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Having the right response to sales objections and being able to overcome buyer excuses is an age old technique in selling just about anything. It’s not always easy to know how to overcome buyer objections, but thankfully I’m going to give you some ideas. This works for both online and offline selling – whether you’re selling a product, a service, or “yourself”.
No matter what you are “selling” people always have objections and excuses as to why they are not ready to do something right now. This applies in both offline and online marketing, since in both cases you want to call the person to perform an action. Offline, it could be getting them to sign a contract to list with you or to buy a house – online it could be trying to get them to sign up for your newsletter or picking up the phone and actually calling you when they reach your website.
The best thing to do is prepare yourself for these sales objections so that when the buyer or seller gives them to you, you’re ready to persuade them otherwise! A lot of agents forget about the basic closing sales techniques, but in the world of sales, this is something that will always prove to be useful.
Here are a few examples of common objections and what you can do:
We’re Not Ready Yet: I’m sure you’ve heard from someone who says “We’re just not ready yet” as to why they won’t list with you or make an offer after you’ve given them a tour of 200 houses. These people say they aren’t ready – but if they’re not really ready, why are they even talking to you? This is probably the most vague of all sales objections, so your job is to find out WHY they’re hesitating. Ask Them: When will you be ready? What is stopping you from signing (or making an offer) right now? Do you think anything will be different tomorrow, next week, next month, next year?
I Already Have a Real Estate Agent: This is a trickier one, because you do have to be careful of soliciting other agent’s clients. This is especially true concerning open house traffic. You might ask them questions such as, Oh, are you aware of our [insert special buyer/seller promo exclusive to your office/broker here] or ask them how happy they have been with their agent. Sometimes this can open up a can of worms, other times it can bring some interesting dialogue, especially if you happen to get a frustrated seller.
We Want to Sell Our Home First: This is another common one I get a lot from people, especially with a lot of people being upside down on their mortgages. Good questions to ask are “Have you looked into bridge loans?” (many buyers don’t even know these exist!) or “Are you aware you can often make an offer contingent on your home selling?” or “Where will you live when your home sells and you haven’t found a new house yet?” or “What marketing are you doing to sell your home as quickly as possible?”
This house doesn’t have XYZ: Let’s be bluntly honest here: there is no such thing as the perfect house. EVen those who custom build and design their houses are often surprised to realize that their dream house is still missing a feature or two. So, you need to ask a lot of questions, and be prepared to offer a few creative solutions. For example, say a house has carpeting and they wanted hardwood floors. You might ask, “If the seller agreed to give you an allowance to install new flooring so you could pick out anything you liked, would you buy this house?”
It’s too Expensive/Not Enough: Money is usually a touchy subject with everyone you meet. Buyers think every single house they see is overpriced, sellers think their house is worth more than it is. For sellers, you’ll want to focus on asking them questions about their minimum amount they’ll accept, how if they wait it could be more difficult to sell the home since markets can change seasonally, etc. For buyers, you’ll want to make sure they’re preapproved, talk with them about making offers and how they don’t have to offer the list price.
Don’t Forget About Your Website: If you have a website, you’ll also want to ask yourself whether or not your website is meeting online objections as well. Most people when they are looking online for something want to find things easily and quickly. Can they find everything they need to find on your site? Is your contact information easy to read and use? (For example, some visitors won’t bother sending you a message if you don’t have an email contact form that is easy to access and use.) It also helps to have things that can help alleviate some of the online concerns buyers and sellers may have, such as “you can cancel anytime and your information is never shared” for a newsletter subscription or “No question is too small or silly – you can contact me here or feel free to call at 555-555-5555″.
These are just a few of common real estate sales objections and what responses and rebuttals can be effective in overcoming them. Have any tips you’d like to share? We’d love to hear your comments below!
