Handling Customer Objections As a Salesperson

Consumers are not always 100% positive on their purchase. Most consumers have a vague idea of what they want, but also many objects to the purchase. These objections come from a lack of knowledge about what it is they plan to purchase. Some objections can be, priced to high, to complicated, fragile, to inexpensive (preserved cheap quality), and many others. There are several ways to handle these objections; forestalling, direct denial, indirect denial, translation/boomerang, compensation, questioning/assessing, and third-party reinforcement. Only two of these methods I believe are the most effective when handling objections; Assessing and Boomerang.

The purpose of a business is to earn a profit by fulfilling an unmet need of the consumer. The best way to find out this unmet need is to ask questions. By assessing the needs of the consumer we can better serve the consumer. When they have an objection we need to ask exactly what their objection is. Just having an objection does not tell us what the main issues are. Take for instance; I was browsing as a customer in a major chain electronics store. I overheard the salesperson near me talking to an older lady about computers. I noticed right away this salesperson was green, (inexperienced), and was having trouble with the objections of the young lady he was serving. My inner salesman kicked on and I jumped into the middle of the discussion. I started asking the important questions about what she wanted the computer for. What exactly did she plan on doing and not doing? I assessed the customer's need by questioning the customer directly. Soon, after some discussion and explanation I was able to help the customer pick out the perfect new computer that was matched to their needs. The salesman learned a valuable lesson that day about how to successfully respond to consumer objections.

When making purchases, especially high dollar purchases, consumers enjoy making educated decisions. However, many consumers are not properly educated on the full information of the product/service. Many only have hearsay information and make assumptions that create very large objections. Being uninformed a consumer may believe the product/service will not fulfill their need. As a salesman we have to educate the consumers on the benefits of the product/service and 'boomerang' these objections. As in the example above the salesperson would just inform the consumer the product/service will fulfill the consumers needs and why. It is important to educate the consumer so they have the full facts of the product/service and the best way is to let them know that their exact objection is the exact reason why they should make the purchase. While working at a sporting goods retail store I had a consumer looking at free-weights. I started assisting the customer by assessing their needs. I chose a weight system I felt would be most beneficial for them. However, they objected that it was too much weight and that they would never use it all. They also stated that it would just collect dust because it was too many pieces. I informed the customer that the number of pieces and progression of weight was exactly what they needed to reach their goals. I informed the customer of a few exercises that are beneficial for the various sizes of weights so all weight is used regularly. The customer was extremely satisfied with the response to their objections that they left a positive feedback comment with the store manager about their visit.

Responding to objections can be frustrating at times, however if you question their objection to find their need and turn the negatives to positive you will be a very successful salesperson. Just remember to assess the needs and educate the consumers on the product/services you offer and there will be no objection you can not handle peacefully and successfully.