Ep#54 - Why I refuse to handle objections
Hey, hey. I'm feeling a little spicy today, so I think we'll talk about something that probably is gonna piss some people off. Let's talk about objections. Let's talk about handling objections. I know I've talked about sales and sales calls and stuff like that before. Go listen to those episodes if you wanna talk about that.
But I specifically wanna dive into handling objections, and the reason why is because I have. Some serious beef with this entire concept. First of all, maybe I will just read off the definition of objection because I think this is a good starting point and is part of the basis of why I absolutely hate this advice.
An objection is the action of challenging or disagreeing with something. It's also the expression or feeling of disapproval or opposition. That's pretty strong, I feel. I feel like that's pretty strong. And if I have an objection, To someone's service. I definitely don't wanna be handled, nor do I want them to convince me that my disapproval or disagreement or challenge is wrong.
and maybe this is a personal preference, and so I, I want to, in case you have felt. Even the slightest bit icky about this advice around handling objections. I want to give you permission to completely scrap that advice and instead, let's talk about something that I think is a lot more based in integrity and a lot more based in reality.
I. Because there's some nuance here. So if we set the scene of a sales call or a sales conversation and I have a lot of sales conversations, I quite enjoy them. Which is, which is interesting because if I were to put myself back in my own shoes, like. Even two years ago, but definitely like five plus years ago, I would've been the person that would've said, oh, I can't sell.
I can't sell. I'm not a salesperson. Like I've literally said those exact words many, many, many times, and I've avoided being in positions where I've had to do it. Now, when you're an entrepreneur, you get thrust into and forced into situations where you have to sell, because otherwise you're not gonna make any money.
So, I've come to terms with that. It's taken me a long time. It's been a journey of one, just going through it and experiencing with the, experiencing it and getting comfortable with it. And two, having something to sell that I actually deeply believe in. That is the biggest hack that can take someone like me who doesn't identify as a salesperson and thinks they can't sell, and then you give them something that they deeply believe in and talking about it doesn't feel like selling.
So, Anyway, I, I said I wasn't gonna go down that rabbit hole, and I, and I did. But let's bring it back to objections. So we're on a sales call, and like I said, I have a lot of these, sales calls or sales conversation. This could be in the dms and you're selling your thing. People are asking you questions.
Asking questions is not an objection. So I wanna, I wanna talk through some like different examples of. What I think people are calling objections that in my opinion are not, are not objections at all. And, and that's why they don't need to be handled. and then I'll give some examples of what I think OB objections actually are and how I would personally deal with those and how I like to be dealt with, or I, how I like to be interacted with when I have actual objections.
So, Here are some things that are not objections, in my opinion. I'm going on vacation. Is this still going to work for me? I wonder if I need more of X, Y, z type of support. When are the calls I, I'm, I'm concerned if it will fit into my schedule. I'm not sure if I'm ready for this or if this is a right time.
Those are questions and concerns that are legitimate. And should be answered and should be addressed. So if your client is saying anything remotely, like any of those types of things or things adjacent to that, those are just questions. Those aren't objections. And you need to be able to answer those questions with confidence and in integrity.
And, you know, honestly, so this happens with me all the time. I've answered personally all of these questions. During sales conversations and I have answers for all of them depending on what the situation is. So for my mastermind, people do ask me if, if like what? What does the support actually look like?
Because I feel like I might need more one-on-one support. Well, great. I can talk to you about that. There is a one-on-one component and we can dive into it and I can talk to you about how I run my group calls and why I think those are a lot different than maybe some people's experiences with group calls that.
They are, in my opinion, more like many one-on-one sessions than they are group-based education. So I have answers for all of these things. That's not me handling OB an objection. That's me answering someone's legitimate question and addressing a legitimate concern. Not them disapproving of my thing or saying they don't wanna do it, and me trying to coerce or manipulating them into doing it.
That's not what I'm doing. I'm answering questions. I'm giving them the information so that then they can make the decision. Okay. The opposite of that, and I've been on the receiving end of being handled on a call like this where I've been on a sales call. And I've asked a question, and the specific question in this instance was I was on a sales call with someone.
I was looking to invest in their service and I asked about how long the time commitment was, and they told me it was either six months or a year. And at that exact point in time, I had already made a decision previously in the months before that that I wasn't going to invest in any long-term programs for a little bit because I had seen that my business was adapting and growing and changing too quickly for that to be a smart decision for like really niche services.
So I wasn't gonna sign up to work with a service provider for a long amount of time. I wasn't gonna sign up for any kind of coaching container or any other anything. , that was not flexible in its term. And, and that was a personal thing that I had put in place across the board. And so I'm on this sales call.
They tell me the term is like six or 12 months or something, and I was like, oh, okay. Well unfortunately that's not gonna work because I'm, I'm not making long-term commitments to services or programs right now. I just need something a little bit more flexible just based on like exactly where I'm at in my business.
And to me that is an objection. That's an objection. That was me like kindly telling them like, Hey, this isn't actually gonna work. Like, I appreciate your time, like blah, blah, blah. Like if something changes, I'll come back. And the appropriate thing to do, in my opinion, when someone has an actual objection.
Is to part ways gracefully and leave the conversation on good terms, but that is not what happened in this sales call. They began to handle my objections slash convince me that I was wrong, and that based on the information that I had put on my. Intake form, I should make a long-term investment and that I wasn't gonna see the results I wanted.
If I didn't make a long-term investment. It was the definition of ick and inappropriate. Now, I actually had to like, essentially hang up on the person to like, get away from it because, they clearly weren't, hearing what I was saying. And I wasn't willing to bend in something that, to me was like a really valid and important, boundary that I was holding, or, yeah, I wasn't willing to bend on something that, in my opinion, was like a really legitimate and important boundary that I was holding.
And so obviously things did not, did not progress. Now I think, The one that trips people up the most, that straddles the line between objection and concern. And where there's a lot more nuance, and I don't necessarily have a great answer for you or solution or suggestion, is comments about money, comments and questions about money.
And I think this is in particular one area of a sales conversation that everyone needs to. Make decisions on that is very much like based on your own personal comfort level. And there's a couple reasons why. So, one, it depends on how people are framing, their comment around money. So saying, I, I, I cannot afford this right now, X, Y, Z and that being a legitimate thing.
Versus, Ooh, this is gonna be a stretch. I'm a little uncomfortable, but you know, I think I can make it work and I really wanna commit to this. Those are two very different comments. One, to me feels more like an objection. The other one feels more like a expression of. Of discomfort, but still like an interest in moving forward that feels more like a concern or a question, less an objection.
So in, in my personal opinion, what I would do is I would support them through the process and reassure them and, Generally try to like make them feel comfortable about my promise and my commitment to what I do, and set the expectation around like, well, here's what I'm gonna do and I want you to feel comfortable about this, and you need to feel comfortable about this.
Here's how I'm gonna support you, and I do think that this is going to be a game changer in your business, or whatever it is. If someone tells me they actually can't afford it, I am not gonna push at all. And, and actually that's a, that's like kind of a deal breaker for me in my line of work because if someone can't afford me and they're making too big of a stretch, they're actually like going into debt or they're not paying themselves or like things like that.
I don't like, I do not like to work with clients in that situation because it creates a really weird dynamic in the work. It makes them put more pressure onto me. It makes them put more pressure on themselves. It just puts too much pressure on the entire relationship and the outcomes. And I find that people in that situation make decisions out of this like scarcity mindset and out of like fear and.
Out of just like a general, like lack and like, I don't know. It's, it's hasty, right? Like it's, it's not rooted in a place of I am excited to do this and to grow. It's a, it's a need. I have to do this, this has to work. And that kind of dynamic doesn't work in, in what I do. It, it, it, it backfires every single time.
People have to be ready and committed and long-term ready and committed. So it's a personal deal breaker for me. It might not be for you. And, and part of why I'm bringing this up is because I think every industry a niche is different. And so just how was having a conversation about this with a client and they are in the, the health and fitness space and.
I think in particular that is an, an industry where sometimes money will come up as like a pseudo concern, so that people can avoid having to commit to something that they don't want to do. And so that's a very different thing than actually not being able to afford it. And so sometimes there are, Things that you need to address and bring up and help them work through in order to get to the root of the actual problem, because it may not actually be the money.
So this is where it's so nuanced, and I hate to be like, too, I don't know, negative and, and, critical of this concept of handling objections. But generally I think that. People with the mindset of, I'm gonna handle their objections are doing it wrong and approaching it wrong. And I think a lot of times it comes off, not, it, it, it doesn't come off very well.
And even when it does work, I feel like it creates kind of like, It creates a bad relationship and a bad taste in people's mouths when they've been like borderline manipulated into buying something. So anyway, I don't know. Y'all can get mad at me if you want, but I think that. Reframing this conversation around objections to not handling people's objections, but instead focusing on answering people's legitimate concerns and legitimate questions and being in integrity when you do.
Sell your products. because there are often times when you need to tell someone no. Or you need to tell someone, yeah, I don't think, I don't think this is a good time for you, or, come back to me when this isn't an issue with you. come back to me when this isn't a problem related to your budget. Like, I'm here, but don't coerce people into working with you.
Obviously, I mean, I don't think anyone listening to this podcast does that. That's probably why you listen to this podcast. so just really wanted to rant about it. I guess. I don't really have many other takeaways other than to say like, don't be afraid to sell, but you don't have to be manipulative to sell.
You know, you can be, you can be an integrity, you can be an honest person, you can. You can be authentic and genuine and care about people and also still sell. It's totally possible. All right, that's it. Have fun.
