You Cost Too Much! Or, Do You?
Objections are misunderstood. On the surface, objections are designed to get you to go away.
You might have heard me talk about selling orthopedic implants. I recall one of the surgeons I was selling to asked if there was long-term data on the product. She knew that was impossible. By the time I have long term data, I’ll be selling a new product. It was a polite way to say no.
But here’s the thing with that objection. If I had 10 years of data, that wouldn’t have encouraged the surgeon to give the product another look. As sellers, we need to qualify the objection for what it is.
How to Qualify the Objection
Ask yourself, Is this objection just meant to make me go away, or is it a real objection that suggests some interest? In my example of the surgeon requesting the study, that was something I needed to fight through. Occasionally you need to brush it to the side. But if this is a prospect you’ve been calling on for a while, sometimes you need to look them in the eye and say, “we both know that’s not the real issue.”
When you know, believe, and feel it in your soul that you can help someone solve their problem, you have to fight through some of that initial garbage. It’s puffery.
When you get an objection, consider whether it is tied to a real buying motive. Most salespeople will take that first objection and walk away. You’re going to get these objections time and time again but they’re not substantive. When you get the same objection over and over, ask why it is an issue.
Would 10 years of data really help the surgeon decide to buy, or did she just not want to engage at that time? When you’re bold enough to ask those questions, you’re doing a professional job prospecting. You’re being persistent and showing value. You’re showing that you’re someone worth talking to with something worth talking about.
You’ve earned the right to ask those questions and to clarify what the real motives are. When an objection is not tied to real motive, you’ve got to push it to the side and work around it.
Emotion is Inertia
When objection is tied to a motive, now we’re talking. You’ve gotten through surface-level throwaway objections and gotten to meaty objections, such as cost, timing, and specific features. This you can work with. These objections are tied to emotion.
One of the biggest mistakes sellers make is trying to overcome objections with a bunch of data. They’re ignoring the emotion behind the motive. They’re not tapping into the reason the prospect is interested in the conversation.
You’ve got to be on your game and have swagger to stand up to your prospect. Use their emotion to your benefit. “You cost too much” is one of my favorite objections to hear. It suggests that if you cost the right amount (whatever that is) then they would buy. They’ve emotionally bought into the idea behind the solution, and you have inertia to work with. You have room to maneuver. You can sell!
One of my friends says it’s really hard to steer a parked car. But if it’s moving, you can change the direction. Emotion is inertia. When someone says you’re too expensive, you can steer the conversation. You might respond with something like,
There are a lot of people who sit in the chair you sit in and have made the same assessment. We do cost more, however, what’s underneath the surface, what others have recognized is a, b, c and d.
When they try to measure you against everybody else in terms of cost, measure yourself in terms of ability to get them where they want to go in a different, yet more substantial way. Change the conversation. Focus on the value you provide.
When you’re selling to someone who thinks they know what they need, and there are multiple competitors, they’ll always try to reduce you to your commonalities. Stick to your differentiators. When they make it general, you make it specific. Focus on what makes you different.
Maybe This Isn’t Your Customer
There are going to be times when people just don’t understand what you bring to the table. I love the price objection, but I did recently have a conversation where this objection came up and I had to walk away.
I could have asked what it would take to get the deal. I could have asked where they needed the price to be.
But that would erode the value I provide. In my line of work, the price should sting a little bit. My clients need to have skin in the game. They have to do their part to help execute on the strategies, training and coaching I offer. If they’re not going to do anything with it, then that’s not going to be a good outcome. I realized this prospect just wasn’t for me.
That’s ok. There are a lot of prospects out there.
Ask yourself, are you calling on the right people? If you’re getting the same objection over and over, it could mean you need to re-target your offer. Decide if you’re putting yourself in front of the right companies.
Don’t bail at the first sign of resistance. Don’t cave and discount the price. Your job is to sell. That means digging in, doing really good discovery, uncovering the motives behind the purchase, not just the problems you solve. The more you can learn, the more rapport and better reputation you have. With that reputation you get an opportunity to change perspectives. You earn the right to offer new solutions in different ways. There’s value in that.
Put this into practice. Think of your top five objections. For those throwaway objections, what are you going to do to get over them? When it comes to the emotional objections, how will you engage?
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Jeff Bajorek
Real. Authentic. Experience.
There’s a big difference between knowing how to sell and being able to. Jeff Bajorek spent over a decade in the field as a top performer. He’s been in your shoes. He knows what it will take. He can help you succeed.
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