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Sometimes you get objections before you can prevent or preempt them. Other times, with new products or services, you intentionally blunder forward to collect objections so that you can understand how best to prevent and preempt them. It's also true that the prospect may have a question or concern rather than an actual objection. In this case, the way in which you would handle these questions or concerns is the same way you would respond to it as though it were an objection. That's convenient. When a person objects, it usually is powered by some unfavorable emotion. The stronger the emotion, the less access they have to the reasoning or logic part of their brain. For a response to be accepted, you'll first need to defuse the emotion. Four Steps Common to all Responding Strategies Listen Transition Answer Confirm 1. Listen The secret to responding to objections, answering questions or concerns, and offering suggestions during problem solving is to earn your right to...

Your Competitor Analysis tells you where your competitors are strong and that those strengths can become objections. The Competitor Analysis also helps you identify how to neutralize each of these strengths. When that's not possible, you're going to get objections, spoken or not. If you are unable to prevent it from happening, your next best strategy is to preempt it. You preempt objections by bringing them up when it's most advantageous for you to address them and then close on the answer you provided. The most effective way to do this is to structure your answer within a transition sentence. Transition Sentences Most people are unwilling to change their minds but are willing to make a new decision based on new or redefined information. With transition sentences, you can:  Support without agreeing. Help them save face. Prevent arguments. Pull rather than push (Judo strategy). Prepare them to receive new information. Examples "Before we go too much furt...

Look at each of your top competitors, and for each one, identify where you’re strong, the competitor is weak, and the customer has needs. These are your Unique Selling Points (USPs).  After conducting about a dozen or so of these competitor analyses, you'll begin to find at least three to five Unique Selling Points you can apply consistently to most sales situations. Types of Needs to meet Functional Needs: What your product or service does. Business Needs: All businesses have these four needs: Increase profits, Lower costs, Strengthen Image, and Lessen Risk (internal and marketplace) Human Needs: Individually or in combination: Money Needs, Safety Needs, Esteem Needs, and Pleasure Needs. Areas to explore for these needs include Prospect’s products and services: How can your Unique Selling Points make them better. Prospect’s critical processes: How your Unique Selling Points impact their ability to make money. Prospect’s business plan: How your Unique Selling Point...

Objections are legitimate criticisms about your products, services, company, and self, based on what the prospect currently knows. It means that prospects can make “new favorable decisions” once they get new or redefined information that answers the “criticisms.” Your competitors’ strengths trigger objections. Industry concerns, company reputation, and other issues specific to what you sell can trigger objections. Unanswerable objections are those with no direct answer. The prospect objects because they want something you can’t offer but your competitor can. Conditions look like objections, but they are not. Conditions are the minimum specifications or requirements that must be met for the customer to benefit from the purchase and at the same time not be harmed by the purchase. There are three basic ways to handle objections: Prevent them from entering the prospect’s mind. Preempt known objections when the timing is best for you. Respond to expressed objections using a consi...