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The first and BEST way we’ll discuss beating objections is by doing what we call “pre-beating” them! This is the technique that we try to get everyone proficient at as quickly as possible.
You ‘pre-beat’ an objection simply by bringing it up first. The rule is that whoever brings it up first usually wins! We don’t really know WHY this works, we simply care that it DOES work!
Example 1: (non-business)
Say you wear a size 8 shoe. You go into a shoe store and see that a certain brand is on sale. You ask the salesperson to let you try a size 8. He comes back in a few minutes and says, “Sorry, we’re out of size 8’s; would you like to try a 9? Now, if you’re like me, you will probably say, “That’s o.k. I REALLY need a size 8. Thanks anyway!” and leave or look for another shoe.
But if the shoe sales person knew anything about selling, and he at least wanted you to give the size 9 a try, he would ‘pre-beat’ your objection first by saying, “Sir, I know you need an 8, and I looked for one, but several people who normally wear size 8’s have actually been happy with a 9 in this brand- they run a little short. Let’s go ahead and see what you think of the 9. If it fits, GREAT! If not, that’s o.k. too!”
Now, all of a sudden, you find yourself trying on a size 9 simply because the sales person handled your objection appropriately! You may or may not like the size 9, but the sales person at least got a ‘demo’ out of you!
Example 2: (non-business) Real “Pizza Objection”
Say you and your spouse or significant other actually just had pizza for dinner several nights ago, but low and behold, for some reason, you’re all of a sudden in the mood for a mouthwatering, deep-dish, Chicago-styled pizza again! (I know from experience this can happen!) If you say to your spouse, “Let’s get pizza again,” there’s a very significant chance that he or she is going to say, “We just had pizza! Forget it!” (hence they brought up the objection first and will probably win!) However, a savvy salesperson would instead have a strategy to bring up the objection first saying: “Honey, I KNOW we just had pizza the other night, and you’re going to think I’m crazy, but I am starving for a juicy, thick, Chicago-styled pizza! I don’t know why, but what do you think! Let’s go for it! And we don’t have to get pizza ever again unless you want… O.K.???” Now, by bringing it up first, your spouse will more than likely not say “we just had pizza the other night!” BECAUSE YOU ALREADY BROUGHT UP THE OBJECTION! YOU WILL PROBABLY WIN!
Example 3: (Business example- Price Objection)
Most sales people, regardless of the industry, usually run into situations where they receive objections about the price of their product or service. We’ll do more examples on the videotape, but regarding price, it doesn’t matter what you sell, you just need to bring up the price objection FIRST!
“Mr. Smith, I know you (like Bill and Mike) really like the XYZ Product. Now, I have to admit, the XYZ’s definitely not the cheapest out there. In fact, it’s probably a little more than similar models. But like Bill was telling me, he’d rather invest a little more up front to prevent all the down-time later, and he figured he probably wouldn’t even remember the exact price he actually paid two or three years from now (or maybe even a few weeks from now!)”
Example 4: (Business example- Competition)
Another common objection most sales people receive is something like, “We’re happy with who we’re with,” or “We just picked one of those up from your competitor!” The average sales person gets shut down at this point. The advanced sales person never lets himself get into this spot in the first place.
First, by using his profile (research) information, he already knows his prospect is with the competitor. In fact, he already knows everything possible about the actual competitor company AND the competitor himself or herself. So let’s see how the experienced sales person would handle this objection example:
“Mr. Prospect, I’m glad I finally got a hold of you! I work with Mike, Sherry, and Todd at RRR Company and thought I’d give you a call too! Now, I talked with Linda (his secretary) and she mentioned you guys were pretty happy with CCC Company (competitor). Do you guys work with Ted at CCC? He’s a really nice guy! Anyway, that’s the reason I was calling you. I work with a lot of companies like RRR who work with Ted. We helped RRR get 150% out of Ted’s product and I thought I’d call to tell you what Todd, Sherry, and Mike are doing!
Now is Mr. Prospect going to rudely cut-off the sales person to announce “We already work with CCC Company?” Nope- the sales person already established this. Here’s another way of pre-beating the competition objection: “Hi! Is this Mr. Prospect? I’m Mike with XYZ Company and I wanted to give you a call- you currently work with Ted at CCC right? Well, so does Todd, Sherry, and Mike at RRR and that’s why I’m calling….”
If you “miss” an objection or fail to pre-beat an objection, you still have a shot at beating it, but your chances can greatly diminish!
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