There’s a huge misconception that the most important skill to master in sales is overcoming objections. In this episode, Steve discussed why you shouldn’t overcome objections but use them as an opportunity to inform and reeducate a prospect or customer instead. Don’t miss out on the six basic concepts that can elevate you from a salesperson to a consultant.
Welcome to the Grow show. My name is Steve Dozier, and I'm the Sales Director here at abstract Marketing Group. Today's episode is about overcoming objections. And I need you to bear with me for just a second, because I don't think you should ever overcome an objection. It's just a terrible mindset to be in. When you're trying to connect with your prospect and make a sale. Just look at the definitions of overcome an objection. Combined, they're in direct conflict with what a salesperson needs to do. Objection in the Webster dictionary is a reason or argument presented in opposition. In the Cambridge dictionary, it's the act of expressing or filling opposition to or dislike of something or someone. So basically, your prospect doesn't agree with you, and doesn't like what you're offering. Next, look up overcome. In Webster, it's to gain superiority or to win in the Cambridge dictionary. It's to defeat or succeed in controlling or dealing with something. Now think about how that would feel if you were the prospect Do you really want to make them feel defeated, controlled, conquered or feel like they're a loser? In my opinion, that's a guaranteed way to assure that you're not going to get a sale. So when you and your prospect disagree on a topic, your goal is not to defeat them. You don't want to overcome their objection. It's really to re educate them. And that's the difference between salespeople and consultants. The definition of re educate is to teach someone to do or to understand something in a new way. Think about the difference just in your mindset, compared to trying to overcome an objection which would seem like a battle or something you have to win. But when you think about re educating someone, doesn't that personally feel like a great goal or a valuable service that you're providing. See the difference in the mindset. When you believe you're re educating your prospect, you're also enhancing their perception of you as a consultant versus someone who just wants a sale. You're providing insight, you're giving them something new to process that they didn't have prior to your discussion, there are a few things you need to consider in order to successfully re educate a prospect. Now, first and foremost, is never mean never try to re educate immediately after the objection is brought to your attention. The prospects defensive walls at that moment are just way too high. And your response can only be viewed as you overcoming their objection, which is something we've already talked about you don't want to do. I'm not saying not to address it, just put it in your back pocket and bring it up on your time. After you've built more credibility with the prospect. You can reintroduce it by saying something like now let's go back to a statement you made earlier. Next is something we've covered in a previous podcast on preparing for a meeting. You need to be prepared and have your questions ready that provide a very thorough understanding of what, why and how they develop their current position on the topic. Because if you don't know the reasons for their current perception is nearly impossible to provide new insights. Something that most salespeople have a very difficult time doing is accurately listening. If you're serious about increasing your success, and being a professional consultant, you need to learn how to listen. Most salespeople listen only for the opportunity to talk. Consultants listen to learn what they should talk about. Another topic we also covered in our previous podcast is the delivery of your content. You have to be smooth. Don't use filler words. And you have to speak with confidence in your voice. And that includes using inflection in both your voice and the speed in which you talk. Of course it's all about practice, practice, practice. Write down the five most common objections you hear, then write down two different answers to each. Now practice delivering them over and over again until you can confidently deliver them as a professional consultant. And trust me you're not going to accomplish that without practicing what you want to say, and how you want to say it. And the last one for most people is without a doubt the most difficult. And that's asking if you're successful. Do they now agree with how you've presented it? I think the reason this is so hard for most people is because they don't want to hear the answer if the answer is not what they want to hear. One of the best lessons I have ever learned in sales, is that not asking a question doesn't change the answer. It just puts you in the dark as to what it is. The best answer obviously is yes. The second best answer is a no because you know how to proceed or not to proceed at all. But the absolute worst case scenario, is you not knowing what the answer is. Hopefully, this episode on comparing the mindset of overcoming objections, and re educating and the process I walked you through, will help you to elevate from a salesperson to a professional consultant. So thanks for taking the time to listen to our gross show sales tips, and stay tuned for more actionable