whether that’s facing the health consequences of diabetes, or poverty as an elder, or the loneliness of remaining single if they don’t want to.

Remember, part of the problem is that they’ve pushed this negative scenario into some nebulous future, where they don’t have to deal with it.

By bringing it to the present, they will face it.

And that clarity will bring them the urgency to change the outcome.

They’ll realize that they don’t want to tolerate their problem one minute longer, and, all of a sudden, they’ll find a way to get the money for the solution they need.

And, if they really are your ideal client, the solution they need is yours.

You can’t tell people that you’re the right mentor for them. They’ll just get defensive and resist. You have to influence them so that they have that thought themselves. If the idea to work with you is their own, they’ll listen to it.

If you position yourself correctly to your ideal clients (Pillars 1-3), and then apply the 4th Pillar, this will happen automatically, and they will want to do business with you.

How do you apply the 4th Pillar?

You ask them questions during a discovery conversation that lead them to connect powerfully with their own truth.

The Discovery Conversation
During this conversation, two things need to take place simultaneously:

1. Control. You must control the conversation. This is essential for influence.

2. Discovery. You need to discover where they are in relationship to what they want and don’t want. Where are they in relationship to the problem?

You accomplish both of those goals by asking questions.

If You’re Telling, You’re Not Selling
Notice that I said you’re asking questions. You’re not telling them what to do or how they should be thinking about their problem or even what their problem is.

The old adage: “If you’re telling, you’re not selling” is 100% accurate. There are very few times during a sales conversation when you tell the prospects anything.

The first is in the beginning when you set up the parameters of the conversation.

And the second is at the end, when you tell them that you need their credit card and a signed contract.

Now, a couple of times you may need to move the conversation in another direction. You have to give it a little jolt because it got off course.

Why Are Questions so Important?
When you tell people what’s wrong with them or what they need, they get defensive, like I said. They go into their stories, and try to escape.

That’s when you’ll start to hear “objections,” such as they can’t afford it or it’s not the right time or they need to think about it.

The real issue is that they’re not clear yet. They likely don’t understand what their actual problem is, and they definitely can’t see its solution.

But no amount of you telling them what that problem is will bring them to clarity.

Asking them questions, however, can.

When you ask questions, you’re in your power, and you also put them in theirs.

Your questions uplift them. They lift up in their mind a different way of thinking about their problem, and they begin to connect the dots.

If you’ve followed the 4th Pillar, as I’m laying it out, they can finally see the true nature of their problem as well as its solution.

So what exactly do you ask them?

I’ll share those four questions with you next time.

In this series I’m teaching you how to master the art of influence, so you have the power to change business problems into profitable opportunities ~ including turning the objections of your prospects into iron-clad commitments.

Part of that process involves identifying which of the four main styles feels most comfortable to you when conducting sales conversations.

Are you:

• The “warm friend”?

• The “stern parent”?

• The “seducer”?

• Or the “shamer”?

Being able to name your natural sales style is important, so that you can then ask yourself why.

The Why

Why does it feel more comfortable for you to employ that particular style in your sales conversations?

You want to know the answer to that question so that you can determine whether or not your comfort stems from emotional weakness.

For instance, are you their “friend,” because you know that warmth, enthusiasm and good will can encourage prospects to take a scary leap of faith? Or, are you friendly in your sales conversations because you’re afraid you’re going to upset somebody? Or because you have the need to be liked?

Are you the “seducer,” because you think that sex appeal is your only appeal and the only way to get people to listen to you? Or, are sensuality and a playful allure natural expressions that draw people to you like a magnet?

Are you the “shamer” because you have the need to belittle others in order to feel superior? Or do you truly want to help people step into a new and uncomfortable change ~ and you know that this style is very effective in psychologically triggering the audience to accept the offer.

Is the “stern parent” comfortable because you always have to be in control? Or, do you know that your direct and matter-of-fact truth-telling are the best swords for cutting through the haze of your prospects’ denial and fear?

Now What?

As you can see, there are potential positives and negatives associated with each style. So what do you do if your why stems from a weak place?

First, you need to face that weakness, and acknowledge what it’s costing you and your clients.

For example, it’s likely decreasing your sales, undermining your influence with others, and greatly diminishing your effectiveness as a leader, teacher or coach.

Next, you need to start influencing yourself. You don’t necessarily need to change the style that feels comfortable to you, just get rid of the fear that currently fuels it.

For example, let’s say, like a lot of people, you have a warm friend style because you’re afraid of making somebody upset. If that’s the case, you need to push through that fear and give yourself another experience.

So the next time in a sales conversation, when you feel that inner prompting to speak up or tell the truth or guide the conversation to an uncomfortable place, and you’re afraid to, do it anyway.

Show yourself that you and the other person can survive a little upset.

In fact, not only can you both survive it, but your pushing through your own fear can lead to a breakthrough for both of you.

And then your warm encouragement can be the perfect soft landing to then guide your prospect to his or her next step.

What is that next step?

Very likely, it’s working with you.