It is crucial to understand the values and needs of your clients. How you respond to their objections or disagreements can spell the difference between your company’s success and failure.
A good salesperson can ease customers’ concerns and eliminate any doubts about their offerings. While buyers all have different backgrounds and personalities, there are still common behavioral patterns that you may notice during negotiation.
Three buyer habits typically stand out—the squeeze, the flinch, and the sob story. Knowing all of them will help you provide genuine solutions for your clients.
The Squeeze
Buyers always want a bargain, so they might say that they can get your products or services for less elsewhere. Don’t panic and reflexively drop your prices. Caving in destroys the integrity of your offerings!
When faced with price pushback, hold your ground. Politely ask them who your competition is and why they have come to you first. This will make your clients re-focus on the unique value your business provides.
Never ask how much they are willing to spend because this will give them the upper hand in the negotiation.
The Flinch
How many times have you experienced buyers being shocked by your price points? Don’t be fooled! Often, clients think that exaggerating their reactions will make you doubt the value of your offerings and lower your prices.
Once they calm down, you can take this opportunity to understand why they think your prices are too steep. From there, you will be able to grasp the entire picture and respond accordingly.
Calmly provide reasonable justifications for your prices without being defensive. Be confident and make them realize that they are getting their money’s worth.
The Sob Story
When buyers say, “This is all I can afford…” or “All I have in my budget is…” it can tug on your heartstrings and make you want to help them. After all, humans are naturally empathetic. However, falling for every sad story that comes your way could spell trouble for your bottom line. Being overly suspicious, on the other hand, may make us overlook genuine cases.
When faced with sob stories, offer different options that fit their budget. If they aren’t genuine, prospects will usually cave once they see their attempt at getting a discount isn’t working. And if they decide to book elsewhere, don’t take it to heart! It just means they were not your ideal client in the first place. At the end of the day, you should never undervalue your worth.
But that doesn’t mean that you should never offer a discount for compassionate reasons. Some people who need your services may have been recently diagnosed with a serious illness or may have lost their home to a natural calamity. If your business can take the small hit, there’s no reason not to! Just make sure that you verify the claims so you don’t fall victim to con artists.