Don’t Let Fear Determine the Decision Making in Your Business with Randall Grizzle
We spend money to try to buy it. We change habits to save it. We sometimes enjoy doing nothing to waste it.
What am I talking about?
Time. It’s our most valuable asset, so nothing gets more frustrating than going through your sales process with your potential client only to have them spew out all their objections after you’ve spent the time informing them on all the value your product or service can bring to their lives.
I have Closed high ticket packages for some of the world’s top internet marketers. I’ve sold coaching packages for $1,000 up to $100,000. I have sold coaching and training for how to make money on eBay (yes, I’ve been in the industry that long) and coaching for the Pick Up Artist. I have a vast array of history (and stories) about the things I’ve sold and the people who’ve bought the products I’m selling. But, for all the unique products, and people, I have run into a lot of the same phrases…
- “I need time to think it over.”
- “I don’t have the money to make this happen.”
- “I’m going to need to talk to my business partner/spouse about this.”
Do these sound familiar?
Sure they do. We’ve all heard them. It’s all the things people will say that show their fear…their lack in getting out of their comfort zones. Objections are nothing more than your potential client acknowledging a fear in making changes in their lives. They are scared to make the wrong decision. They aren’t completely aware of your service. They just don’t know what to do. People find objections to buying them time, or a way out of the decision-making process. They look for a reason to stay in their comfort bubbles and not do the very things that can improve their lives. They may not even know they are doing it.
You must help the clients in moving past their fear.
Fear is a natural human emotion but only by confronting this fear can they move to a better place. You must help your client understand that the reason they came to you in the first place is that they lack the knowledge or ability to make change happen on their own. And most importantly, you must help them understand that you and your product will help provide the knowledge they seek.
So now, let me tell you that I have not had to deal with these objections in my high ticket sale process for years now. Why? Because I help confront their objections before they even know they are thinking of them. When customers have objections it’s because they are focusing on the wrong things. They are looking at the “what ifs” and the doubts that could be overwhelming to them.
But I change the way they look at the investment they are about to make. I take them through a pre-qualification that will address concerns and keep them focused on the success they can achieve. I design my script to go over the major commitments that they will need to agree to make sure they are at a place to really make a decision about the product or service I am selling. I help them to acknowledge the commitments that are involved with changing their lives.
When a potential customer gets on a call with you, they are looking for you to solve their problems.
What is it that you…your product…your service…can do for them? What are you going to provide? What can you do to make this happen for them? But, it’s not about us. This is all about them. It’s our role to help them understand that any change will require a certain amount of dedication to the new process or tool on their end.
Your potential customer will need to acknowledge their role in the success of this new life for them or their business. Your product/service is excellent, but it’s only half the equation. The customer will need to fulfill some commitments on their end before they will be able to reach the desired outcome. Some requirements: Commitment of time, money, decision making, and money. These will seem obvious, but the customer not fully understanding these four factors will lead to the majority of the objections you will face. Having a script that is constructed to highlight the necessary commitments for your customer will have a profound effect on your sales.
This is a qualification stage if you will. You are taking the position that you do not need the sale, but instead, you have a fantastic product for sale for those who qualify. You are not telling the customer what you can do for them, but they need to prove they have what it takes to do business with you.
The goal of the commitment is to get the customer to nod their head; to agree with you. To agree that they see your product is a means to their end. To give you confirmation that they are on this path with you. As you go over that list of commitments, you will be able to work through their objections before they even realize they had any.
“How long until I see results?”
As I have already stated, TIME is the one asset that we all are trying to get more of. We tie the same attribute to time as we do like money. We can waste, spend, invest in it and, we might try, but we can not buy more of it. Time is the fundamental base of our buying decisions.
Because of this strain on time, we all want it…and we want it now. Every customer wants to know how long how soon…how quickly will they see the benefits of your service. The right answer for that it depends. There is no quick fix. Customers need to understand, up front, that there is no magic pill, from you or your competitors. Nothing will be an overnight success. Every logical business owner agrees, if they want different results, they need to put in the time to learn new skills. They will need to commit time to learn and applying anything. Are they willing to put in the work?
Going over this commitment will help reduce the anxiety of making it work. This success will not be achieved in one day not even in one week. Do they have the time? Are they willing to commit five hours a week? Ten hours a week? What are they willing to do to make the changes in their lives. It’s essential that they understand that putting the time into learning will affect how quickly your product/service will work. That there will be a needed amount of time to perfect Their objection is now their answer…how long does it take? The real work is up to them. They have to take the time to build the foundation before they can see success. If they don’t have the time to put into it, then we can get off the phone now.
“That’s not the way I’ve been told to do it.”
Over our lifetime we have soaked up a vast array of knowledge. Some of this works for good; some can work to the detriment of our success. Have you ever worked with a know it all? Do you want to? Do you feel they receive the needed information to make them successful? Alternatively, did you have to give them a refund? To have a cohesive relationship with your client they are going to have to acknowledge that you have something they are seeking…KNOWLEDGE.
The customer has to want to learn. We all struggle, at times with new information and getting past what we think we already know. The client must be willing to be coachable and admit that they don’t know what they don’t know. You have to get your client to understand that there is a gap they need to bridge with their current knowledge and the knowledge they need to acquire to get where they want to be.
You and your team have learned those skills required. It would be their role to gain the knowledge through their experience in working with your company. Ask them if they are open-minded. Ask them if they are coachable. Ask them if they are willing to take action on the knowledge that we can provide for them. The last thing you want is to take your time to close the deal, only to refund someone who already knows what they are doing.
“I don’t know if I can do this.”
The role you have as a closer is to get the customer to commit to a decision they usually wouldn’t make. DECISION MAKING can cause panic. You need to help them with any fear or anxiety they may have. Let them know that with any change comes doubt. That is natural. However, getting through this doubt will be the best decision they make because there is more money lost in indecision than a bad decision. Is your customer a procrastinator or a decision maker? I don’t have time to put into someone who knows they are not going to make a decision.
Once a customer shows interest you need to make sure that everyone is included in the decision-making process. Asking the question up front. “Are you able to make this decision by yourself? Or do you need to consult with a partner or spouse on this?”
I understand this might feel like you are feeding them an objection, but hear me out. I know that my product or service will be valuable to any person or business in my niche. Invite that decision influencer on the call with you. If a customer discloses that they are not the only one involved with the decision, I will immediately work to get that person on the phone with us now, if possible, or reschedule the remainder of the call at a time that we can all be on the phone. There is no sense in going over the information knowing that I’m giving them the out, or that I’ll have to spend more time repeating much information.
In fact, when I know that the person I am talking to is married…even if they claim they are the sole decision maker… I still like to get the blessing from the spouse. I know if my wife came home telling me she spends $5,000 on anything I’d be a bit miffed that she didn’t run it by me.
I know my product/service is worth the monetary value and I will be the best person to help show the spouse or partner as well. By being invited into the process, even if they are not “needed,” explains the complete confidence you have in your product and its ability to help your client.
“I can’t afford this. It costs too much money.”
Once you have lined out the time, knowledge, and decision making for the customer you will need to talk to your customer about their second most prized possession…their MONEY. You will need to break it down and make the money make sense. Wallets are very much connected to our hearts.
The customer’s willingness to take action on their goals is dependent on the reality of their pain…their motivation..their WHY. How much they spend will be dependent on how stuck they feel and if you can provide the momentum away from their pain. Your objective is to make the client realize that you are the pathway to their success. Money ceases to be an issue if the client’s pain can be solved.
Not only do you need the money to connect to resolving their pain, but you also need to make the money make sense for their solution. It’s not a purchase; it’s an investment. Would it take food off the table for them to invest, not $10,000, but a minimum payment on a credit card? How long do they feel it would take for the business to pay that money back? You need to change their paradigm on what a bank is used for. People are willing to spend thousands of dollars on a new big screen TV. This is negative debt. That TV will never earn them money; it will only suck their time. An investment in their business, however, will have the potential to pay itself off, and then some.
This is the part you break it down to the ridiculous. How do you eat a whale? One bite at a time. Take that significant number and show them how small monthly payments can be. Eliminate the big risky decision that nobody wants to make. It’s balancing the scale to where it would be silly not to invest.
Reviewing the time, knowledge, decision making, and financial commitments will get them to make the small agreements all along the sale process.
Get them to nod their head to help avoid a pause in the process as you move to your close. You are no longer asking or telling, the customer to buy your product. They have now already told you all the reasons they will, or won’t, be a good fit for your product or service.
People will ultimately buy your product or service because they believe the purchase makes sense. Their objections, their fears, are nothing more than a perceived danger. Take that perception and turn it into knowledge.
They will see how your product will relieve their pain, grow their business and ultimately give them the time to do the things they enjoy.
About Randall Grizzle
Randall Grizzle has dedicated his whole adult life to sales and perfecting the sales process. He created Closer Secrets to help bridge the gap between business owners and sales professionals. Randall is a businessman with a true love for people and the art of the sale. He is truly GRATEFUL to be a Closer.
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