When it comes to making sales, sometimes the prospect raises an objection to your offer. As a business owner or salesperson, you want to address their objections in a non-threatening or non-confrontational way. Phil M Jones is a master of influential communication. He wrote a book called Exactly What to Say: The Magic Words for Influence and Impact that I have read several times. The following are three sets of powerful words that every business owner or salesperson can use to overcome many objections from prospects.
What makes you say that?
Objections during the sales process are quite common. When you hear a prospect raise an objection to your offer, oftentimes, it’s simply a way for them to say, “No thank you, I really don’t want your offer,†or perhaps it is just a way for the prospect to avoid the pressure of making a decision in the moment and kick decision-making further down the road.
The expectation that a prospect has when they raise an objection is that you will reply with some kind of response. When you are replying to their objections, you are ceding control of the sales process as you attempt to defend your offer. Remember the old sales adage, “Ye who is asking the questions is the one that is in control.â€
So, when faced with a prospect that raises an objection, your strategy is to try to gain control of the conversation. Rather than respond by defending your offer, seize the power that you have.
Rather than be forced into a defensive posture, respond with the question, “What makes you say that?†You want them to fill in the gap and keep talking. Resist the urge to initially defend your offer. Two basic outcomes can come from asking, “What makes you say that?†One is that by answering the question, the prospect talks themselves out of the objection. And two, based on their answer, you can better understand their particular situation when you respond.
A couple of ways you might think about using the powerful words “What makes you say that?†could be:
They say, “I don’t have the time (or money).†– What makes you say that?
They say, “I need to speak to my partner about it.†– What makes you say that?
They say, “I want to shop around.†– What makes you say that?
By forcing the prospect to answer the question, “What makes you say that?†you’re taking control of the sales conversation in a non-confrontational way. Moreover, as the prospect responds to the question and they try to explain their reasoning, they often come to the conclusion that they have no more objections. At worst, you learned more about their particular situation to provide a more precise and targeted response.
If I can… will you…
It is not uncommon that during the sales process, a prospect will make excuses to stall the sale, such as saying they don’t like your price, terms, or something else. These excuses prevent them from doing what you want them to do, which is to complete the sale.
Frequently, the prospect will cite external conditions that are outside of their control.
They use external conditions because they want to remove themselves from actually having to say no. In those situations, a good bet would be to use the “If I can… will you…†sandwich.
By using the “If I can… will you…†sandwich, you can isolate that barrier and respond.
A couple of ways you might think about using the powerful “If I can… will you…†word sandwich could be:
Customer: “I can’t make it to your store today to pay what I owe you. My wife has the car.â€
The external factor is the lack of access to a car.
Your response: “If I can have someone stop by your house around lunchtime, will you be able to give them the check for what you owe us?
Prospect: “I think I can get your product cheaper at one of your competitors.â€
The external factor is your higher price.
Your response: “If I can match their best price, will you sign up and buy from me today?â€
Even if you can’t meet the external condition with your offering, such as picking up the check at the customer’s home or matching the prospect price quote from a competitor, you are still maintaining control of the process, and the ball remains in your court. Moreover, using the words “If I can†implies that you are not sure if you can do it. There is no guarantee that you can meet the “If I can†portion of the statement.
Just out of curiosity…
One of the most common ways a sales negotiation ends is with the client’s response, “I need some time to think about it.†At this point, you have often laid out all the reasons why your prospect should move forward. If you are like me, I often feel like grabbing them by the shoulders and shaking them and saying, “What is it that you could still possibly need to think about?â€
Furthermore, you know they will not do a detailed analysis after you leave. The problem is that most business owners and salespeople just accept that excuse and say, “Sure, take your time and call me if you have any questions.†They fail to probe deeper to see why the prospect does not take them up on their offer. Your job, as a good business owner or salesperson, is to bring these vagaries to light and understand their true obstacle. A set of powerful words that a business owner or salesperson can use to keep the conversation going and not come across as too aggressive is to say, “Just out of curiosity…†and complete the phrase with what you want to know. Then wait and resist the urge to fill in the dead space. The longer the pause, the harder time the prospect is having to come up with their next excuse.
A couple of ways you might think about using the powerful words “Just out of curiosity…†could be:
Just out of curiosity, what exactly is it that you need to think about?
Just out of curiosity, what needs to happen for you to move forward with our deal?
Just out of curiosity, what is stopping you from completing your order today?
The powerful words “Just out of curiosity…†are a great way to respond to many excuses a prospect has.
How can you use one of the three sets of powerful words to deal with a prospect’s objections?
