6 Sales objections and mistakes sales reps make

1. Putting Words Into the Prospect's Mouth

Prospect: "I need versatility."

Mistake: "You know you need to have flexibility to move your funds from one account to another."

Consultative Sales Rep: "Could you explain to me what you mean by versatility?"

The logic here is simple but powerful. Your version of "versatility" (moving funds from one account to another) and the client's version of the word may be miles apart. The consultative rep listens for words that may have a broad interpretation and attempts to bring focus to the objection.

2. Insulting the Prospect

Prospect: "I find your prices are very high."

Mistake: "If I understand you, you are not interested in quality, is that correct?"

Consultative Sales Rep: "I understand price is critical in any decision. In order to make sure that we are comparing apples to apples, can you tell me what you are comparing our price to?"

Countless sales are lost to price simply because many sales reps make false assumptions that belittle the client. A consultative sales rep, through questioning, seeks to learn exactly what the prospect is evaluating and then educates him/her. For example, your price may include a warranty and the competitor's might not.

3. Avoiding the Issue

Prospect: "Quite frankly, your service is useless."

Mistake: "What are you looking for in service?"

Consultative Sales Rep: "I understand. Obviously something has happened to make you feel that way. Can you tell me about it?"

Instead of being defensive or asking what the client is looking for in terms of service, the consultative sales rep recognizes that this objection will not be answered until the prospect has the opportunity to "purge" himself. Finding the cause of the dissatisfaction gives the sales rep an opportunity to correct the problem or future problems. Questioning does not necessarily ensure a sale will be made, but it does begin to position the rep and the company as responsive.

4. Demand to Demand

Prospect: "The return on investment is too low."

Mistake: "What kind of return on investment are you looking for?"

Consultative Sales Rep: "Rate of return is very important. What are you comparing us to in saying that the rate is too low?"

This response is similar to #2. Consultative reps acknowledge the customer's objection and then seek to narrow the scope. As it stands, this objection is vague and cannot possibly be answered effectively without some comparative basis.

5. Shifting Responsibility

Prospect: "Your delivery standards are too slow."

Mistake: "I wish there was something I could do, but my hands are tied when it comes to shipping. Five days is the best I can do."

Consultative Sales Rep.: "I can see that delivery is critical to you. What has made you feel that our standards are too slow . . .?"

The consultative sales rep does not blame others. He/she seeks understanding so that solutions can be developed. Sometimes that takes guts. Asking "why" the product needs to be delivered in X days requires an element of courage. But it is the type of question that gets the customer thinking. For example, you might hear, "We've always had delivery in three days."

Is this a standard of habit or of necessity? If it is a standard of habit, perhaps you can offer some value-added service that the extra two days might bring (for example, a lower price because expedited shipping is not required).

6. Contradicting the Prospect

Prospect: "You guys always seem to be on strike or experiencing work delays."

Mistake: "No, that's not correct. Did you know we have not had a work stoppage in 18 months?"

Consultative Sales Rep: "Yes, in the past we have had work delays, and over the past 18 months management and union have worked together to solve this issue. Can you tell me if you have experienced any delays so that I can investigate further?"

In this situation, the sales rep acknowledges the prospect' perception of a problem and then seeks to explain and investigate. By using the word "and" instead of "but" to explain management and union efforts, the consultative sales rep does not demean the prospect's evaluation. Further, the consultative rep seeks to determine if something has occurred recently to prompt this remark. Ultimately, it gets the customer to focus on the reality of the present rather than the events of the past.

Practice with your own objections. Use these ideas and approach objections from a problem-solving, consultative perspective.

About the Author

President of Teleconcepts Consulting, Jim helps businesses achieve their sales and marketing objectives by using the telephone to help generate leads and sell directly on both a strategic and tactical level.

:To contact see details below.


domanski@compmore.net
http://www.teleconceptsconsulting.com