Ep. 015: How to Overcome Sales Objections
Are you holding yourself back from higher income levels because you’re afraid of hearing “no” when talking to potential clients? If so, you aren’t the only one!
The reality is…objections will come up. Many people will say “no.” But this doesn’t mean you suck and your business is terrible. While there are ways to have better sales conversations, knowing how to handle objections is a crucial selling skill.
This episodes goes into why people say “no” and what you can do to save some of those sales.
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Erika Tebbens: Hey, welcome back to the podcast. I definitely think that this one is going to be a very popular one, uh, because the subject is something that is so common, um, dealing with objections or rejections in business, it is such a real fear that a lot of times it actually holds us back from putting ourselves out there because we don't want to hear people say no.
So this is one that I love talking about this. I love the, uh, not just the practical tips, but sort of the mindset reframe around objections. Um, I love talking about this and so, yeah, I hope that you get a ton of value out of this episode. I hope that it changes the way that you look at, uh, receiving objections from potential clients and, uh, that it actually empowers you to show up bigger and put yourself out there more because you won't be so incredibly fearful of them.
As always, uh, I would love it, if you have other friends who are entrepreneurs, feel free to share this with them, because I think it's something that every entrepreneur struggles with at one time or another. Um, and if you aren't Instagram, it's my favorite place to hang out. So make sure you're following me @erikatebbensconsulting over there. If you're listening to this on your phone app, uh, do a little screenshot for me and post it in your stories and tag me because I love to see who is listening. And of course I always appreciate when people share out my stuff with other people. So yeah, without further ado, let's talk overcoming sales objections.
So, a lot of times what we think is that people say no, because they hate us and they hate the thing that we're selling. Right? We're like, that's like our default, even if we logically don't think that we're like, "This is it. They hate me. They hate my stuff. I suck. I really should just quit. I'm going to be a total failure. Like I'm a fraud."
And on and on and on, we think these horrible things, right? These horrible stories that we tell ourselves, And yes, there are some people out there who, you know, are pitching in a really terrible way and they slide into your DMs and it's just really awkward. And you're like, "Hell no, like I'm not, I'm not going to spend money with you now or ever. I don't want the thing you have."
But usually that is not the case. But I will say, because I feel like, uh, network marketing has really done a disservice to selling in a lot of ways, but one of them is that they really teach their people, that the things that they're selling, the products they're selling are for everyone.
They're just for everyone. So therefore you should be asking everyone. And the bottom line is, is that no matter what you sell, whether it's a product or a service, there are going to be people who are your ideal clients. And then the people who just aren't, right? So, uh, that is something that's really, really, really important to consider.
So there are, you know, even in my own, in my own business, I recognize this. I have people who are following me, who are in my Facebook group, or they follow my Instagram or they listen to the podcast, who might not ever be the type of person who's actually going to pay me for my expertise. And you know what it is, what it is like not going to lose sleep over it.
Am I going to get mad about it, it just is what it is. Um, but then I also have, uh, you know, ideal clients who are perfect and they do invest in me and they invest in themselves and I love working with them. And that's great. So we have to first recognize that we are always going to have people who are more ideal for us, and then people who are less ideal for us.
And that is okay. So somebody might be rejecting your product or service solely based on the fact that has nothing to do with you and they don't hate it. They're just like, "Yeah. You know, it's just not for me."
Like I think about. I know a lot of people love to invest in things like, um, like jet skis and quads and like snowmobiles and, and all of those types of things. Those are not for me. I don't ever see a point in my life where they will be for me. Where that's something that I would want to spend my money on. Now, I don't care that other people want to spend their money on that. I don't care that those things are sold. I don't care at all either way. Uh, it's just that if I were to meet someone and they were a sales person for those items. I'd be like, "That's cool. That's awesome. I hope that you love what you do. I hope you're very successful at it. Like not my jam." No, I'm not. I it's just not for me. I don't really care. It's not how I like to spend my leisure time. And even if I did, I would like rent one or use somebody else's like, I'm not going to buy one for myself.
And, uh, and it's, it can be the same with what you sell. So right now, like most of the people in my life are not entrepreneurs. They're just, they might love me. They might emotionally support me. They're not going to pay me. They're not going to become customers. And that's okay. Right?
So there's just this line of we have to get comfortable with the fact that what we have is just not for everyone and it's not personal. So another thing is somebody might be objecting because they, they're not really certain how it's going to help them. Or there are some, like, there's some vagueness in there. Which is also another reason why it's okay to niche. It's okay to be specific. It's okay, to, you know, in your content to, uh, the, the saying, you know, attract the best repel the rest. Like, you don't want to be vanilla because you want it to be pretty clear who you are for and who you're not for.
So let's just say the snowmobile. Right? So if I was selling snowmobiles, I want to be speaking to people who love outdoor activities. Who, uh, you know, probably have this space where they can store a snowmobile or, you know, would be willing to, to carve out some space in their garage or wherever for the snowmobile or in like a storage unit. Um, they love outdoor adventure. They, uh, you know, live obviously in a cold weather climate, all of those things.
That is what you want to be speaking to, and you want to be speaking to their desires so that they can, if they own their own, they could take it out whenever they want to. They don't have to rent it. They don't have to borrow it. They can just take out that snowmobile, you know, if it's snowy and they have it at their house, they can just take it out and they can go, uh, that they can, you know, it's a great way to get fresh air and get outside in the winter. It's a great way to, you know, travel through the forest, like just a million other things. Right?
But you really want to speak to that. So people understand what the value is that they're getting not necessarily like monetary value, but like the intrinsic value of what they're getting. So, if I, you know, if somebody was like a conversion copywriter, let's say in their business, so they want to be conveying the fact that it's not just that, "Oh, you can hire me and I'll write some stuff for your website or your, you know, sales email sequence."
It's that, because you're a conversion copywriter, you are going to be writing stuff that is going to be bringing more money back into their business. So yes, they're hiring you. They're paying some money upfront, but in the long run, that ROI is going to be there. So not only do they not have to spend the time to do it, they also don't spend, have to spend the time to like research it all on their own and figure it out.
And you're the expert and they're going to hire you and you're going to do it. And it's going to bring the, the value is it's going to bring more money back into their business and they didn't have to do anything other than pay your invoice. Right? So, um, there could just be that they, they aren't sure they don't feel like they have enough information about why it's worth it for them at this point in time to invest in it.
So make sure that you are conveying all of that pretty clearly upfront. And then also make sure that you allow for questions. Like if you're having a discovery call with somebody, um, make sure that you let them know, like it's okay to ask questions. There's no such thing as a stupid question. If they think of a question later, like here's how you can reach out to me and ask that question and all of that, because if they are confused, if they are feeling dubious, they're going to say no. But if they feel empowered with the necessary info or they know that they can reach out to ask other things of you, then that is going to help them feel clear and confident that they're making a wise financial decision.
ALso know that it like, not now doesn't mean not ever. So it could just be that they are trying to assess like what you have to offer and how you can help them. But I have had plenty of discovery calls with people, like where, where I was trying to see if I was going to hire them. And I think that they're awesome people. I, I know they're experts at what they do.
They kick ass, all of that, but I'm just not in the moment when I was talking to them. I was not in a position where I needed to hire them for that service right at this time. So, uh, I know a few episodes back, I talked about follow-up so this is where it's really great to get them on a follow-up schedule.
Because you might talk to them now and they might be like, "Oh God, okay. Yeah, this is super great. And I really loved her and she's wonderful, but I'm just, you know, I'm and she can help me launch my course, but I'm still building it. And like, I don't think I want to launch it this quarter. I wanna launch it next quarter."
And so by you saying like, "Okay, I'm not going, gonna work with you right now." That service provider might be like, "Well, that's it. She hates me. She's totally not impressed. She thinks I'm an idiot. She doesn't want to pay me ever. So I'll just forget about her and try to find new clients." Like, no, put that person on a follow-up plan because what you might not know right now is that right now is not the right time for her to be paying you. But four months from now, she will be ready, willing, and able to go ahead and pay that invoice and start working with you. So just remember not now, does that mean not ever, be sure to follow up and I'll put the link to that episode, um, on follow up in the show notes for you.
And, um, there also, there might be something better that you can offer right now that's a better fit for them, that they feel, uh, like it's an easier yest,yes for them. So it could be that maybe you're like, you know, talking about one-on-one coaching or something like that. And they're just like, You know, I don't know, like financially, I don't know. Time-wise I don't know." There could be a lot of factors where they're just like, "I can't, I can't say yes to this right now."
But maybe you have something else. Maybe you have a course. Maybe you have a different program maybe, um, and it doesn't even necessarily have to be that it's cheaper because it's money is not always the issue. Sometimes it's time commitment. I've had plenty of people because it's the summer, and they're like, "I want to get started after summer because I'm not going to be working that heavily in my business over the summer."
I get that. Like, what if I was like, "Forget you, like, forget you. If you're not going to work with me now, you can't work with me ever." Like, no, I'm going to follow up with them at the end of the summer. Now that doesn't mean like if I had other people coming along and I got full, I'm not arbitrarily just going to hold that spot open for somebody who might be hiring me.
If somebody really was like, "No three months from now, I really want to hire you." I would make sure they put down a deposit or something to hold that space. Um, so you know, you, you might be full up in a certain amount of time, but there could be something that is a better yes, for them right now to at least start to work with you in some sort of capacity, and then down the road, maybe you change the way in which you work together. Uh, and lastly, I will say that, um, I've recently saw in a group I'm in, for course, there was a woman who wanted to go to this retreat with some coach and she was like, "Yes, I'm ready. I just, I need to make sure the dates line up well with this other life event and whatever."
And the coach was like shaming her for not just like, kind of jumping on it and booking it right then, and the woman was very clearly stating like, "No, it's, you know, Uh, it's, I'm not trying to sell myself short. I'm not trying to make excuses. Like I really, I have this other life event and I just need to see if it makes sense for like time-wise for me to be away at this retreat when this other thing is happening."
And because that other woman kind of was like pressuring her about it, it left a really bad taste in this woman's mouth. And I'm like, "Dude, that's like, it's not okay." Like, and she was, she was asking for advice and I'm like, "No, it's not okay." Like the, the answer should have been in my opinion, it should have been, "Oh okay. Well I'm, I would love to have you at my event. I really hope you can make it. Um, when, you know, when will, you know, if you can make it or not, like, I don't, you know, It might sell out." And all these other things, right? These other things that she could have said that would be, um, friendly and supportive and warm and welcoming and not, and not shaming. Right?
But instead she kind of went down that like shame route, which I just, I don't buy into because, uh, I would rather let somebody know like, "Hey, I hope you can be there. If you can't be at this one, maybe it you'll be able to be at a future one. Um, I hope all goes well with this other life thing that you have going on, but, you know, please let me know by such-and-such a date or whatever."
That's what I would have done. I'm sure other people would disagree with me, but that is just what emotionally feels good. And I feel like it's why people say that I am good at what I do. Like when, why I don't like repel people who have had on my follow-up list for awhile because I don't shame them. Um, the other thing is because I know there's always the, like I have to check with my spouse kind of a thing.
Um, and I know that there are people who are like, "No, like, you know, you. I need to know right now." And, and kind of make them feel guilty for that again. Uh, yes. It could be a bunch of crap. It could be the person's way of, um, not having to directly say no or say no thank you. Or say I'm not interested. Like it, they might just be using a BS excuse because they feel uncomfortable saying no. But what if it is something that they need to come to an agreement on together, and the answer will be yes, but like this literally just happened to me. I was like, "Of course you can talk to your husband. Like, absolutely it's an investment. And then, you know, I'll follow up. Like if I haven't heard back from you, I'll follow up in a couple of days." Guess what? It was fine. I sent her the invoice, like we're working together now. It's all good. But what if I'd been like, "No, you need to, you know, if you're going to do this, you need to decide and blah, blah, blah, blah."
Like, that's not cool. That's I just view that as really, um, really disrespectful, uh, because again, yes, it might be a BS excuse, but at the same time it might not be. And I would rather err on the positive side than the negative one, because what if she really does, you know, just need to run it by her partner.
Um, or she like wants to just discuss it with her partner because that's how they are in their relationship. And what if I make her feel bad about that? And then she's like, "F you, I don't want to work with you. I'm going to go find somebody else." Like, I don't want that. I don't want that to be my reputation.
So, yeah. Um, don't like, don't shame. Any one don't make anyone feel bad. It could just be that like right now, really isn't the right time for them. But in the future, it will. And if you make them feel like crap about saying no now, they're not going to want to work with you, um, in the future. So, you know, let, let people go with grace, be sure to be sure to follow up, be sure to, you know, be polite, um, be open, be welcoming and all of that, but ultimately, uh, don't, don't take it personally when, um, when you get sales objected objections. Uh, and yeah, that all being said, if you have questions, um, if you want to chat with me and just see, and maybe you are, uh, really, really struggling with this, and you want something a little bit more concrete for your own business, reach out, uh, I always have free 20 minute, um, chit-chats like, uh, virtual on zoom, strategy chats. So, uh, so yeah, they're totally no strings attached.
So if you have not already had one of those with me, I'll put the link in here as well, but you can also just find it, um, in the, uh, link on my, um, Instagram. Like what's the word? Oh yeah. Instagram. Uh, the link in my bio on Instagram has links for my 20 minute strategy chat.
It has info on my Success Squad where people get to work with me and a one-on-one and a group capacity, I dig it. Um, and then I also have some courses as well, but when we have our chat, I can, uh, I can let you know all the ways, because I actually have a, um, sales, a marketing course and a sales language course.
So all different ways that we can dive deeper into this, but I want to make sure that you are getting the right support for you in this moment. So, uh, I hope you enjoyed this. Again, feel free to share it with others. If it inspired you and let me know your takeaways, your ahas, and as always, happy selling.
