What an objection actually means
Four objections cover almost everything you will hear, and each one usually means something other than what it says. The useful response is a question, not an argument.
Somebody has said no, or the softer version of no that sounds like a maybe. This is the part most people experience as failure. It is not. An objection is the most specific information you have received so far, and it is free.
The mistake is to argue. Someone raises a concern, you explain why they are wrong, they agree politely, and the conversation ends. You have won the argument and lost both the sale and the information. The useful response to an objection is a question.
The four you will hear, and what they mean
Almost every objection is one of four, and each one usually means something other than what it says.
- It is too expensive. Rarely about the number. It usually means they do not yet believe the outcome is worth it, or they are comparing against a cheaper alternative you have not asked about. Ask what they are comparing it to.
- Not right now. Sometimes true. More often it means this problem is not costing them enough to jump the queue. Ask what would have to happen for it to become urgent.
- I could do this myself. Often true, and not the point. Ask whether they will, and when. The honest answer is frequently no, and they know it.
- I need to think about it. Almost always a missing piece of information they are too polite to ask for. Ask what they would need to know to decide.
What to actually say
Knowing the diagnosis is not the same as having the words ready. Something close to these, said without defensiveness and followed by silence.
- Too expensive: 'That is fair. What are you comparing it against?' Then stop. The answer tells you whether you have a price problem, a value problem or a competitor you did not know about.
- Not right now: 'Understood. What would need to happen for this to become the thing you deal with next?' If the answer is nothing, it is a no, and you have saved yourself three follow-ups.
- I could do it myself: 'You probably could. When would you get to it?' Asked without sarcasm, this is the most effective question on the list, because both of you already know the answer.
- I need to think about it: 'Of course. What would you need to know to decide?' This converts a polite exit into the actual question they were too courteous to ask.
The silence after each is doing as much work as the question. The instinct is to fill it with reassurance, which answers the objection on their behalf and usually with the wrong answer.
Patterns, not instances
One person saying it is expensive is one person. Six people saying it is expensive is a price problem, a proof problem, or a buyer problem. Count them. Write them in a list and read the list once you have ten, instead of reacting to each one as it arrives.
Reacting to individual objections is how offers turn to mush. Someone wants it cheaper, you discount. Someone wants an extra thing, you include it. Six conversations later you are selling something nobody asked for at a price that does not work.
Following up without becoming a nuisance
Most sales to people who did not say yes immediately happen on a later contact, and most people never make one. Two or three follow-ups, spaced and each carrying something, is not pestering.
- A few days later: the specific thing they asked about, sent without a pitch attached.
- A couple of weeks later: something that became relevant, a result from another client, a change in their situation you noticed.
- Then stop, and say you are stopping. 'I will leave this here, come back to me if it becomes useful' closes the loop cleanly and is surprisingly often answered.
What makes this bearable for both sides is that each message contains something other than a request. A follow-up that only says 'any thoughts?' is a request for emotional labour, and it is why people stop replying.
When the answer really is no
Say thank you, ask one last question, and leave the door open. The last question should be: if you ever did look for something like this, what would have made you choose it? People are noticeably more honest once they are no longer being sold to, and that answer is often the most valuable sentence in the whole conversation.
Work to do
- Collect every objection you have received into one list, in the words the person used.
- Sort them into the four groups above, and note which group is largest.
- Write your one-line response to each of the four, so you are not inventing it under pressure.
- Go back to two people who said no and ask the last question. Write down exactly what they say.