Overcoming objections is a fact of life in sales. Sellers must anticipate that a buyer will have legitimate concerns or roadblocks and be ready to handle them.
Today’s buyers are more discerning than ever. They have knowledge of competitors’ products and services at their fingertips. It’s critical your sales team can overcome sales objections quickly and confidently.
Objection handling means responding to a customer or prospect in a way that changes their perspective or alleviates their concerns. It’s not about tricking a buyer or persuading them to purchase something they don’t need.
Many times, objections come from a place of insecurity. Buyers have been tasked with making an important decision, and they want to be sure they get it right—choosing the product or solution that makes them look good.
It’s your sales team’s job to prove the value of your solution and help the buyer make the best choices for themselves and their company. Reminding your salespeople of this will help them feel more confident when responding to the most common sales objections.
How to Handle the Most Common Objections in Sales
There are five main types of objections salespeople typically encounter: price, lack of authority, lack of need, lack of urgency, and lack of trust. These align with the five characteristics of a qualified prospect.
By asking probing questions early in the sales process, your sellers may be able to head off objections later on. But even with the best questioning, objections will still arise. Here are practical tips to handle the five most common objections.
Sales Objection #1: Price
Price objections are probably one of the most common types of objections your salespeople will encounter.
How to Handle Price-Based Objections
Your sellers must anticipate a buyer’s objection to price. The key is for your sellers to be skilled when presenting a quote so they don’t unintentionally invite buyers to question it.
Prior to the quote or proposal, sellers should focus on building value based on the buyer’s unique needs and wants so they can prove that the benefits of the solution outweigh the cost.
If the decision maker still objects, the salesperson can suggest narrowing the scope of the solution or removing features to reduce the price. In most cases, the buyer won’t want to give up the benefits and will work to find room in the budget for the complete solution.
Remind your sellers that a buyer often questions or pushes back on price simply because it’s a required part of their decision-making process.
Sales Objection #2: Lack of Decision-Making Authority
There’s nothing more frustrating than spending time and effort with a contact who is not in the position to make a purchasing decision. No one wants to hear, “I’ll have to run it by my manager” or, “The CEO needs to review this.”
How to Handle Authority-Based Objections
To avoid this frustrating scenario, before the purchasing decision stage, your sellers should determine that the person they are dealing with has the final say in the decision-making process.
Early conversations should include the following two questions:
- “Who else—other than you, of course—will be involved in the buying decision?”
- “Could you describe for me the process you will be using to make this decision?”
The goal here is to understand the contact’s purchasing power and to map out the buyer’s journey and the organization’s decision-making process. If your seller finds out their contact is not, in fact, a decision-maker, they should work to turn them into an internal advocate who can guide them through the organization and the purchasing committee.
Sales Objection #3: Lack of Need
A prospect who’s already working with one of your competitors may not immediately see the need to change. This can be less about them being fully satisfied with their current setup or solution, and more about complacency—or even a fear of change.
The seller may hear things like:
- “I don’t think this product will work for our situation”
- “We don’t really need this right now”
- “This doesn’t seem like the right fit for us”
- “I’m not convinced this will solve our problem”
How to Handle Need-Based Objections
In this situation, your sellers must quickly identify the prospect’s priorities and determine if there are any weaknesses in the current provider’s offerings.
Your salesperson can ask, “If you don’t mind my asking: If you could change, modify, alter, or improve anything at all about your current supplier, what would it be?”
Your seller can then ask open-ended follow-up questions. The goal is to determine if there’s any single issue that’s less than 100% satisfactory to the prospect, and approach from this angle.
Sales Objection #4: Lack of Urgency
If the potential customer objects with, “We’re too busy right now” (or something along those lines), it could mean one of two things:
- They are interested in your solution but legitimately are too busy to implement a new product or service right now, or
- They lack urgency and are trying to brush you off.
How to Handle Urgency-Based Objections
Coach your salespeople to ask open-ended questions to understand if the prospect is actually qualified.
If they are, coach your sales professionals to find out if a prospect has an established timeline and how motivated they are to buy.
If they have a need and are aware of it, but are unclear on timing, your seller doesn’t have to move on completely. They can schedule a meeting in the future or hand the lead back to marketing to nurture until they’re further down the sales funnel and ready to commit to your service or product.
Good sales prospects will be hyper-aware of their problem and eager to find a solution. Sales teams should be able to pick up on this urgency early in the sales process.
If it’s simply a matter of timing, your salesperson should send along helpful resources in the meantime to continue to build value and stay on your prospect’s radar.
Sales Objection #5: Lack of Trust
Occasionally sellers will run up against a lack of trust or credibility. They’ll hear things like, “I’ve never heard of your company” or, “How do I know this will actually work?” These often need to be addressed before you can even get to the other objection types.
How to Handle Trust-Based Objections
For trust and credibility objections, coach your sellers to use a multi-layered approach. The key is being proactive about building trust throughout your entire sales process, not just when the objection comes up. Weave proof points into every conversation.
Lead with social proof immediately. Don’t just mention you have testimonials; be specific. “We’ve helped 15 companies in your exact industry reduce costs by an average of 23%.” Numbers and specificity beat vague claims every time.
Offer low-risk proof. This could be a pilot program, money-back guarantee, or free trial. “What if we started with just one department so you can see the results before expanding?”
Get granular with references. Instead of saying, “We have great references,” offer to connect them with a client in their industry who faced similar challenges. Make it as relevant as possible.
Address it head-on; don’t dodge. If the prospect says, “I’ve never heard of you,” acknowledge it: “You’re right, we’re not the biggest name in the space, and here’s why that’s actually an advantage for you…”
Share your story authentically. Brief background on why the founder started the company, your team’s experience, or what drives your mission. People buy from people they connect with.
Sales Training for Overcoming Objections
Make sure your sellers have the skills they need, with training on how to handle objections effectively and improve negotiation skills.
If your salespeople are following a consultative sales process, ideally they’ll address any objections before they come up. It’s always a good idea, however, to be ready with the most effective ways to address common concerns.
Coach your sellers to prepare answers to common objections they’ve received. In addition, ensure your sellers use questioning and active listening skills to uncover any hesitations a prospect or customer might have. Getting these out in the open early on allows the seller to address concerns before they become full-blown objections.
Find out how The Brooks Group can deliver customizable training to help your sales team overcome objections to win more deals, more often.
