Objection Handling Guide: 7 Tips for Objection Handling in Sales

Objection handling is how a salesperson responds to a prospect who voices concerns during the sales process. Whether a potential customer raises objections about pricing, product need, timing, or any other excuse, a good salesperson must use objection-handling skills to alleviate those concerns and move toward closing the sale.

The key is learning how to do this without seeming confrontational. Objection handling should not involve pressuring or arguing with a prospect. Rather, it is a way of building trust by listening and asking the right questions so that the prospect forms a more favorable opinion of the product on their own.

It doesn't matter which stage of the sales cycle you're in—from the first prospecting sales call to the final sales meeting to close the deal—it's essential that you and your sales team know how to handle objections. Below are some of the best objection handling techniques to prevent deal-breaker excuses from thwarting your next sales pitch.

1. 1. Be an active listener. To build trust with your prospect, it's essential that they feel like you're actually hearing their concerns. Give them space, avoid interjecting, and use active listening to understand their apprehensions. Understanding their goals, motivations, wants, and fears will help you navigate the objection handling process effectively. An authentic connection with the prospect will help lead to an optimal outcome for both parties.
2. 2. Mirror the prospect’s objection. Mirroring is the conscious repetition of your counterpart’s words, and it is one of several negotiation techniques that sales professionals can use to build a rapport and make their prospects feel heard. After a potential customer raises concerns, simply repeat the customer's objections back to them to reinforce that you understood them properly the first time.
3. 3. Identify the true objection. Often the first objection you hear from a prospect isn't actually the main issue that's preventing them from making the purchase. Rather, it's a smoke screen excuse that the prospect believes will make it harder for you to keep moving forward. The best way to blow past that smoke screen and identify the prospect's true objection is to ask them, "If I could solve that issue for you, what other barriers are preventing you from moving ahead?" The answer to that question is most likely the actual objection that you must address. If the prospect responds that there aren't any other barriers in their way, then you know that their first objection was, in fact, their true objection.
4. 4. Use empathy to validate the prospect's concerns. A great technique to handle all types of objection is to empathize with your prospect and let them know that you understand where they're coming from. Once you do that, the prospect will lower their guard, and they'll be more open to accept a solution. For example, if a prospect tells you that training their employees to use your product seems like a burdensome task, you might respond, "That's a valid concern. I know first-hand how stressful it can be to get acquainted with a new workflow system. That's why we've made sure our support team has experience working with comparable businesses and that they’re always available to make the transition process as smooth as possible."
5. 5. Reframe price objections. One of the most common objections you and your salesforce will hear is "I'm sorry, but the price is too high." To handle this familiar rebuttal, avoid getting caught up in a numbers game with the prospect and instead reframe their pricing objection to show them that your product’s value is worth the price. Circle back to all the ways your product solves their pain points and addresses their needs.
6. 6. Use evidence to alleviate the prospect's concerns. After a while, you'll notice that many prospects raise similar objections. Once you recognize these common sales objections, prepare yourself with evidence that shows you have current happy clients who initially voiced the same concerns. You could simply tell stories about your current clients, but a more effective tactic is to prepare customer testimonials and case studies.
7. 7. Follow up with open-ended questions. Asking follow-up questions will help keep the conversation flowing while also helping you pinpoint the best way to handle the sales objection. Asking a follow-up question with a simple "yes" or "no" answer can easily halt a productive sales conversation in its tracks, so ask open-ended questions that create opportunities for your prospect to elaborate on their needs and concerns.

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