Overcoming Sales Objections

You just delivered a great pitch, and everything went as planned.

You demonstrated the bells and whistles of your product or service, passionately declared how it will change your prospect’s life for the better, and even made them laugh with a few clever quips timed perfectly to charm their pants off as they consider your offer. (You’re on the phone and can’t see their pants, but you can only assume.)

Sales pitch slam-dunk!

After you’ve concluded and asked what they think, there’s a pause. You don’t mind. You’ll wait.

Then they hit you with it: The objection.

Now, this could go one of two ways. You could flounder for a response as the doubts sink deeper into their psyche, or you could bounce off their hesitation with confidence and poised rebuttals — never allowing their objection to gain traction as you guide them across the finish line.

The only way to ensure the latter is to prepare for every objection imaginable. Do not let your prospect catch you off guard. Do not let them doubt you or your product for longer than it takes to say, “I completely understand, but…”

The key to ensuring this outcome is to brainstorm and prepare.

Now, of course specific objections will vary based on what you’re selling, but below are a few of the most common ones along with tried and true responses to get you past them. Keep these common objections in mind for all sales pitches as you seamlessly negate their nerves and drive closer to a deal.

Common Sales Rebuttals

“I don’t have the authority to make that decision.”

Look at this as an opportunity to organically discover who you should be talking to, and keep two goals in mind while responding.

First, gain a referral for your product. This person on the phone might not be the decision-maker, but there’s a good chance they will be involved with what you’re selling. Convincing the end user is as important as convincing the decision-maker, so you want their enthusiasm passed along in the handoff. Respond with, “Ok, I totally understand. Based on what you’ve seen, is this something you would recommend to the person in charge of making these types of decisions?” If the response is negative, find out why. This is your opportunity to go back and create more value. At the very least, you’ll gain insight for future pitches.

Your second goal in this conversation is to identify the decision-maker.

If you get a yes, your next response should be: “Great! So, who is the person in your company that makes these decisions?” Set an appointment or an introduction before your initial contact gets off the phone. You’ve now got an ambassador and a connection, and you’re well on your way to a new customer.

“It’s a bad time with Christmas (Easter, Arbor Day) just around the corner. Let’s revisit this next week.”

This presents a lack of urgency, not a refusal. It’s also a sign that you haven’t presented enough value to them.

Part of your job as a salesperson is to provide a timeline early on. To avoid this type of objection in the first place, establish what a typical rollout for a product or service like yours would look like. How long will it take? Who else is involved in the process?

If you’ve done this and they still want to stall, then you must provide a specific reason to move forward.

Let them know why you’ve chosen this time to contact them. Is it related to implementation? Is there a special time sensitive offer you’re running? If you don’t have an illustration to support a sense of urgency, then make one up. It can be as simple as, “Hey, I hear you; now is a busy time for everyone. But I’m actually going out of town next week and want to make sure we get this completed beforehand. It would be ideal if we could reconnect before then.”

Offer a specific date and time to reconnect in order to make it easier for them to agree rather than giving them the opportunity to come up with another objection.

“It’s too expensive.”

When someone tells you your product is too expensive, it usually means one of three things. It’s truly and unavoidably outside of their budget, they are a stern negotiator, or, more likely, they have no interest in buying.

Your job now is to discover which one of these is the truth. The first step in any sale is to determine value for your prospect. To confirm the value after a pricing rebuttal, respond with, “Pricing aside, is this something you would like to use?” or “if the product was free, would you use it?” If the answer is no, then find out why. What is your product or service missing that would convince them it’s essential?

If the answer is yes, this is where you can open the floor for negotiations. They’ll reciprocate if they’re truly interested. Try opening with, “If this is something you’d like to use, then I want to try to work something out for you. What could you see yourself allocating to something like this?”

Of course, there are circumstances when the counteroffer is too far off for a compromise. But the key is that you’ve uncovered the truth and are driving the process.

“We haven’t finalized our budget just yet.”

As with the previous objection, this one is likely a front for disinterest or an obstacle they aren’t willing to share. Once again, use questions such as, “if you had a budget available now, would you want to get started today?” If the answer is no, then you need to uncover why. Is it a lack of value? Are they not the decision-maker? Is it too expensive? If the answer is yes, then offer to push payment back in exchange for a contract signature. If they’re willing, then close it.

This isn’t always possible based on different business models, but if the only issue is timing, then find a way to make it work. Seek to understand their process and where this purchase might fit in. Do they already have money planned out in their budget and they simply can’t sign until the numbers are finalized? Or do they need to find new funds to make the purchase? Be sure to reconfirm the value and make very clear plans for what will happen when you get back in touch.

For all of these objections, keep in mind that the first reasons hesitations presented are rarely the truth. Use these as opportunities to learn more about your client and their needs, and ideally, you’ll uncover some valuable insight as to what’s holding them back.

If not, then you’ve gained feedback and experience for your next sales pitch, and you’ll have these responses ready for the next round.