Personal Selling Process: Meeting Objections

Objections are encountered in practically every presentation. They

should be welcomed because they indicate that the prospect has some

interest in the proposition. A prospect who is not interested in buying

seldom raises any objections, silently going along with the

presentation but saying at the end, “I’m not interested in your deal.”

There are several important techniques that should be used in

responding to a buyer objection:

Listen to the buyer. It is important that you listen actively. “Learn as much as you can about the objection,” says certified professional sales trainer and speaker Rick Grosso. “Encourage your prospect to expand and tell you more.” Do not assume that you know what the buyer is going to say, and never interrupt—nothing annoys a buyer more!

Clarify the objection. Repeat and clarify the objection by asking for more information, using questions such as “Let me see if I understand you correctly, [repeating the objection as you understand it]. Is that correct?” The buyer may confirm that you are correct in your understanding or provide additional information. Sometimes this step can uncover a misunderstanding that the buyer has about your product and/or service.

Respect the buyer’s concern. Acknowledge that you understand and appreciate the concerns. Remember that the buyer is not attacking you personally, so you should not become defensive.

Respond to the objection. It is important that you respond to the buyer’s concern. The specific response to the objection depends on the type of objection it is.

As these techniques suggest, the salesperson’s response to the

objection should not threaten the rapport that hopefully has been

developed with the customer. Like all people, customers desire to be

seen as competent, credible individuals; and want to be treated fairly.

Salespeople must keep this in mind and carefully manage the rapport

when overcoming customer objections. The most common types of

objections and specific strategies for handling them are discussed

next.

Price or Value Objections

Buyers who say “I don’t need it” or “It costs too much” are indicating

that they don’t think the value of solving the problem or meeting the

need is worth the cost. In this case, the salesperson must convince the

buyer of the importance of the problem and of the value of the

solution. It may be necessary to go back to the need assessment part

of the call to ask some additional problem impact and solution value

types of questions to increase the buyer’s perception of the

seriousness of the problem and the importance of a solution. If the

buyer acknowledges the importance of the problem but still feels that

the company can’t afford the product/service or that it is not a price-

competitive solution, then the salesperson can offer some price value

comparisons of alternative solutions.

Product/Service Objections

Sometimes the buyer acknowledges the importance of a problem but

doubts whether the product or service can solve his problem or

improve his operations. The buyer may disagree with the salesperson’s

assessment or, in some cases, even doubt the genuineness of the

salesperson. In this case, the salesperson needs to convince the buyer

that her product will do what she says. She must demonstrate or prove

that the product has the capability to fulfill the need. Some of the

proof-providing tactics are to offer the buyer

case histories testimonials independent tests a demonstration trial use expert opinion

Some objections relate to needs that your product cannot satisfy. In

this case, it is best to first acknowledge that your product or service

cannot meet the particular need. Then try to increase the perceived

value of your product by reemphasizing those important needs your

product can meet.

Procrastinating Objections

Procrastinating objections can be difficult to overcome. Some such

objections are

Let me think about it a while. I have to talk it over with my boss. I have to wait until the next budget cycle. I have some other reps to talk to before I make a decision.

Procrastinating prospects use such excuses to avoid acting on a

proposition immediately or to avoid admitting that they don’t have the

authority to make the decision.

In door-to-door selling, a sale that cannot be closed on one call usually

has little chance of completion. In many business sales, however, the

prospect cannot be pushed into a sale without creating considerable ill

will. In fact, businesses are taking more and more time before

committing. Customers today are very thorough. They use the Internet

to research all options and are careful not to make a mistake. A survey

of purchasers found that only 13 percent tend to buy within three

months, while 44 percent require 6 to 12 months to decide. A full 20

percent of purchasers say they require a year or longer before a typical

sale is complete. The sales rep must understand this extended buying

cycle and remain a patient and trusted adviser to the customer.

The amount of aggressiveness must be modified to fit the prospect and

the situation. Some people will not be pushed or rushed. In these

situations, the best strategy is to ask for a commitment for some

future action that will move the sale forward. For example, the

salesperson might ask for a meeting with the buyer and his boss or

with whoever else seems to have substantial influence over the

decision.

Hidden Objections

Prospects may state their objections to a proposition openly and give

the salesperson a chance to answer them. This is an ideal

circumstance, because everything is out in the open and the

salesperson does not need to read the prospect’s mind. Unfortunately,

prospects often hide their real reasons for not buying. Further, stated

objections may be phony. A prospect may say she does not like the

looks of a product, when she really thinks the price is too high. The rep

must determine the real barrier to the sale to be able to overcome it.

Some salespeople have developed special methods for getting the

prospect to disclose what is blocking the sale. One saleswoman uses

what she calls her “appeal for honesty” tactic. She says to the

reluctant prospect, “You expect me to be honest with you, as you

should. But haven’t I the same right—to expect you to be honest with

me? Now, honestly, what is bothering you about the proposition?”

However, the best technique for discovering hidden objections is to ask

questions that keep the prospect talking.

As we noted in the planning section, it is often necessary for

salespeople to change their original objectives and strategies for the

sales call. Salespeople must recognize the need and be willing to adapt

their presentations when the buyer’s objections signal that they may

have initially chosen the wrong strategies. Another important principle

to remember in handling most objections is to avoid arguments at any

cost. The sales rep should ask questions that help clarify the prospect’s

thinking. This provides insights into the precise obstacles that are

hindering the sale. Even if prospects are dead wrong, sales reps should

never offend them. A sales rep can win an argument only to lose the

sale.

Create Buyer Urgency and Needs

An objection in the world of B2B selling is a stated (or perceived) reason on the behalf of a prospective buyer as to why he or she is not

willing to commit either to buying your solution or to moving ahead to the next stage of the sale.

Most buyer objections can be avoided or, at least, neutralized by leading the sales process with consultative sales techniques. By opening discussions with buyers around the external pressures facing the buying organization and relating them to their internal pressures, desires and needs, before aligning the benefits of your solution with these pressures, needs and desires, your buyer will have much less reason to object to your proposal. Most of the doubts they held about your proposal will be extinguished if you create a compelling event in the mind of the prospect before explaining how your product or service will benefit them in dealing with this event.We call this consultative approach ‘Selling from the Left®’. If you are able to Sell from the Left® with a really compelling event, the buyer will not only want to avoid raising any objections that might delay the sale, they will want to proactively work with you to overcome any hurdles that you come across during the remainder of the sales process.

Be flexible and provide social proof

However, consultative sales techniques alone are not enough to maximize the amount of objections that you will avoid. To avoid as many objections as possible, you must be flexible and prepared to give away additional value, while you must also be poised to provide social proof to help with the momentum of the sale.

To summarize, the three secrets to avoiding objections are as follows:

1. Sell from the Left® using consultative sales techniques to create urgency and desire. This will motivate the buyer to avoid objections wherever possible and, if objections are raised, they will be more likely to be genuine objections that the buyer will wish to overcome.

2. be flexible and prepared to give additional value to help the momentum of the sale. Identify small points of additional value that you are willing to proactively add in to the sales process to maintain the momentum and avoid any potential concerns.3. Provide social proof of the solutions you have previously (and successfully) implemented for similar clients in the past. Social proof, in the form of great references, will reassure the buyer that others have benefited from your solution and will, therefore, reduce the buyer’s perception of the risk involved with investing in your solution.

If you can Sell from the Left® to create urgency and desire, you are flexible and prepared to give away additional value, and you provide

social proof of your previous successes, you will be able to avoid most of the objections that buyers typically throw at sales and business development professionals in sales meetings. By following these steps you will not only make the buyer avoid raising objections, but you will also create real interest and a desire on the buyer’s behalf to progress with the sale.

The Sales Relationship-Building process

For many years the traditional approach to selling emphasized the

first-time sale of a product or service as the culmination of the sales

process. Marketing concept and accompanying approach to personal

selling view the initial sale as merely the first step in a long-term

relationship-building process, not as the end goal. The relationship-

building process which is designed to meet the objectives contains six

sequential stages. These stages are (1) prospecting, (2) planning the

sales call, (3) presentation, (4) responding to objections, (5) obtaining

commitment/closing the sale and (6) building a long-term relationship.

When a buyer and a salesperson have a close personal relationship,

they both begin to rely on each other and communicate honestly.

When each has a problem, they work together to solveit. Such market

relationships are known as functional relationships. A person may have

such a relationship with along-term medical or dental practitioner or

hair-cutter.

When organizations move beyond functional relationships, they

develop strategic partnerships or strategic alliances. These are long-

term, formal relationships in which both parties make significant

commitments and investments in each other in order to pursue mutual

goals and to improve the profitability of each other.

Importance of personal selling The importance of the personal selling function depends partially on the nature of the product. As a general rule, goods that are new and different, technically complex or expensive require more personal selling effort. The salesperson plays a key role in providing the consumer with information about such products to reduce the risks

involved in purchase and use. Insurance, for example, is a complex and technical product that often needs significant amounts of personal selling. It is important to remember that for many companies the salesperson represents the customer’s main link to the firm. In fact, the salesperson is the company. Therefore it is imperative that the company take advantage of this unique link. Through the efforts of the successful salesperson, a company can build relationships with customers that continue long. Personal selling is an integral of the marketing system, fulfilling two vital duties: one for customers and one for companies. Lacking relevant information, customers are likely to make poor buying decisions. For example: Doctors would have difficulty finding out about new drugs and procedures were it not for pharmaceutical salespeople. Second, salespeople act as a source of marketing intelligence for management. Marketing success depends on satisfying customers needs. If present products don’t fulfill customer needs then profitable opportunities may exist for new or improved products. If problems with a company’s products exist, then management must be quickly apprised of the fact. In either situation, salespeople are in the best position to act as the intermediary through whom valuable information can be passed back and forth between product providers and buyers.

Disadvantages of Personal Selling

1. Intruding nature of the method - The biggest disadvantage of selling is the degree to which this promotional method is misunderstood. Most people have had some bad experiences with salespeople who they perceived were overly aggressive or even downright annoying.

2. It is expensive maintaining this type of promotional effort due to the high per-contact cost involved. Costs incurred in personal selling include high cost-per-action and training costs.

3. Job turnover in sales is often much higher than other marketing positions

4. Can not reach mass audience

5. Numerous calls needed to generate sale

6. Labour intensive

Advantages of Personal Selling

1.    One key advantage personal selling has over other promotional methods is that it is a two-way form of communication. In selling situations the message sender (e.g., salesperson) can adjust the message as they gain feedback from message receivers (e.g., customer). 

2.    It is Flexible - So if a customer does not understand the initial message (e.g., doesn’t fully understand how the product works) the salesperson can make adjustments to address questions or concerns. Many non-personal forms of promotion, such as a radio advertisement, are inflexible, at least in the short-term, and cannot be easily adjusted to address audience questions.

3.    The interactive nature of personal selling also makes it the most effective promotional method for building relationships with customers, particularly in the business-to-business market.  This is especially important for companies that either sell expensive products or sell lower cost but high volume products (i.e., buyer must purchase in large quantities) that rely heavily on customers making repeat purchases. Because such purchases may take a considerable amount of time to complete and may involve the input of many people at the purchasing company (i.e., buying centre), sales success often requires the marketer develop and maintain strong relationships with members of the purchasing company.

4.    Personal selling is the most practical promotional option for reachingcustomers who are not easily reached through other methods. The best example is in selling to the business market where, compared to the consumer market, advertising, public relations and sales promotions are often not well received