One of the main struggles I see with business owners is their inability to close a sale and get paid. This isn’t just beginning business owners either. I see it all the time with more experienced business owners as well. The culprit is they usually don’t know how to handle sales objections.
If you don’t know how to properly handle sales objections like “I can’t afford it”, then it can often feel like you’re flying by the seat of your pants. Here are some of the ways to address sales objections so you actually get paid.
Handle the objections through your online marketing.
The best way to handle sales objections is to nip them in the bud before they even happen. Perhaps the most effective way of doing this is through your online marketing materials.
For example, one of my students is running a PR agency and often hears from prospects that they’ve been burned by PR people in the past. This is a golden opportunity to create content that addresses that specific concern.
If you’re able to do this with all the sales objections you receive, they become a lot less frequent when it comes time to close a sale.
Have the proper systems in place.
Another way to handle sales objections is to minimize how often they happen. The previous section notes an example of how to do that through your marketing. In this section, we are addressing systems.
Here is an example of a system I use in my own business to weed out people who may not be ready to invest in coaching:
- They sign up for a consult with me via an opt-in page.
- From there they are redirected to a survey which acts like a quiz.
- If they get X point or above, they are redirected to my calendar to book an appointment.
- For those that do not score above a certain number, they are redirected to a page where I sell my book as a self-study program.
This one system alone has significantly increased the number of times I can close a sale easily.
Have confidence in addressing objections during sales calls.
One of my mentors recently told me that people buy confidence. Having just come off of my first nearly five-figure launch, I have to say this is true.
I often have to coach clients through how to sound and act confident during sales calls. The good news is this stuff isn’t second nature to most people. That means it’s simply a skill that can be learned.
The more practice you have with sales, the more confident you become in actually conducting them. As such, I would advise you put yourself in as many situations as possible where you are forced to sell. You may also find it beneficial to hire a mentor who can help with this.
Know the technical aspects of selling.
Selling is equal parts mindset and technique. When it comes to handling sales objections, you need to actually know the specific strategies you can use to overcome them.
For example, if someone has the objection of “I can’t afford it” that would be the time to share client results with them. Essentially, its your job to show them why paying you is worth the investment.
Final Thoughts
In the world of sales, objections are actually signals that someone wants to buy. The onus is on the business owner to know how to read and manage the signals.
