If you’re dealing with a sales objection… congratulations! You’re working with a decision-maker who has some skin in the game — and they’re taking your proposal seriously.
That’s exactly where you want to be.
“We should relish objections,” says Steve Bryerton, ZoomInfo’s Vice President of Sales.
“You might think that positive language is a good thing, but it’s not. When sales prospects offer objections, it means they’re taking you seriously. So often, feel-good conversations are with lower-level tire-kickers who don’t want to give you negative news. It can drag on forever.”
What Does a Sales Objection Look Like?
It’s not uncommon for prospects to bring up concerns during the sales process. With their revenue at stake, they might object to product features, pricing, and contract clauses — as well as some usual human friction.
It’s the job of the salesperson to tackle these concerns and ease the prospect towards an agreeable deal. Handling objections requires well thought out processes that can solve every possible situation.
It’s like an improvisation act — the best reactions to sales objections from sales reps are the ones that are ones that have been planned and thought out. So even if you’re caught off guard by a prospect, you can still land the perfect reaction.
Most Common Sales Objections
You’ve probably heard them all regardless of client size:
“I’m OK with the current situation and don’t feel the need to change.”
Even if a prospect says they’re ok, they most likely still face challenges in their day-to-day operations.
This is a good time to find out what these are and maybe send over relevant resources — including some content that directly speaks to them.
“It’s too expensive. We don’t have the budget for that.”
This is the most common objection sales reps face — and making price a main point in the pitch can botch your sale completely.
Instead, make your product’s features the focal point of your pitch with pricing as a last detail. And of course, there’s always the option of offering a discount or special pricing package.
“I have to focus on other things first. It’s not the right time. Why now?”
As professionals, respecting time is a two-way street. Sharing that respect with a prospect and working with their schedule helps with a first impression — which reflects on your company.
This is a good time to crunch some numbers to show exactly how your product or service can help their everyday operations.
So let’s say your prospect is an aerospace manufacturer and you’re selling supply chain software: If your contact is too busy for a full-blown pitch, show them exactly how your software can minimize production time.
“We’re too small. We see the value, we’re just not ready.”
This is a similar objection to “I have to focus on other things,” with time and effort being main concerns.
Although enterprise businesses are more desirable for sales reps, there needs to be a respect for smaller accounts. In this case, your main focal point is their growth. Help track their challenges and goals as they expand, and adapt your selling strategy.
“We already use another vendor.”
For sales reps, this is the perfect opening for comparing your product or service to your competitor’s. Find out their challenges with their current solution and dive right in with solutions your product can solve.
But also in this case, your prospect could be stuck in a contract. If you’re playing the long game, schedule a meeting with them around the time their contract expires.
“I don’t really have the authority to make a call like that.”
A simple answer to this is to ask directly who would be better suited to hear your pitch. Or you can find out from the very beginning who the best fit contact is for selling.
ZoomInfo’s database includes contacts of all management levels, and makes it easy to find the exact person for your pitch.
While these objections can seem like a closed door, sales reps should instead see them as opportunities. The more negative sentiment you get during calls, especially in later stages, means the prospect is wrestling internally — hoping you can make them feel good.
“If you’re NOT getting objections, you’re probably not very close to a sale, because your prospect doesn’t have that uncomfortable feeling of taking a risk,” said Bryerton. “They should feel that they have some skin in the game and voice concern.”
How to Overcome Objections in Sales
We talked with three sales leaders at ZoomInfo, including Bryerton, to find the perfect response to sales objections.
Hit these five points when you get an objection – and add a little ammo to your arsenal, disarm your buyers, and have more productive sales conversations:
- Validate Your Prospect’s Concern
- Ask Broad, Open-Ended Questions
- The Silent… Pause
- Voice it in Someone Else’s Words
- And When All Else Fails – Go for the NO
1. Validate Your Prospect’s Concern.
Here are some common scenarios sales reps run into:
Prospect: “I’m worried that your product is more software than we need, and -”
Salesperson: “Here’s a case study showing companies YOUR size will LOVE all our features!”
Prospect: “It’s too expensive. Your competitor’s product is half the price and has more -”
Salesperson: “Our ROI is huge! You can’t afford NOT to buy it!”
DO NOT DO THIS. You don’t overcome objections by steamrolling over them!
These reactionary responses make a prospect feel like a number on a list — and a deer in the headlights. Completely steamrolled. Dismissed.
Yes, you have a great counterpoint to every possible objection under the sun. Now is not the time to wield it. Their concern might be a valid one, or it might be a smokescreen for a different concern. Either way, you want to know.
ZoomInfo Account Executive Jessica Rogers thinks responding to objections is like dealing with family members: People don’t change their minds very often. And if they do, it won’t be because of a canned, knee-jerk response.
Rogers likes to help prospects understand that their concern is normal:
“A lot of companies at your stage are growing out of their solution and aren’t ready to make this kind of change. I’ve worked with a lot of people in your position and get that question a lot. Here are some ways we have solved it …”
“You never want to tell them that they’re wrong,” Rogers says. “I always think about how I can make them feel like they’re right, validated, that their concerns are good. Because they are! If they say ‘I’m looking at your competitor,’ my response is, ‘Great. I am glad you’re doing your due diligence and exploring the market. Here are a few questions I would make sure you get answered…”
2. Ask Broad, Open-Ended Questions.
When you get an objection, ask follow-up sales questions. Really understand what the objection is. (“Don’t tell them why their objection is invalid,” says Bryerton. “That’s such an amateur move.”)
Let them think about it, so you can understand the objection thoroughly.
- Respond with a general open-ended question (“What do you mean it’s too expensive?” “Well, how does your budget work?”)
- Respond to the status quo (“What problem were you trying to solve when you reached out to us?”) Pain is a catalyst for change.
Steve Waters, ZoomInfo’s Senior Director of Commercial Sales, says, “Get them to elaborate on their objection as it relates to your solution. ‘Why would you want to wait until Q4 to solve your problem? Why not fix it today?’ You have to get into the details: Either it’s not a real objection, or there are opportunities for collaboration.”
(Or the prospect simply isn’t a good fit, or it’s really not the right time.)
“If it’s a logistical thing, you can work it out. If it’s a real objection that you can’t get around, then you know and can plan for it. If it’s a smokescreen for something else, now you know what you’re dealing with.
“Sometimes,” Waters adds, “if you give your prospect the floor, the prospect will talk themselves out of the objection.”
3. The Silent … Pause
Faced with an objection, it’s natural to be defensive.
Rogers says the key is being able to take the objection and let it hang. Be quiet. Sit with it. Often, the first objection we give is a small part of a much larger story. If you sit in silence, they will start filling in the gaps. They’ll start talking and keep going.
“I’ll ask, ‘What needs to be in place for this deal to happen? Tell me: If we can overcome X, Y, and Z — can we move forward?’
After then you be quiet and let them talk. Say, ‘I hear you’ and give them time to speak. It’s a lot better than trying to jump down each other’s throat.”
Awkward pauses are the best way to overcome sales objections because buyers know your answers are thoughtful.
4. Voice it in Someone Else’s Words.
Most people don’t want to disappoint people they like, and so are reluctant to voice their own concerns. That makes it hard for good relationship-based salespeople (like yourself) to understand what their prospects’ objections really are. And you can’t address what you don’t know.
A favorite tactic of Steve Waters is to give prospects an opportunity to speak their objections as though the concern is coming from someone else, like a different stakeholder:
- “Is your CEO going to want to see this? What concerns do you think they will have?”
- “How is your business partner going to react? Is there anything else they would want to know?”
- “Most IT directors have objection X. Is that going to be a concern of your IT director?”
Waters also suggests framing the objection as a common one, along with a favorite solution: “Most sales leaders look at it this way. But you’re looking at it this way. Why?” Find out what they really care about.
“I find that it’s easier to get someone to elaborate on their objections if you put it in the guise of what someone else might think,” says Waters. “In reality, you’re asking, ‘What other objections do YOU have?’ It’s easier for them to pretend it’s someone else’s objections, especially if you developed a great rapport with them.”
5. Go For The ‘No.’
Bryerton suggests isolating your prospect’s objection — then asking if it’s a deal-breaker.
A big, confusing ball of various fears is hard to tackle; it’s much easier to identify each of the concerns specifically and address them one at a time. Most objections are not deal-breakers.
Bryerton suggests an approach like this:
- “Pricing seems to be a big concern for you. Should we call it quits and not look forward to generating $X return, because of price?”
- “Is missing your revenue target an option for you?”
- “Are you no longer trying to fix X problem? Let’s not forget why we started talking. I’m sure you still want to solve this.”
- “We started talking about this because you have a major challenge, causing you to miss numbers. You’re concerned about spending $25,000, to grow revenue by $3 million? Should we call it quits because of the $25,000, or is that $3 mil the reason we’re still talking?”
More often than not, Bryerton says, they’re just wrestling with uncertainty. But you should be prepared to walk away.
Finally, to handle sales objections strategically, Bryerton keeps the benefit to the customer at the heart of any response. He likes to consider both tangible and intangible benefits:
- Tangible: What does it mean for this individual? How can I make this person a hero, or make their life easier?
- Intangible: What’s the emotional payoff? At ZoomInfo, we increase morale on the sales or marketing team: That’s a cost you won’t see on a balance sheet.
Having a Sales Objection Strategy Can Get You to Your Deal Faster
In overcoming sales objections, a sales professional must have the prospect’s best interest at heart. Creating engaged customers is really about discovering that interest, and using it to frame the conversation and drive toward an agreement. For more, read our post, Closing Big Deals: How ZoomInfo Won Its Largest Sale Ever.
This post was last updated December 1st, 2020.
