Overcoming buyer objections starts before the objection is voiced, and salespeople can use several sales strategies to surface and resolve concerns early. How can you “preempt” objections?
Objection Handling Principles
- Expect objections. They signal interest. Do not fear them.
- Listen, clarify, empathize, answer with facts, and confirm resolution.
- Address objections before they are raised.
It might seem weird to voice objections first. Yet, it will show your buyer that you are real.
What Do Buyers Want?
Outcomes, results, and less risk! Share outcomes, ROI, and proof to reduce buyer risk and demonstrate performance. At each sales funnel stage, share benefits that address pain points to overcome objections.
Engineering Associates (EA)
Emily, EA’s owner, manages 3 salespeople and 3 consultants, Emily wanted more sales but disliked sales and listening to objections. Emily decided to analyze objections and use them to help her sales process.
Emily interviewed clients about buying concerns before becoming clients. Clients shared worries about project risks, overruns, ROI, and competitor solutions.
Emily created an “objection map” and redesigned how her team reached prospects.
EA’s Objection Map
EA’s Objection Map listed actions by objection and assigned actions to the top, middle or bottom of EA’s sales funnel.
- Top of Funnel (TOFU) – Outbound messaging and calls were reframed to “prospect problems” they solved, referencing similar clients and outcomes.
- Middle of Funnel (MOFU) – Salespeople used questions to surface concerns around risk and implementation. Outreach focused on case studies, risk mitigation, and before and after metrics.
- Bottom of Funnel (BOFU) – Personal contact is key, most objections were addressed, and you ask “What, if anything, stops you from moving forward?”
Providing outcomes, proof, and facts during TOFU, MOFU, and BOFU stages is how EA reduced prospect objections.
Implementing EA’s Objection Map
Turning objections into actions was the mantra and yet Emily was unsure as to next steps. Emily’s advisor connected her with a trusted CRM vendor.
The CRM vendor set up prompts to send objection handling content at each stage of the sales cycle:
- TOFU – Content describes the pain points, product, and impact if no action is taken.
- MOFU – Top prospect concerns are known. Outreach is segmented by concern, personalized, and automated. Proposals address concerns.
- BOFU – Personal outreach is driven by automated sales rep reminders.
The CRM identified qualified prospects using EA’s criteria and salespeople allocated time to their most qualified prospects.
Results Talk
The Objection Map and a great vendor were the winning combination as:
- EA’s sales rose and sales cycle shortened 6 months after program start.
- Salespeople spent less time guessing what to say and more time in focused conversations.
- Follow up fatigue dropped as touches had clear purpose and endpoints.
- Emily had 25% more time for client services, producing additional revenue.
The result is EA’s sustainable sales pipeline. EA made objection handling less about clever rebuttals and more about building trustworthy buying experiences.
Let’s Connect So You Can Close More Sales!
