No means much more than No when selling

How to overcome the fear of rejection and keep the sale alive

Farmers (really, all customers) shop harder during tough times.  This week, I want to also remind salespeople that in tough times, producers will reduce all expenses with their vendors.  You are going to experience more “No” responses in your closing questions than you did previously.

That fear of rejection (no) is still one of the strongest emotions that salespeople have.  So fearful, many salespeople will find any excuse not to cold call or prospect.  Just the act of turning the steering wheel and driving down the farmer’s driveway seems impossible. 

7 of the most common No’s:

1. No for now
2. No to you
3. No to your company
4. No to that product or service
5. No to changing
6. No to the risk/reward
7. No to the price

The most common fear in sales is the last type of No.  Commonly referred to as a price objection.  However, when you dig in and really work on your selling process, you find the other reasons for No are more common.  You think the most common is price.  However, that’s just the easiest way for a customer to stop you in your tracks on a sales call.  If your price truly is higher per pound or gallon, then it is higher.  You can’t dispute the price difference.  However, you can dispute and work with customers on all the other elements related to that price….the ROI, time savings, etc.

Each of the seven No’s has a series of questions that should have been answered in the discovery phase of the selling process.  If you skip that phase, then you will have no way to follow up or keep the sales conversation going after they tell you No.

7 of the most common No’s:

1. No for now

This means you didn’t learn their buying process.  You are asking for a commitment when they are in their gathering information stage. 

2. No to you

This means you didn’t discover how they interact with their current salesperson/consultant.  If they have been with an agronomist or nutritionist for years, and they have a consultative relationship, then you come along and ask them to switch.  Your questions in discovery need to find out how they work with new vendors.  Do they ever bring new ones in?  If so, how does that work?

3. No to your company

This means you didn’t uncover the history with your company.  We sell in an old business to companies and farmers who have been around for a long time.  Odds are that producers on a century farm have probably done business with your company at some point.  You need to understand their view of your company before asking for the sale.

4. No to that product or service

In discovery, you want to gauge their opinion of the product or service you will be recommending to them.  The minute you think you have a recommendation for this customer, ask them if they have ever used it before or if they are even aware of it.  They may know a lot about it and will give you their opinion of its value.  This means you would ask more questions to understand their history with it.  If they may have never heard of it, then you can spend the time going over the basics of the product.

5. No to changing

This is a critical No to understand.  The best way to understand a customer’s lack of changing from their current supplier is based on one of four reasons.  These four reasons are driven by the customer’s DISC style.  Study the DISC styles and base your discovery questions around how this customer goes through the change process.

6. No to the risk/reward

This is closely related to the lack or fear of change.  This No is based on the ROI of your product or service.  Any change has the risk of slowing progress, costing more investment than return, upsetting current business relationships, or causing negative emotions like stress, fear, etc.  When a customer gives you this No, try not to react with a gut-wrenching feeling.  They are actually handing you a gift.  They could have just said the price is too high.  Instead, they told you that they haven’t seen the value of what you sell.  Remember, value is in the eyes of the buyer…not you or your presentation, or your marketing material and department. 

7. No to the price

At last, our most common and despised No.  Price objection doesn’t occur when they tell you No.  It started way back at the beginning of the selling process when you began asking questions.  The more you know about this customer’s business, their beliefs on value, their successes, and failures, the more adept you will be at handling this No.  Just as in the Risk/Reward No, you need to come into the closing question with an understanding of what they value.

The next time you are in your sales call and are dreading the answer to your closing question, relax.  If you get a flat “No”, then think back on this article and try to figure out the reason behind it.

All the best in your sales success