Nobody likes acknowledging it. Everybody deals with it. Yes, you guessed it—we’re talking about sales objections. Those annoying, niggling little questions that come up as an inevitable part of every single sales process, no matter how enthusiastic the prospect or initially promising the negotiation.
Put simply, sales objections are barriers that stand in the way between a sales rep and a closed, signed-on-the-dotted-line deal. They can take a number of different forms, from concrete concerns related to price or product fit to more abstract issues related to concepts like timing. Often, it’s the customer’s way of expressing uncertainty or seeking more information, and can sometimes even be a way to test the salesperson, especially if they’re already considering offers from competitors.
But despite how unpleasant they are to come face-to-face with, sales objections actually present a fantastic opportunity for a well-equipped salesperson to demonstrate their knowledge of their product and their understanding of their customer’s needs. If you can learn to handle them gracefully, effectively, and without getting upset, you’ll be setting yourself up for next-level sales success throughout the course of your career.
That’s why today’s article focuses on how to overcome objections in sales, whether that’s in person or over a call, and how to turn potential barriers into opportunities for deeper engagement and, ideally, a successful sale.
Types of Sales Objections
There are as many different kinds of sales objections as there are types of customers, but broadly speaking, it’s possible to break the sea of potential problem areas into four main categories: price, need, trust, and urgency.
Each type of customer objection may require a different approach, as the underlying reasons and hesitations can vary significantly. Identifying the specific objection being raised is crucial for effective resolution.
Price Objections
By far the most common sales objection. Concerns over price are concrete issues for which there’s often no easy solution. After all, a product costs what it costs, and while there’s often some wriggle room as far as offering a discount goes, there’s a limit to how much the price is actually going to change.
Presented like that, it can seem like there’s nothing to be done about most price complaints. But the trick to overcoming this particular sales objection is understanding that it’s often a proxy for other underlying concerns. The most common of these is perceived value. People have no problem paying for a product they consider fair value, but if they think they’re overpaying, they’ll be less likely to convert.
If a customer thinks a product is priced too highly, chances are you haven’t managed to sell them on its value, so the solution lies in being able to increase the perceived value of the product and, in doing so, reduce the distance between the perceived value and the actual price itself.
Budgetary concerns are another common form price objections take. Before addressing price objections, it’s important to determine whether the prospect has a sufficient budget. If they do, the objection is often about perceived value rather than actual financial constraints. If they don’t have a sufficient budget, there’s less room to manoeuvre when this is the case—they either have the room in their budget or they don’t, and there’s not a whole lot you can do to fix it. Still, by increasing the perceived value of the product, you might just be able to get them to find some space in the budget. It’s always worth a try.
Need Objections
It’s incredibly common for prospects to claim they don’t actually need your product or service. If you’re already on a call with them, chances are this isn’t the whole truth, or they wouldn’t have wasted their time and energy. So what’s really going on?
It’s vital to dig deeper when you’re trying to overcome this sales objection, aiming to understand their current pain points in more detail and why the solutions they currently have aren’t doing the trick. Sometimes, the prospect’s current provider may not be meeting their needs, which opens the door for your solution.
Sometimes, they might’ve forgotten just how big a deal the pain point actually is, or how inadequate the current solution has proven to be, and all it takes is a reminder, tailored to the prospect’s specific situation and needs.
Trust Objections
Broadly speaking, trust objections are related to a lack of confidence in your product, your company, or even in you as a salesperson. There’s no need to take it personally. It’s just a part of life in the fast-moving sales world, after all. But it’s going to be impossible to overcome this sales objection without fixing the problem, since nobody wants to buy something from somebody they don’t trust.
The best way to create trust if it seems shaky is by building credibility. The good news is there are a few different ways to go about doing this. Testimonials and case studies can provide strong social proof that you and your company know what you’re talking about and have been able to deliver positive outcomes to other customers in the past. The more data you can include, the better. Nothing says ‘trustworthy’ quite like a barrage of cold, hard metrics that prove beyond a shadow of a doubt your product or service works.
Another good way to build credibility is by demonstrating a deep knowledge of your customer’s industry, current situation, and the pain points they’re dealing with. This can even work to solve a lack of trust in you as an individual, by reframing you as an expert in case they were doubting your experience and reaffirming that you’re the right person for the deal.
Urgency Objections
Urgency objections are the bane of every sales representative’s professional existence. We’ve all been there. Everything’s going great, the product fits, the prospect seems enthusiastic on the call—but they just see no immediate reason to act. ‘Let me get back to you next week,’ is a line you’ve probably heard more times than you care to think about. More often than not, allowing space only serves to harm a deal in progress by giving the prospect more time to doubt the value of the deal.
There’s only one way to overcome an urgency sales objection, and that is, unsurprisingly, to create a sense of urgency. It’s important to be careful about how you go about this, however. Resorting to obvious pressure tactics isn’t going to make the prospect convert on the spot, and is in fact much more likely to make them feel uncomfortable and like they don’t quite trust the professional relationship you’ve been cultivating this far.
Instead, focus on highlighting the costs of inaction and the benefits of what you’re providing, drilling down into their pain points and subtly reinforcing that the more time they spend without your solution, the trickier their situation is going to become.
Wider Strategies for Overcoming Sales Objections
Now that you’ve got a rough overview of the most common kinds of sales concerns prospects raise, and a brief explanation of how to overcome these sales objections, let’s go through some of the real-world elements of how to put it all into practice.
At its core, the practical aspect of overcoming sales objections comes down to a few key concepts: active listening, clarifying questions, and addressing and reframing concerns. To address objections effectively, it’s crucial to understand the buying process and involve the customer in each step of the decision making process. A thorough lead qualification process and a well-executed discovery phase help sales reps anticipate and overcome sales objections by identifying needs, challenges, and decision-makers early on. Using proven strategies and techniques for overcoming objections not only builds trust but also increases the likelihood of closing the deal. Successful objection handling and mastering overcome sales objections techniques can lead to better sales outcomes and stronger customer relationships.
Active Listening and Empathy
Active listening shouldn’t be confused with interrupting. Rather, listen calmly to everything the prospect has to say until you feel they’ve said their piece, taking notes if you can of specific points to bring up in your response and prodding gently here and there where it feels appropriate. Pay close attention to body language (both yours and the prospect’s) as non-verbal cues like facial expressions and posture can communicate attentiveness and empathy. Once you get the sense that they’ve voiced their concerns the way they want to, it’s time to address those issues. And when you’re handling the objections, it’s always a good idea to proceed from a place of empathy.
Acknowledge their issues, validate their feelings, and show that you’re genuinely interested in understanding their perspective, if possible referencing particular issues they mentioned during their objection. You might say, “I completely understand your concerns,” or “I totally understand how busy your schedule is.” By making the customer feel heard and directly addressing the prospect’s concerns, you’ll be building trust from the very first word, helping to reframe you as a part of the problem and instead as the potential solution to their concerns.
Clarification Questions
Ask open-ended questions to clarify the objection and delve deeper into the underlying issues that are contributing to it.
This doesn’t just give you more information to work with—it also frames the conversation in the context of solving a problem, rather than simply talking over each other. This subtle but powerful psychological change could make all the difference when it comes to finally bringing the deal over the line.
Addressing And Reframing Concerns
As you get into the nitty-gritty of the objections themselves, keep transparency at the forefront of your mind. Address each objection directly and honestly, providing clear, concise information and reassurance along the way, without getting bogged down in jargon or unnecessary waffle. Before moving forward, make sure both you and the prospect are on the same page to ensure clear communication and shared understanding.
Reframing the objections by aligning your product’s benefits with their specific needs and concerns is another effective technique for further reaffirming that you’ve got the solution to the challenge they’re facing. Before proceeding, always confirm if the prospect has any other concerns that need to be addressed, ensuring nothing is left unresolved.
When aligning your product benefits with the prospect’s needs, guide them through a question-based process that helps them reach their own conclusion about the value of your offering. Emphasize how you can provide a tailored solution to address their unique requirements, and highlight how a smooth onboarding process can help alleviate any lingering doubts or hesitations.
Leveraging Sales Tools to Overcome Objections
Modern sales tools play a significant role in helping sales professionals handle objections more effectively and collaboratively. For example, noCRM offers a free Sales Script Generator that enables reps to create personalized sales scripts tailored to their prospects. With this tool, you can include valuable tips in your sales scripts for addressing common objections and handling them smoothly during sales conversations, empowering sales reps to approach objections with confidence.
Additionally, noCRM supports the use of shared predefined tags to capture and categorize common objections encountered during calls or meetings. Sales teams can document common objections encountered during calls or meetings, tagging them consistently to build a centralized repository of shared knowledge. This base allows teams to learn from each other’s experiences, fostering collaboration and continuous improvement in objection handling techniques. By leveraging features like these, sales teams can streamline their objection management process, improve communication, and ultimately increase their chances of closing deals.
Overcoming the Biggest Obstacle
The biggest obstacle in overcoming sales objections is often a lack of true understanding of the prospect’s concerns and needs. Too often, sales reps jump to solutions without fully grasping what’s really holding the prospect back. To handle objections effectively, sales professionals need to develop proper objection handling skills—starting with active listening and empathy.
By taking the time to listen carefully and ask thoughtful questions, sales reps can uncover the real pain points behind a prospect’s objections. This approach not only helps address objections more effectively, but also builds trust and rapport, laying the groundwork for a successful sales conversation. Understanding the prospect’s unique challenges allows you to tailor your sales pitch, directly address their concerns, and demonstrate genuine interest in helping them succeed.
Modern sales teams can also leverage sales intelligence tools to gain deeper insights into their prospects’ needs and preferences. These tools help sales reps personalize their approach, making it easier to handle objections and move the conversation forward. Ultimately, overcoming sales objections is about putting the prospect first—listening, understanding, and responding with solutions that truly fit their business goals.
Improving Sales Techniques
Continuous improvement is essential for sales professionals who want to stay ahead in a competitive market. One of the most impactful areas to focus on is handling sales objections. By sharpening objection handling techniques, sales reps can boost their confidence and increase their chances of overcoming the most common sales objections—such as price objections, need objections, and authority objections.
To handle these objections effectively, it’s important to dig deeper into the prospect’s specific concerns. Ask open-ended questions to uncover the real reasons behind their hesitation. Create urgency by highlighting the opportunity costs of waiting or sticking with the status quo, and provide evidence—such as customer references or success stories—to reinforce the value proposition of your product or service.
Role-playing exercises and ongoing training can help sales teams practice these skills in a safe environment, making it easier to handle objections in real sales conversations. By staying up-to-date with the latest objection handling techniques and learning from each interaction, sales professionals can turn common objections into opportunities for growth and success.
Conclusion
Overcoming sales objections is a fundamental skill for any effective salesperson. When studied and applied correctly, it can dramatically boost your sales outcomes. By understanding the most common types of objections, maintaining a strategic overview as you address them, and approaching every interaction with empathy and genuine interest, you significantly increase your chances of breaking through barriers and closing deals.
That said, not every deal will close, and sometimes the deal will fall through despite your best efforts. This is a natural part of the sales cycle. The key is to learn from each experience, identify areas for improvement, and continue refining your approach. Sales success comes from persistent practice, learning from mistakes, and continuously honing your objection handling techniques.
Sales objections are an inevitable part of the sales call, but with the right mindset and skills, they can become stepping stones toward success. By mastering effective objection handling techniques, sales professionals can uncover prospects’ sales objections, address pain points, demonstrate the unique value proposition of their product or service, and build strong rapport with prospective buyers.
The key to overcoming sales objections techniques lies in active listening, responding with empathy, and providing clear, relevant evidence that fully addresses the prospect’s concerns. With consistent practice, persistence, and a commitment to continuous improvement, sales teams can master objection handling, move prospects through the sales cycle more effectively, and ultimately achieve their sales goals. By keeping the prospect’s needs at the center of every sales conversation, sales professionals can transform objections into opportunities and drive sustained business growth.
FAQ
The most common types of sales objections include concerns about price, need, trust, and urgency. Each type requires a different approach to address effectively.
To handle price objections, focus on increasing the perceived value of your product. Demonstrate how your product can solve the prospect’s problems and offer benefits that justify the cost. Address any underlying concerns about budget by highlighting the long-term value and potential return on investment.
Overcome trust objections by building credibility and demonstrating expertise. Use testimonials, case studies, and data to provide social proof of your product’s effectiveness. Show a deep understanding of the prospect’s industry and pain points to establish yourself as a knowledgeable and reliable resource.
