Help with overcoming objections and creating urgency in sales

[unorthodox]

In my first sales gig, cell phone sales.

I'm told I need to create more urgency to get people to act now.

However they don't give me good examples, they just say "create urgency".



Also some objections I get hung up on:

"I need to talk to my wife/family/parents about this"

"I'll think about it"

"I don't have much time"

 

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[Choate]

In my first sales gig, cell phone sales.

I'm told I need to create more urgency to get people to act now.

However they don't give me good examples, they just say "create urgency".



Also some objections I get hung up on:

"I need to talk to my wife/family/parents about this"

"I'll think about it"

"I don't have much time"

I sold home and auto insurance for almost 2 years in a similar fashion. Our model was question based selling. You really have to have a conversation with the customer and figure out what their problem is that they currently have. If they don't have a problem - you need to create one. This happens before you go over any of the selling, benefits, etc. Create problem -> Demonstrate knowledge and expertise -> Go over 1-2 benefits as it relates to their specific problem -> Sell the solution. And its less like "selling the solution" as it is painting the picture as to how that specific cell phone will fit into their life.

If you can paint a picture in peoples' minds of how your cell phone you are selling is going to benefit them and solve a specific problem they currently have, you will create urgency. In order to solve that specific problem, you need to dig deep and figure out why they are in your store/on the phone with you in the first place - there is an issue they currently have which is why they are talking with you.

 

[jacobiday]

Build value build value build value. I would say 80% of sales people's lack of sales comes from not building enough value. If you build enough value in a customers mind they will overcome their own objections. Be an expert in your product know why they should get the new phone, how it will make their life easier, how it will make them more productive, how it will make them money. Every customer is different the wife objection my response would be what would she say no to? It will come down to 3 things the 3 Ms Man, Money, or Machine. They either don't like you, too much money, or didn't like the phone. If it's the Man you didn't build enough rapport if it's the money every phone company has payment plans paying off other carriers etc, if it's the machine you need to do some more fact finding. Think about it objection what are they thinking about the money the machine or the man. Time is a tough one but if I was able to save you some money wouldn't that be worth your time? Sales is an awesome field and can take you anywhere. If you go in to more detail what your selling and how your selling it like call center or mall kiosk etc. I can go into more detail on some objection handling but it always comes down to Man, Money, or Machine.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[kkompoti]

i have some questions for you. why cell phones?
the need of communication is one basic need for people.
but people can buy cheap or high end cell phones delivered to their door via popular on line stores and from gearbest or aliexpress.
what is the value you add?
what is your profit margin?

i do not want to sound negative but i would like to know how you chose this product to sell.

 

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[Anon38776]

"I need to talk to my wife/family/parents about this"
"I'll think about it"

They're looking to peers for reassurance, scanning for a better deal or dismissing you politely.

How are your offers delivered? Is it a site, e-mails?

 

[unorthodox]

@Choate thabks, that's really helpful. Can you elaborate more on "creating a need"

@jacobiday thanks for the input. I actually sell in an AT&T store. We sell cell
Phones, tablet, cable and satellite tv and a home automation service. The idea is to find out a lot about everybody who walks in and tie in their needs into a 1 complete solution (phone with phone insurance, tv/internet/home automation, tablet, accessories).

@kkompoti its my first sales job. I came from a 11/hr gas station job that sucked bad. I figure I can learn quicker and become great at sales with cell phones because I sell more phones in a month than I could sell a car/house etc. it results in me learning faster before I move into higher cost products or management. After 1 year (I'm 3 months in) I'm eligible to become manager if I'm good and they make 40-50k working 45hrs a weeks. Not Fastlane but good enough to save some money and work on a side biz.

@Taykamant i work at an At&t authorized retailer store.

 

[Choate]

@Choate thabks, that's really helpful. Can you elaborate more on "creating a need"

Sure. Every time someone comes in to your store to talk about cell phones, they have deep down problem with their current phone or provider. They aren't going to bring this up first. For example, let's say that they have recently gotten a new job and are making much more income now. In return, they want to fit in with their colleagues so when they go out for happy hour with their coworkers they aren't rocking an knockoff Samsung Galaxy with a crack in the screen - maybe everyone in the office has an iPhone. So with their new income they set out to buy a new phone. They are determined to buy a new phone. But on the surface, they are "casually browsing" or really not that interested. So in order to create urgency, you need to find what their need is - and if they don't have a need, you can create one. Because if they don't buy the phone when they come into your store right there, they will surely buy it somewhere else, maybe on Amazon, maybe at Verizon Wireless instead, when the emotions click.

---

Let me relate this to my own experience in a different industry.

With insurance, customers usually shop around when their rates go up. They go up because of a new driver, driving record changed, had a lapse in coverage, moved to a higher risk area, or maybe the company just uprated an entire state. With these, its easy to capitalize on. "Wow so with only 1 speeding ticket your company went up an entire $50 a month? I mean you didn't even cause any harm to anyone, and you're certainly not costing your company any additional money, so let's see if we can place you with a company who's a better fit and a little bit more understanding, today". With a little bit of digging, the problem (need) is clearly uncovered, and a solution can be fit to it accordingly.

Now here, let's see how you create need. Let's say I'm talking to Mary on the phone and she's been with State Farm for 30 years with her husband John. They are content, happy customers, only had one claim and it was handled just okay. Overall, the keyword is "content". So I come back and see that this customer is pretty low risk and I have a carrier, let's say The Hartford, who is willing to offer them a lower price. Let's say they currently pay $1200 a year for 2 drivers and 2 cars and I come back and say I can offer it to them for $700 a year. I ran into this situation hundreds of times. If I just throw "well hey I can save you $500 a year, let's get this started" at them, they are going to either think 1) I am scamming them 2) they are losing value 3) something is off. In reality, they are getting the same coverage, its just the new company sees them as very low risk so they are getting a better deal.

Creating need is like the movie Inception. You plant an idea in their head and let it grow. You cannot force them to do anything. Push less, pull more. "So you've been with State Farm for 25 years and you mean to say they haven't been lowering your price as a loyalty discount for being with them for so long? Wait, you mean they've actually gone up on price a little bit? Interesting, you know more preferred companies would actually lower your rates for staying with them for so long which is why you are seeing a $500/year savings now."

Creating a need is basically discovering a problem for the customer that the customer didn't know they had before. Let me say that again. The customer has this problem, you are just clarifying it for them, and showing them that this is indeed a problem.

Sure, these folks pay less for insurance than most. But they still pay almost more than double what they could. To me, that's a problem.

Sure, their agent might be an older family friend down the road that they stay with out of loyalty. But I am a younger guy with access to multiple companies, the latest technology and always up to date on the competition. You can either continue to deepen his pockets or I can guarantee you have access to the best price year after year with the best company for you. The customer might not have that need before our conversation, but now they do.

On the other end of the spectrum: sure, someone can purchase their insurance online and manage it through an app. But when something goes wrong, who do they call? Is it going to be a nameless customer service rep or their agent who knows and remembers them on a first name basis?

These folks might not see a problem with their current situation but I will have them develop a problem in their own mind, which then creates a need. When there is a need, there is a sale to be made; and I am not pushing my product on them but rather offering it as a convenient solution to the problem that I helped them create.

________

Cell phones: everybody has one, everybody needs one. This is 2016.

What kind of cell phone are you currently using? Great, how long have you had it for? Do you usually upgrade annually? No, why not?
Is it just for personal use or for business? Do you have heavy internet use or just text and talk?

Not only is it good to build rapport by having natural conversation, you might discover something you didn't expect. If when you're asking them about their iPhone history they have had an iPhone 5 and 6, figure out why they went from the 5 to the 6. You can't just throw out "Well now the iPhone 7 has this, this, this, and that as new features!" Perhaps you find out that they just had their previous iPhone lasted a long time and was just upgraded due to wear and tear. Take a look at their iPhone 6 and make a suggestion. If they keep it in good shape, with screen protector and case, you can attack from another angle instead. Find pain points, add value where necessary, and listen more than you speak.

You should read, study, and ask questions until you are the phone expert. Out of 150 people that sold insurance, I was one of the most knowledgeable agents on the floor and I was relatively new whereas some of the agents sold it for years. I was always Googling insurance forums, asking my peers, calling underwriters regarding specific questions, etc. Answers are out there. You should be one of the top 3 phone experts on your floor so that when another employee has a question, they can come to you. Credibility and sales comes from knowledge and if your customers can trust you they will give you their money.


____

And lastly I just wanted to touch on objections because I didn't in my first response. Objections are like driving your boat through the arctic. The sooner you start to plow and push ice aside, the further along your boat can get. However if it doesn't push the ice aside, the ice piles up until your boat eventually hits an iceberg and sinks like the Titanic. What I mean is that you want to find out what their objections are as soon as you can. If you wait until the end of the conversation then they hit you with an objection, you've waited too long. If you try to overcome an objection after 20 minutes of talking to them, you just sound like a pushy salesman. But if you find out within two minutes of talking to them that they are not sure what their wife would think of this phone, then you can start to cater the conversation around that. You pull out early objections by using "soft closes". Something early on would be "If you brought this new phone home to your wife today, what do you think she would say?" Or "If we can get you set up with the right phone today at the right price is that something you are looking to do?" This is borderline hard close but if you get even a maybe here, you should be treating it like it will be a sale.

 

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