Tips On Overcoming Sales Resistance When your clients and
prospects resist your sales presentation are they really saying
NO or are they asking you questions in order to make an informed
decision? Resistance can come in a variety of forms: The client
may not like you, they may not like your product or service or
they simply would prefer the status quo (change is not an
option.) If the prospect doesn’t like you, you may never be able
to recover. People buy from people they like and people who they
perceive are like them. If you don’t establish a strong
relationship with your prospect right from the beginning, no
matter how good your product or service may be, you probably
will not be able to give it away. In the first meeting with your
prospect, focus on the relationship not on selling. Work on
developing your relationship and establishing credibility with
your prospect. How do you distinguish yourself from the
competition? Remember..no one wants to be sold anything,
however, most of us love to make an informed decision to buy a
product or service. Give your prospect the respect they deserve.
Ask questions: Do you have an agenda for this meeting? How did
you get into this line of work? What strategies have you used to
create your current success? What are the problems that you see
limiting the future growth of your business? Are you always
prepared with a list of powerful, impactful questions to ask
your clients and prospects? How much time do you spend preparing
for each sales call? Do you just show up and hope everything
will turn out OK? Adequate preparation and well thought out
questions could very well make the difference in establishing
your relationship and credibility with your prospect as well as
a creating successful outcome. If your prospect is resistant to
your service or product, how do you overcome their objections?
Is your product or service an investment to your client to help
him/her solve a problem and improve bottom line profits or is it
viewed as an expense? Have you been able to determine the real
reasons why you are getting resistance? Picture an onion - your
job is to peel back each layer of the onion until you get to the
core of the onion and the real problem that the client is
facing. Then and only then will you be able to present
alternative solutions to help your prospect solve the problem.
NO PROBLEM…NO SALE!!! NO PAIN FOR THE PROSPECT…NO GAIN FOR
YOU!!! Can you show an ROI for the product or service you are
offering? If your customer would prefer the status quo
(resistant to change) vs. what you have to offer…they may not
see the value in your product or service. If your client asks
you…why should I do business with you? How do you respond?
Before you read my recommendation on how to respond to this
question…pause for a moment and write down your answer. If your
answer is all about better service, better quality, faster time
to market, more experience etc. get ready to lose the next sale
if the question comes up. A response to consider when asked …why
should I do business with you? Might be “Maybe you shouldn’t.
Although we’ve worked with many companies similar to yours, our
products/services might not make sense for you. Where do we go
from here?” Acknowledge the customer’s resistance. It will help
to defuse a tense moment. Take your time, work on the
relationship, STOP selling and focus on finding the real
problems and concerns of your prospects. Then show them how you
can make their problem go away.
The author, Ken Levine, is an executive sales coach who works
with business owners and their sales organization to help them
be more effective at sales and leads generation. Visit
www.impactbussolutions.com or write ken@impactbussolutions.com.
Phone:508-845-8849 Toll Free:866-277-0100
