Handling Objections with Clarity and Calm

And anyone who would like to, and you can stay on mute, which is great, but I would love any of you who want to come on the screen. Would be so great to see your faces. Right, Nick Schumacher? It would be so great to see you again.

Okay. Hey, Jodi. Hey, yeah. This is Ashley under Kelly's name from Onyx. Oh, hey. Hi.

We're having technical difficulties with our screen right now for some reason. We can hear you and see you, but you can't see us. That's correct. Yeah. Well, maybe I just admitted you, I think.

How's that? I don't know what's going on. Allie entered the waiting room. All right. Okay.

Nick, it's great to see you. It's been too long. You too. How are you? I'm wonderful. Thank you. All right.

So we have a lot of new people on this call, which is really, really, really wonderful. And we have some old, not old. We have some of our return favorites. So this is also wonderful. So here we are talking about handling objections, which is probably after asking discovery questions, it's my favorite step in the sales process because it's so complicated.

But it doesn't have to be, right? So what we're going to do is I'm going to keep admitting people because we have people continuing to come on. So anyone that wants to put in the chat, if you want to put in the chat any objections that you'd like us to touch on today, please feel free to do that. And of course, anyone that wants to be on screen with the rest of us, we would love to see your beautiful face on screen, of course.

All right. So let's talk about... Let's talk about objections. So I'm going to talk about it a little bit, and then I'm going to open it up. If you want to practice some of them, demonstrate some of the challenges that you're up against, we can do that.

Once we get through some of the definition and description stuff and solution stuff, then we're going to turn it over for us to just play with it.

Okay, so let's look at what's an objection. So an objection is anything that's going to stop the sale or pause it from happening. So some objections are voiced, some objections aren't.

Some objections are the real objections, some aren't, right? So what we want to know is, like, we want to know what to listen for.

I was on a call with someone recently, and I said, well, what was the objection? They said, well, they didn't have an objection. I said, but they didn't buy. And they said, yeah, because they had to go home and think about it. I said, yeah, that was the objection, right? That was the objection. I have to go home and think about it.

We want to listen for what an objection is. So anytime that either you ask for the sale, you're anticipating the sale, you're moving it toward the sale, and a sale doesn't occur, consider that there's an objection that hasn't been spoken, hasn't been addressed, hasn't been overcome, that there's something there that's in the way, right?

So let's look at why we have objections. And objections tend to be...

That either someone's afraid of something, they're afraid of making a mistake, they're afraid of making a bad decision, they're afraid of what would happen if they buy it and they can't return it, if it's the wrong thing, if it doesn't fit. So people, they're afraid of something. So one is, is that they're afraid of something. That's one of the reasons people object.

Another reason is people object because they may have information that they believe is accurate, but it's outdated. So if someone says, well, I don't think veneers are a really durable way to make a tabletop, or if they think, I don't think that leather really wears well, it's like, okay, all right, because neither of those are accurate. They're not accurate today. They may have never been accurate, but they were certainly in their mind.

So one is they're afraid of something. Two, that they are inadvertently requesting more information because their information is outdated or inaccurate.

But here's where things get interesting. Because the third reason people object, the salesperson missed something.

Right? And that's where the fun is. Because the other two things are preconceived notions that they come in with that you... Can address, but you didn't contribute to, right? They came in bearing those perceptions. But what we can influence is, am I doing enough discovery work in the early part of the process so that there are fewer objections later? And as an example, if you're uncomfortable asking or discussing money or what their financial expectations are, and so you don't,

Or you show them something that if you did ask, they give you a sort of lame, vague answer like, well, as little as possible, or if I see it, I like it, I'll buy it, or money's not the most important thing, that it solves the problem matters most, but you never, ever, ever get a number.

Or if you point at something and say, as shown, this is $94.50, and they look at that, and they look at the tag, and they nod at you. What does the nod mean?

Right? They look at the tag, they look at the product, and they nod at you when you say, this is that much. What does the nod mean? Acknowledgement. You can yell it out.

The nod means be brave. They're acknowledging, they're understanding, they're listening.

That's all it means is they're listening and they can read. It does not mean they're agreeing with you and that's what they're willing to go with. But notice what we do. We take these subtle things and make them into, you know, we take yarn and spin it into a sweater. And it isn't.

And it isn't. They didn't say that. And unless we say to them, is that what you were expecting? Or is that a number that we can work with? We still have no information. We've given information. We haven't gotten information. Okay.

So we can control that.

So when a customer leaves, the client, designer, customer, when they leave the showroom, And they haven't either made a sale or you haven't made a sale or made an appointment. You want to ask yourself, what was missing from what I did with them that contributed to that outcome? Because right now, as a result, that interaction did not produce anything. You might have gotten contact information, and that's nice. But now you're going to chase them without a real objection because you don't know what's in the way. Okay.

So we've got what an objection is, what contributes to an objection.

And let's look at, right, so what makes objections interesting is because we have two people with two egos talking. We've got some resistance. We've got some possible disagreement. We've got some breakdown of communication or information. And so we've got our egos that are either looking to be right or looking to dominate or not be dominated. We've got egos doing this thing right now, right?

So we've got the customer who's got some emotional reaction. They're either disappointed or they're a little untrusting or they've got some of their stuff going on that goes with their objection, right? And then we've got the salesperson who has their own reactions to the customer's objection, whether we want to or not. It is automatic.

It's automatic.

So some people...

In the face of an objection like, can you do better on the price? They don't, you know, they didn't really like the price. Can you do better on the price?

Some salespeople are going to acquiesce and give in or try to excuse it away. You know, I'd give it to you, but Char is not having a good day. And if I brought this to her, she would never give me a better price, right?

Or we're going to try to explain it away. And we're going to give them chapter and verse, all of the things, you know, corner blocks, screwed and glued, all of the elements of product that contribute to the specific price of the item, right? So we excuse it away, explain it away. Or some of us are going to try to finesse it away or convince it away. Or are you kidding me? This is like almost free at such a great price. Or whatever we do under the pressure of an objection.

And then fourth is that some of us are going to argue and dismiss. It's like, yeah, that's not true.

Yeah, no, that's not what we're doing. Yeah, no, we can't do better on the price. No, yeah, no, this is the best price. Or just ignore it. So we've got excuse, explain, convince, argue, and dismiss. And those of us who've been through the DISC training before with me know that that is directly related to whatever your DISC style is. So your DISC style under the pressure of an objection is going to have a natural knee-jerk reaction. The problem is, is that the way that we're going to handle that objection is out of our DISC under pressure.

And you know what? It never works.

It never works. Right? Because what it is, is it's our discomfort that we're trying to make go away. It's not addressing their discomfort of what the objection actually is.

So put all of that stuff together. So we've got their reaction, our reaction, what an objection is, what causes it. And that's good for the foundation of understanding the dynamics and the working of objections. What we want to look at is how do we make them go away, right? How do we deal with them?

So our DISC reaction, DISC under pressure reaction, is an intuitive knee-jerk reaction. We don't control it. It tends to run itself. What I'm going to ask you to consider. As a process for handling objections is counterintuitive. It is not what we do. It's not what we do.

So it requires, those of you who've been through Seller to Schedule it, it requires take a breath and get to neutral. Step number one, take a breath and get to neutral. So that step number one, whatever the objection is, you acknowledge the objection. Okay, it sounds like the price is a concern for you. That's what acknowledge the objection sounds like.

Sounds like the price is a concern for you. Sounds like the timeframe for this, you know, is something that you're going to have to try to work out, right? So that's acknowledge the objection. Number two, ask for specifics. Tell me more about that. Could you tell me how that concern affects you? Could you tell me how, you know, you could tell me what doesn't work about that for you? Ask for specifics and then stop talking.

Be quiet. Be still. Listen to them. Maybe write it down, but don't talk.

Then, so let them finish. Anything else? They have a couple more things. Let them finish.

And now, you can start the process of managing the objection. More questions, though. By saying, if I could show you a couple of options that might be helpful in addressing that, would you be willing to explore those with me? And again, shh. Stop talking.

Wait for an answer. Because what's going to happen when you ask them if they're willing to explore some options with you? What are the possible things that they can say to you? And anyone can just yell it out.

Suzanne, do you have one?

I do. They may not have any more objections because you've allowed them to think they do. And then they go, do I want to go through this anymore? So you're right. They might say, if you say, I've got a couple of options I think we can explore that would address this, would you be willing to explore those with me? They might just say, yes. They would say, yeah.

And I would ask, do you like this one? And they're going to say, yes. It's like, OK, well, then let's figure out a way to make it work, right?

That's our commitment on the other side is we've got to have to be committed to making this thing work. And I don't mean giving it away. I'll get to that later. But so what Char is saying is right, is that whatever this objection is that they've stated is in the way. And that's what they want to look at is some solutions to that. So let's imagine that that's one way of looking at one answer that you're going to get from them. Because another answer might be that whatever they gave you as the initial objection wasn't the real objection.

And they say to you, you know, I just don't like the color. I just don't like it. You know, I'm looking at it. It's bright in here. I just don't think that's the right color for me.

Right? So it's like, okay, you can't lose by asking them. If we could explore a couple of, look at a couple of options that I think would address this, would you be willing to explore them?

It's either a yes or it's a no, this isn't right. Now, notice, now we're now going into step number four. Now you can overcome the objection by giving them two solutions. So let's say if it's money, they think it's too expensive, and I'm going to speak to the retail people for a second. If it's too expensive, you can say, what we can do, since you sketched the room, and you're talking about several items, since you sketched the room, just had to get that in there. So what if we did this? What if we hold on the media center for now?

And after it's delivered, after the upholstery is delivered, we can take a look and see if we still want to do that. Or we're going to hold on the rug until the upholstery goes in, and then we can see that and we can phase the room so that you can do this over time. That's one option.

The other option is, if we were to use financing, rather than 50% down, we only need 10.

And then you're not going to get, the clock doesn't start ticking until it's after it's delivered. And we're going to use 12 months, and that would be this price divided by 12. Would that make it, which would make it easier for you to remove an item or to use financing to get all of it at one time? Which would you prefer? This is a closing question.

Stop talking. Not just you. Stop talking. Don't say anything right now. You've asked for the sale right here. You're selling an option.

This is Amy at the Greenville store. And let them. Let them answer you. Okay.

Jody, speaking of not talking, could you ask everyone to mute their microphones? Thank you, Joby. So could everyone mute their microphones? Thank you. Sorry, that's the D in me coming out. I know, but that's okay, Joby. I'm with you on that.

All right. So acknowledge the objection, ask for specifics, offer to help. By offering some options. When you offer a solution, you want to have a this or that. It's what's called the alternate close, this or that solution. Let them pick. Let them pick.

And then anything else, they say, nope, it seems you've covered it. What's the next question? And you can all unmute yourselves for this one. What's the next question?

Yes, Erica. Let's write this up. Let's write this up. Exactly. Let's complete this. Yay.

Now, let's make it more interesting. So let's say now they come up with another objection. What are you going to do? You're going to go through the whole process again.

Right? Again. The same process. They're going to have a different objection. You're going to go through it again. Right?

And that's just what happens. So if you're committed to getting the sale, you've got to be committed to going through the process of overcoming objections and getting good at it. But as salespeople, we've got two options of things to get good at. We've got the option of increasing and improving our discovery questions. Ask an answer that we know exactly what is happening with this person.

Where they are in the buying process, what problem they're looking to solve, and what product is going to do it. Process, problem, product. We know that. So that when we present a solution, based on those three things, you're presenting a solution that they can say yes to today, right?

And so when we do that, so we've got that in anticipating, anticipating objections.

And while we're at it, let's get really good at the structure that I just gave you of handling objections, of handling objections.

Jodi, I have a question.

Yes, please. Could you go through the same process in terms of getting appointments instead of just getting the sale? Could you walk us through an example of going through this? Because I think that's... For the trade people. Well, actually, for everybody. Well, for anyone, yeah. I'm trying to get appointments out on the road.

Oh, so is this going to be a phone call? I don't know. You tell me.

Okay, so you be my designer. Well, I think, yeah, I mean, obviously, we want to get out of sending emails all the time because those don't work. So I guess it would be a phone call then. Okay, so, Joby, be my designer, okay? Okay.

So I'm going to use a different, I'm going to use, and I've given you this before, but this is a great place to use it. Let's say that we're in a conversation. The objective we're looking for is to get an appointment and to say, since we're both busy, would it be better for me to come to you to show you a couple of things in the collection that I really think you need to see? Or is it easier for you to come into the showroom?

So that would be to you, Joby.

Sorry, I'm too busy. I don't have time. Yeah, okay. So how would you imagine then, since you're really busy, how would you imagine seeing these products that, one, align with your aesthetic, and two, are in price points that every one of your customers can benefit by?

Well, I can just search for it online, can't I? Not quite the same. I mean, you can search for it online, but a couple of the things that I want to show you are real bread and butter lines for those. For those rooms that either for when you need something that you've gone over budget somewhere else, you have to make it up in another part of the project, or for areas of the home that your client just doesn't want to invest that much. And I think for you to see some of these and have them in your library would be helpful. If I came to update your library, I promise you I will not be there more than 20 minutes. Can we make that work?

Okay, so I get what you're doing. So does that follow the same format then what you were doing with trying to get in order the four steps that you just talked about? Hell no, that was me as a dominant influencer, not accepting no, and trying to convince you. That's what that was. That's what I thought.

Because the overcoming objections. So let's go to it. It's not just orders. It's not just orders. It's also, you know, it's also. Trying to get appointments at this point, because you always tell us that it's either ask for the order or ask for an appointment. It is. So much of what the challenge for my team right now, at least, is getting the appointments.

So let's, so Suzanne Titus just signed on here and said, what about a Zoom meeting for an appointment? I would offer that and say if we, so that since you're busy, or I get that you're busy. How could you imagine that we could see this? If I were to send you these in the mail, could we set up an appointment to discuss them on the phone?

That would be an option. I like that. Or that we could do a Zoom meeting. Or Zoom, yeah. Or we could do a Zoom meeting. Which would you prefer, Ryan?

Yeah. Is there someone? Is he talking? No.

No, that was Joby. This guy named Joby. Yeah, that was Joby. That guy named Joby. Yeah, that's me.

Is he here? He's talking? Yes. I'm sorry. That's okay. Yeah.

I like that a lot. I like that a lot. But I think that brings up the importance for my team that's listening right now of getting on the phone and calling as opposed to sending emails asking for appointments because you can't have that back and forth engagement, whether you're being a dominant influencer like you were with me or whether you're going through the four steps you were going over with us earlier. You can't do that and come to a compromise, essentially, unless you're on the phone with them.

Or not as easily, I guess.

Well, let's go back to the objection of appointments, right? Let's go back to that as the issue. So I know that we've talked about, and I used it with you, that verbal equation, the word since, followed by a fact, followed by a question, right? Since your time is really valuable, and I don't want to waste it, if I could have 20 minutes of your time to show you a line that's a great bread and butter line for you, and another line that's brand new that's in your particular aesthetic, would you be willing to give me 20 minutes?

Just 20 minutes, right? And so I think that what you also raised, Joby, with that is that... Thank you, Suzanne, about the Zoom. I think that part of our challenge, if we are willing to accept it, is I think that objections of where our tenacity as a salesperson come in.

That's really what gets challenges. How much do we want it? How much are we willing to work for it? Because you've got to be in there.

Actively engaged in the conversation to overcome an objection, right? And one of the things that we need to do is how ready are we with two outcomes or two options that we can offer that person for that particular objection? Like the one that I did with, you know, it's too expensive to say, take something out. Or in retail, we can use financing. Like that is a prepared response to that. It's not the only thing to do, but those are two to start with. And so we want to look at what are all of the objections that I'm getting? And do I have two responses to each of my most common objections that is at least going to put me, keep me present?

And offering things that they have the potential of saying yes to. Because if we're trying to think of two things to insert into that strategy, and we don't have them in our pocket, we're going to struggle and we won't use the strategy. And we'll go back to doing whatever we've done.

And Joby, I would say that this is, again, you know, why some of us, instead of making an appointment, why some of us resort to, I'll just follow up. It's like, for what? What was the objection? And I say, if you get an objection in any showroom, whether it's a retail showroom or trade showroom, make that objection homework. Like, make the objection work as an action instead of as a reason not to buy. If someone says, I need to talk to someone else, or I need to talk to my spouse, or I need to do that, it's like, well, that's your homework then.

Because homework implies what? Homework implies that there's going to be some next step. Something is going to follow homework because nobody gets homework on the last day of school, right? So I say that we need to get more and look at what are the objections I most commonly get? Because those objections that you most commonly get did not really get satisfied in discovery or else they wouldn't be coming up now.

And so as salespeople, we want to look at the discovery questions and not just, did I ask the question, but did I get the answer I was looking for, right? And did I continue to dig in discovery to get the answer I needed to understand where they are in their process, to understand what problem they're really, what they're really looking to solve or resolve?

Or did I get an answer that was on the top, and I stayed skimming the surface rather than going very deeply? So there's that, right? As well as, and if they didn't give me an answer, was I prepared to ask more questions? Do I know what kind of, so when I'm saying, when I ask someone, what's your, what are you expecting to invest in this part of the project? I'm looking for an actual number, but I'm not even looking for a number that makes sense. I'm looking for a number that reflects their expectation at this moment in time that's based on what they've already learned. But that doesn't mean that's all they ever have. That just means based on what they know now.

And if you show them something that's three times that, that is so on track with what they're looking for, you know what they're going to do? They're going to buy it.

But that really means really understanding their process, really understanding what the priorities are in their problem, really understanding what product I can join with those three things, their product, the problem, where they are in their process, and what their priorities are.

Right? And if I can do that, I'm not going to have as many objections.

So there was this video that I watched a few years ago, and I loved how many people were like, oh my God, that's not us. I thought, okay. So it was this guy, I want to say his name was Steve Silver, but that's not probably right. And he was, honestly, like our worst nightmare, so we think. He was a used car salesman.

But he was a trainer for salespeople. Not always used, but he was a trainer for car salespeople.

And so all of the objections that people would get, I'm going to trade it in. I'm not going to trade it in. I need to talk to my wife about it. I'm going to sell it myself. Every single objection that he got, every single one, he would do the like, yeah, you know, you can do that. Yeah, I could see how you do that. I could see why you'd be considering that.

Like, tell me how you see that happening. So someone says they're going to sell the car themselves. Tell me how you see that happening. And they say, well, you know, I'm going to put an ad in or I'll do this or put it on Craigslist. And he's like, yeah, yeah, yeah. So, okay. So can I ask you a couple of questions? Like, how many people do you want to come to your house in order to sell your car?

All right. Okay. And so let's say you sell your car.

But let's say you do it that way. And let's say you sell the car. You know, the person gives you like a little, a few dollars down and they're going to come back. But you know what? They come back and now they're going to negotiate. They don't want to do, they don't have all the money and they want you. It's like, how many times do you want to sell your car in order to sell your car?

I thought, oh my God, I love this guy so much.

But the thing is, it's not about whether I would use those tactics. Or I would use that language. But it's about learning how to manage objections, how to manage our reaction, how to have a compassionate, understanding response, and how to dismantle the objection and offer solutions that they can say yes to. That's what dismantling an objection is. And it's fun.

The thing is, you can do it everywhere. Because we have a bunch of complainers, people crabbing about stuff. Right? So you can practice on them. Okay. So it sounds like sunny weather doesn't really work for you. Can you tell me, you know, what you don't like about the sun?

All right. It's like, okay, so you don't, so tell, it sounds like you're not in the mood for Italian food. Can you tell me more about that? We have lots of opportunity because all we're doing is we're managing someone's no or not now. That's what we're managing. A no or not now. And we can practice on the world to do that. Okay.

So I'm going to look in the chat here to see if there are any questions. Oh, Char, let's hear it. So this is awesome. And I can think of about five times I should have used this in the last few weeks. I go, this is, yeah.

Is the objection really just some mental thing and you can get them to, yes? Or when do we know the objection is really, that's it. I don't want to talk about this anymore. So be whatever you want to be, and let's see if I can do it with you.

Well, I have a humdinger. Okay.

I wish you had been there. This is like a stump the trainer kind of a thing. Well, you'll have the answer. I will or I won't. I might not be successful. Oh, you will be. So I'm...

I'm presenting an art. I've presented this art package to you because you said to me you were willing to explore things that would elevate the look of your place rather than just doing, not just doing, but doing photography. Sure. Because this is what happened to me. Since none of you are saying a word after I've shown you everything, can you tell me what's going through your mind? You said that. I did.

So the one person who obviously was leader of the pack said, you know what, we really want photography and I want it to look like my wedding photos. This is a commercial venue. I said, what does that mean? What does that mean? Because my first thing was just shut your mouth and think about what you're going to say. Notice our own reactions.

And she said, I want it to be nature, outside, earthy, dark, moody.

I said, okay, those are very specific. I said, when I look at a project, I look at what is the client going to think? Is that what's important? What is the client going to think about what this company is representing in their photographs? Yeah. How dark everything is, because psychologically, they're coming to give you a gazillion dollars and invest with you. And part of it, it should be uplifting and things that they can relate to. And she said to me, this is where I didn't know quite what, I don't care what they think.

Okay. I work here. This is about what I want.

Got it. What's the problem? The problem is... Finding how many pieces of art do we need? I don't know. About 30 pieces of photography that look like our wedding photographs. This is me thinking.

Yeah, but I think I don't get caught in that because you're getting caught in the way and watch your judgments, right? Because what she further explained was dark, moody nature. She gave you, I would have asked for, can you show me some examples of things that you like so I know what to go and look for?

This is like an advertising conversation, right? And I mean that because everybody thinks they know about, they used to think they know about advertising. But whatever the client wants, if that is the expression that they want in that space, then that's the expression that we need to provide. Our aesthetic is not the point. And even our judgment, and I don't mean judgment that way, but I mean, even though... We may think that that person should be selecting art based on something other than what they're using, but our judgment doesn't matter. What the client wants, in that case, it's their self-expression.

So how do I take this one step further? There were five people in this meeting. She obviously owned the floor. But there were a couple others that said, well, maybe this could work. And she just put them down to say that isn't the direction. So let me go ask again. I'm going to use this as an example of discovery. I would want to know if you're presenting to a committee, does everyone's vote have equal count?

Right.

You would think her box was there. So I unfortunately made the assumption that he had an equal vote. And I didn't feel like that was really true. But you're right. I should have said, is this a committee decision? Or is it an individual? Or it's committees there, but they're not decision makers, really. Right.

Yeah. I think that's where it is.

But I would say, all is not lost. But I would go back and say, I would shoot a couple of images and say, aesthetically, in terms of aesthetic and content, Is this an example of what you would like me to be sourcing?

And see what they say. And you're probably going to, and I think it's great, Char, when we notice our reactions, and our reactions aren't good or bad, they're just reactions, right? And even our judgment, like it's leaning into it and behaviors from our judgment. But when we notice our judgment or our reaction to thing, it's like, okay, just notice it. That's great. Just notice it. Okay.

But I would say it's not lost yet. Those would be the actions I would take is to send her an image and say, you know, I would absolutely thank you so much for the feedback. I wish I had asked that earlier so that I could have presented something the first time that you could say yes to, but I intend to do that next.

Okay, I'm going to hog out one more time, one more thing here. I did send some images and they must have been good enough because they sent them to everybody. And they just started looking. What day are we on? Wednesday. Wednesday. They just started looking on Monday and Tuesday. So do I get back to them today and say, was this what you were thinking?

So what I would have done, I'm going to go back because Joby's absolutely going to catch this, that when I sent the images, I would say, let's say you sent them yesterday. I would say I will call you Thursday morning between 10 and 12 to get some feedback on if we're on the right track so that I can continue to source these. And then send them a calendar invitation for, say, 11 o'clock on Thursday and see what they do with it. But you'll notice that a lot of this stuff, Char, is like, it's not an overhaul. It's either tying something up or putting a tighter, more defined question or answer in it. It's not an overhaul. Because you did so much of it that was effective. And it's easy.

When we think we've understood something and present a solution, only to have them say, oh, no. And we think, oh, my God, I didn't get any of what they were saying. It's like, well, no, that's not really true. But now we're going to put a finer point on it, so our next presentation will close. Okay. Okay.

So we've got David. Two questions. Hospitality outside rep. Objections to appointments, my current approach, and how it can be diversified using the objections approach and firm purchase a relationship and reselections. I think I can speak to it. Oh, hi, David. Hi.

So just to piggyback sort of off of what Joby was initiating with objections to appointments.

I've been running into that a lot with the firms in LA and in Vegas. A lot of them are saying that they're super busy.

The staff isn't able to give the time for the appointment. So what I've done is I've pivoted my approach to be a little bit more on like a one-on-one basis where I'll try to figure out what projects they're working on. And I started doing shops. So to sort of caveat thought, I'll do shops for them. I'll do micro presentations. This will lead to... Additional opportunities, maybe there's another project that they'll loop me into, or another designer gets looped in for something else, so it starts to grow from there.

So although we're getting objections to presentations, which is sort of, I think, the obstacle that we're trying to move past, there's the pivot approach there of still satisfying and getting our foot in the door through shops.

So I kind of wanted to hear what your thoughts are on that approach and if it could lead to... Because what I'm noticing in my current activity is that it is becoming very heavily shot-based and micro-presentation-based as opposed to full presentation. Exactly.

So consider that... Consider that what you're describing, David, is client cultivation process. Then in the beginning, you're going to do shops and micro presentations. But the more that you stay with it and honor that process because it works for them, you can start asking for more with every communication.

Right. But when we go in looking for a presentation, we don't get it. Instead of going in and getting small amounts and building up to that or presenting to junior designers instead of the principals, like there's stuff that we can do. All you want to do is get on their radar and then start building once you're on the radar. It's like, look, if all of us as salespeople focus more on hitting singles instead of home runs, we would get more effective. But we think we got to hit a home run. It's like, who said that? Hit a single, get on base, get to second base, get to third base, go home, hit singles.

Okay. And stay hitting them. Don't give up. Yeah.

Yeah. And I think that's been sort of the activity that I've been having. So I just kind of wanted to hear your senior opinion on it to kind of see like, is it, am I? And by senior, you meant that in the nicest way. Well, like senior doesn't like you. I know. I trust your opinion.

So let me ask, is what you're doing working?

So, David, you want to ask yourself, am I progressing, right? Am I building progress? Am I getting traction and momentum with this account? Am I close to getting to meet one of them? Am I close to doing, we might not be doing lunch and learns for a while, right? Because no one has time for those. But you could say, if I can get this, what is that kind of an engagement?

Going in net, what can I get from that? And if I need to get more than that, then what do I need to do? And I know that you can, like if you're doing trunk shows or you're doing Vegas or are you, if you're going to do that, are you prepping them?

To meet with them. Are they going to be there? What's their schedule like? If they can give you 10 minutes. But I would ask for small amounts of time and make them work. If I could have 10 minutes of your time, I promise you I will not waste it. Just 10 minutes. And almost anyone can give you 10.

Ask for little bits and let the little bits grow into bigger bits. Okay. Sounds like I'm not too far off. Exactly, right?

It's when we start to get greedy and think that we should get more and they should be doing it. It's like should is an opportunity. It's a resentment. It's just the beginning of a resentment. And then that's what we're going to build a relationship on is resentment. Well, that doesn't work. Yeah.

And I've found more success in these micro interactions with quotation and sales versus a full presentation on a luncheon. I've noticed that there's usually more traction when I'm doing these more personable. So I just kind of wanted to see how I can.

I think you're right. And especially as you target them, like give me some adjectives to describe their project aesthetically. Or give me some, like you want to get some juice from them so that when you do a shop, the shop is going to hit, you know, on some key points. So give me some key points, priorities of the project. Give me some adjectives for the aesthetic of the project. You want to have, like, two or three questions that you ask so that you can,

kind of like what Char was saying, you know, maybe had that happened in their initial meeting, some adjectives for aesthetics, like, or some examples of what you're imagining, that would make it easier for you to curate products for the shop that you think are going to land. Okay.

The second question. So a lot of the work in the front end goes within the firm. So directly to designers, junior designers, senior designers. And then what I've noticed is sometimes once it gets handed off to purchasing, it's kind of like a new relationship that doesn't have that same groundwork that's been laid. And when... I've noticed this with a couple orders. I'll do my follow-ups with the purchasers and I'll receive back a, the client decided to move in a different direction with this or it was reshopped and we weren't given that opportunity. So is there any language that you can recommend or like a process with the purchaser to kind of mitigate that risk?

The purchaser's role is to execute, right? Is to execute a decision that's been made. So if the purchaser tells you that the designer's gone in a different direction, it's not about the purchaser, it's about the designer. No, the client. Or the client.

Yeah, and I'm noticing this as well.

I'll talk about one specific situation. So I just got a purchase order from a firm that I do a lot of work with, that I have a great relationship with, and it... is a very old quote with a staff member that doesn't work with Quintus anymore that I've taken over. This is like two reps previous to me. And also the designer at that firm no longer works there.

So I've offered to do a reshop for this. The item is discontinued. So I was able to kind of get in there and figure out a solution. Good. But in this specific situation, we've lost... The designer that was in charge of it and the purchaser is executing it. So the purchaser essentially is going to be looking at other options to present back to the designer.

So it's creating kind of like a messy situation.

So whatever, if you know what the chain of command is, where do you insert yourself? I would say build relationships with both of them because they're both contributing to the outcome. Right. So would you follow the same process, like the fourth step with both? Okay. Right.

And I don't think, and I think we've talked about this in another webinar, but I don't know that we give enough value and credence to recapping stuff or to, I'm checking in to hear if anything's changed since we last spoke. As a way of staying in communication with people so that when things change, we don't find out six weeks later when we can't reconfigure it back to something that, you know, looks anything like what we talked about before. Or if they have gone in a different direction, how we get recalibrated in.

It's all communication. And I mean, some of these are. I know that it's a funny time now, people don't pick up the phone, but I do think that some of these are phone calls. Just pick up the phone. And there are probably people that, and if you start to watch this, there are people that call them early in the mornings. People might pick up the phone early in the morning when they're at their desk, or after five, they'll pick up the phone, but they won't pick it up during the day because their head's in the game doing something else.

So when you really want to talk to them, when's the best time to actually reach them? Or to send them a text and say, I need five minutes. I've got two questions, but I don't want to just text. I wanted to get them from you.

Okay. Just like, yeah.

Okay.

So Charlotte, a shop is a term now. A shop is what trade showrooms do. They'll put a little box of things together for products on a project based on the information that they've gained from a designer so that they send them out so that they can include those samples, either evaluate those samples and or include them in their presentation with that client. Okay.

Other questions we have about objections, and you can either say it out loud or put it in the chat. I have a question about objections. Sure. Sorry, David and I are sitting next to each other. Sorry for the echo.

I am curious. I'm an outside sales rep, and I'm curious when I am having trouble getting appointments or when I'm in an appointment and I'm facing kind of like a defensive demeanor by the designer or the client, it might be based on their past experiences with customer service or with previous sales rep with the business. And I'm curious how you overcome those kinds of objections or how you... Sort of sully the reputation of the business as a new person and as somebody that's not their established rep.

Well, I would investigate their experience before so that you know if you're walking into something that is incomplete from the past. And if it's incomplete from the past, is it something that has not really been resolved or it's something that's not settled? Like, it may be resolved, but they're not settled with it. They may still have something to say. And if you know that there's been no communication, I would ask them. I would say, I know that we worked together in the past, and I know that there were some hiccups. You know, I'm interested to know, since I'd love to work with you, is there anything from the past that's unresolved that we can talk about?

And then stop talking and see what they say. Like, you're giving them a chance to tell you, because I wouldn't assume that there's something still wrong. It might be they're having a bad day or, you know, they spent the morning with their 10-year-old in the emergency room getting their wrist set or something.

Like, we don't really know, right? But I would do my homework so that you can... There's that. And I would actually research them that if they're... And I know that some of the Quintus home people have some disc stuff, but... If they're a high dominant, they're going to give you about 30 seconds, and you're going to have to make it.

Even though you might have unbelievable stuff to show them, they value their time so much that they might ask you, if I could send it to you and then follow up with a phone call, or if I'm in the neighborhood, could I drop by and update your library? You know, I'd love to meet you. But I think when you promise like a five, I will not be more than five minutes. I promise you, I know your time is valuable like that. And then you deliver on what you say, because that's what you want to be building is you want to build your reputation with them is that you honor your word and you respect their time.

Right. It's this.

So we're spinning so many plates here. Right. So, you know, did that answer your question? I'm not sure. No, that was fantastic. Thank you. Oh, you're welcome.

Okay, anyone else? Any other?

All right, so what is the optimal amount of time that we should ask for a presentation?

Hey, Jodi. Yeah. This is Ashley. I'm Kelly's. Hi, Ashley. Hi.

How are you?

I'm great. How are you?

I'm excellent. So wonderful to see you. Thank you. You too. I'm sorry my screen isn't working. We're having... So we'll deal with it later.

But I just wanted to say something when I hit objections. So we're a little bit different because we're selling tile, not necessarily furniture and soft goods. But when I've had people say, oh, I don't like that or something along those lines, I have found because it's human nature to call out things they don't like. It's a lot easier to rattle off what you don't like versus what you do like. Yes.

And I hate to bring that negative energy forward, but when I say, well, what? Okay, that's all right. If you don't like this, well, what do you like? Well, they're not educated enough, so they don't know what they like, right? They're there to learn from me or be exposed to the materials that are on the wall. And so... When I turn the conversation to, well, show me what you don't like, it's so much easier for them to rattle things off, which then, in my mind, puts me into the direction of what they will like. And that's always been very productive.

That's a really great example. Tell me what you don't like about this.

There's a team I work with in Indiana, and they're a top performer. When a customer is looking to decide between two things and they're having trouble deciding, she does something similar. She will say, which one do you like least? Because exactly what you're saying, most people will say, which is your favorite? And they get the same answer. I really can't decide. But she asks them, which one do you like the least? And then just quiet again.

So I think it's using what their most dominant reaction is. In action.

Totally. Right? And then you can kind of make light of it. Like, I kind of chuckle. So which ones don't you like, you know? And then we make it like a game. I love that.

It's fun to pick out all the things you don't like. Get all that anger out so we can have fun now.

Exactly. Exactly. That's a great example. Thank you so much for giving that to us. Yes. Okay.

Yeah, anyone else, optimal time, we should ask for presentation.

I think you have to build on it. So this is for Charlotte. I think you have to build on it, Charlotte. I think that when you're trying to get your foot in the door, like just your foot, like if I could have 10 minutes of your time, I promise you I will not waste it. Just 10 minutes. And I want to show you this one thing, like make it a real, and as David said, make it a micro meeting.

And then before you leave, get an appointment to come back. And this is where I think that sometimes with outside salespeople, because they're so happy to get an appointment, they think, I got to like load everything down because this may be the only shot I've got. It's like, no.

One thing that gets sticky, that they like you, that gets you the opportunity to go back and make an appointment to go back. That's what that opportunity is for, is to go back. I wouldn't be looking for a quote on that. I'd be looking for another meeting, make another appointment.

If we can bring patience, honestly, patience and tenacity to the cultivation process and start recording and measuring our progress, we will have a lot more effectiveness.

Even though my product is, I'm selling some prints, high-end prints, so they're framed and glass. So just to even get there and show... A smattering, a representation, meaningful representation. I'm lugging around, you know, eight, nine framed prints. I can't just like run in. Or the other problem I have is that I can't really leave samples there.

What if you did a video? Do a video in a larger space of what you're showing. And then can you create a smaller sample so that they can see? The quality of the work in a smaller format. Recently, I suspect I know what the problem is. Right? Could you try that? I could do the video, but I don't know how I could do a smaller representation.

Hey, Bob, could you go on mute? Thank you. Bob, could you go on mute? Thanks.

Charlotte, I would request that, if you can request that, to just be able to have a sample size. They have other concerns right now. They have other issues. They have other things they need to take care of. Pretty much, yes. I think it is resulting in pretty shit quality. Okay.

So I would ask your purveyors if they could provide you with something. So, Char, you could probably speak to this. It'd be a hell of a thing to try. That's going to be hard to get that perfect.

Yeah, I could speak. You know what? I would do just what she said. Do a video and bring one piece because what they really need to see is the quality. Right. Oh, what does that frame look like? What does it look like with the glass on top of it?

You're talking to a woman who was lugged. There's thousands of pieces of art around in her life, and it's really just the one thing, and then they want to see the options, and if you have videoed it, or you could video it, set up and say, which piece would you like to see, because I will only bring one with me.

So that you're bringing something because there may be some kind of subject matter that is really important to them. Or you can say, is there any particular subject matter that you would like to see? Because I have so many options to show you. Beautiful.

Okay, thank you. I would never apologize. Like, really. So this is great. Okay. Okay.

So I see by our clock on the wall that we are out of time. Well, this has been just a slice. So, listen, thank you all for being here and for your engagement in this and really looking to see if you can improve these. And I welcome your support and continue to reach out to me to stay in the loop and continue to participate in these.

I want to thank you all, and thank you for coming, and you're probably all going to get the recording of this as well as the AI summary, and if you don't, please reach out to me, and I'll make sure that you do. All right. Have a safe and wonderful Memorial Day weekend, everyone, and I'll talk to you soon. Thanks.

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Sales Skills

Handling Objections with Clarity and Calm

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