3/26/2025-Initiate an objection convo

Anything short of asking a direct question and forcing them to tell you their objections is beating around the bush.

You can be a great listener, have strong probing skills, and be a competent negotiator….but those skills aren’t as essential to your success as objection handling.

To gain entry into the TOP 10%, you must develop the courage and skill to initiate conversations about obstacles and conflicts. Buyers will not voluntarily introduce objections unless you hunt for them.

Sticking your head in the sand and assuming your prospect loves everything about your offering is naive.

Commit to activating these three objection-handling techniques today…and every day hereafter:

1. Surface objections on every customer interaction. (Yes, even on your first pitch discovery meetings. Perceptions form early!)

2. Seed objections to purposely get them in the open. You know your common objections, so bring ’em up to control the narrative.

3. Do not try to resolve the objection on the spot…patiently listen and get your customers talking. The buyer is more apt to participate in the solution stage if s/he feels heard.

Those sales trainers who promote their act on YouTube will tell you there are 11…or 14…or even more essential steps and skills needed to master objection handling.

Don’t let them mislead you.

Objection handling is about having gobs of courage to address issues proactively, and you’ll get that courage by doing. The more frequently you ask your prospects about their thoughts on why you may not do a deal, the bigger your courage grows.

Prepare for your hard question by crafting language you are comfortable with.

Here’s a good one: "So, you’ve seen enough about our offering to have formed many impressions…let’s talk about the issues you have about our offering that may derail our chance of doing business."

But that question may not be specific enough for some prospects – they may hide behind a generic answer that doesn’t help you move the needed on their perceptions. You might need to follow up with, "So… what specifically are your objections about our fit?"

Further, don’t think you’re being courageous or direct when asking this question, "…so, what questions do you have about our product?"

That’s not a question directly referring to objections and you won’t learn anything to help you solve the issue.

Start with the premise that buyers won’t automatically or freely tell you about the issues that may be defined as objections or obstacles. And you certainly can’t solve any objections until you know the truth.

Don Draper doesn’t have time to surface objections in this highly entertaining Mad Men clip. But because he’s Don Draper, he effortlessly hops over the hurdles and saves the business anyway.

You’re not Don…you need to hunt objections frequently and proactively!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYvuuyhH-Gk