In an earlier article, I wrote about how to handle objections. But not all objections are created equal. And there are some objections that shouldn’t be handled.
In fact, there are some objections that you’re better off ignoring.
Crazy, right? When have you ever heard sales advice that tells you to ignore your prospect?
Never, hopefully. Because it’s a terrible sales strategy, most of the time. But for this specific situation, it’s the right strategy.
There are two main types of objections that we’ll talk about in this article: (1) real objections and (2) “smokescreen” objections.
Real objections are like brick walls. Smokescreen objections are like clouds of smoke.
If you were faced with a brick wall and you needed to get to the other side, what would you do?
You’d have to deconstruct the wall, break through it, build a door, or find a way around. But you couldn’t just walk through it without breaking your nose.
With a cloud of smoke on the other hand, if you needed to get to the other side, what would you do?
Just walk through.
This isn’t always a natural reaction. Most people are cautious around clouds of smoke. And for good reason: it can be scary because you can’t see and you don’t know what’s on the other side.
And it’s the same with objections.
When a junior sales rep gets a smokescreen objection, they don’t know how to handle it.
Often they’ll try to address the objection head-on in an attempt to overcome it by winning the prospect over to their way of thinking by force. Their response often starts with the word “but” and ends with a statement. Argumentative. Confrontational. All wrong.
A pro salesperson, on the other hand, knows that a smokescreen objection is just that, smoke.
“They’re not real,” my old sales director used to say. “Just walk through them.”
So, you understand the general concept, now there are two things we need to learn:
- How to differentiate between real objections and smokescreen objections
- How to “walk through” a smokescreen objection
First, how can you tell if an objection is real or just a smokescreen?
If a prospect has been repeating the same objection throughout the sales encounter, it’s probably a real objection.
For example, let’s say you’re selling a recruiting solution to a sales manager. And that sales manager has been telling you, “I’ll need to talk with our CEO to get approval on budget before we can get anything started.”
There are a few key reasons why this might be a real objection:
- The prospect has mentioned the objection more than once.
- The prospect has been mentioning the objection since the beginning of the sales encounter.
- The objection makes logical sense (maybe because you’ve heard a similar objection from other prospect’s before or it just seems to fit the prospect’s situation).
If it’s a real objection, then there’s a real problem that needs to be solved before you can close the deal. You can read more about how to handle real objections here.
On the other hand, there are some objections that should NOT be handled. As we mentioned before, these are called “smokescreen” objections.
It’s not always easy, and there’s no universal rule, but there are a couple clear indicators that an objection is a smokescreen:
- The prospect gives you an objection that was not mentioned at all in the sales encounter previously, despite your rigorous and exhaustive qualifying.
- The prospect starts to give you one objection after the other, and the objections are not related, nor do they follow a logical line of thought. Even if you handle one objection successfully, the prospect will give you another, and another. This is called “kettle logic” and you can read more about it here.
Here are a few examples of smokescreen objections that you might have heard before:
- I’m busy.
- Can I call you back tomorrow?
- I want to think about it.
- I need to talk to my partner.
Now, we must be careful. Because these objections are not always smokescreens. They are only smokescreens if they also fit one of the two indicators mentioned above (the objection has come out of the blue or it’s not logical).
When a prospect gives you a smokescreen objection, we know one thing for sure: they’re not ready to buy. But why?
It’s almost always because there is a deeper objection, a real objection, behind the smokescreen.
So the goal now becomes getting past the smokescreen so that the prospect can tell us their real objection.
Now, how do you “walk through” a smokescreen objection?
In the most polite way possible, carry on the conversation without addressing the smokescreen directly.
To avoid making your prospect feel like they’ve been ignored, make sure to use an empathy statement. Here are some of my favorites:
- No worries.
- I totally understand.
- That makes sense.
- I see where you’re coming from.
- I appreciate you sharing that.
But then move right along without skipping a beat.
The best way to keep the conversation going is to ask a question after your empathy statement. But if the smokescreen objection is particularly weak, you might be a little more aggressive and just rephrase your ask for the close.
Here’s an example of a more aggressive approach to a weak smokescreen objection:
Salesperson: “Awesome, so all we need to get started today is just to put a credit card on file and then you’ll be all set.”
Prospect: (First pauses for a while, and seems like they’re considering it, and then says …) “I want to wait until my partner gets back to the office this afternoon.”
Salesperson: “No worries, Bob. What we can do then is I’ll just take the credit card from you now and then you can call me back once you’ve talked with your partner if you guys aren’t wanting to move forward. How does that sound?”
(I would especially use this approach in a case where I know Bob is the 100% owner of the company and his “partner” is actually just his son that started working for him.)
Here’s an example of a more conservative approach to a stronger smokescreen objection:
Salesperson: “Awesome, so all we need to get started today is just to put a credit card on file and then you’ll be all set.”
Prospect: “I don’t know, Cole. I’m not sure. I’m also pretty busy right now. Actually, I just pulled up to a job. Can I call you back later?”
Salesperson: “No worries, Bob. You’re a busy guy. I bet there are ten guys waiting for your instructions on that job site. Tell me this at least, do you think the program could work for your business?”
Prospect: (Pauses, let’s his fear subside for a second, and actually thinks of an answer to your intelligent question, and then says …) “You know, it just might. I particularly liked what you said about XYZ feature. But I’m just so busy right now” (exhales audibly).
Salesperson: “I understand, Bob, and I appreciate you sharing that with me. How about this? I know you’re busy right now so I’m going to send the contract over to your email so you can review later. If you think the program could work, I think you’re right, so we could start you on our 30-day trial and then review the results together after that. How does that sound?”
But whatever you do, don’t try to handle the smokescreen objection directly, like this:
Salesperson: “Awesome, so all we need to get started today is just to put a credit card on file and then you’ll be all set.”
Prospect: “I don’t know, Cole. I’m not sure. I’m also pretty busy right now. Actually, I just pulled up to a job. Can I call you back later?”
Salesperson: “Yea, it does sound like you’re busy. What times are you available later today?”
Prospect: “I can talk again at 4pm …”
And the rest doesn’t matter, you’ve already lost control of the sales encounter.
You let Bob start to steer the conversion as soon as you granted legitimacy to his “busy” objection by asking for times to call back later. Chances that Bob picks up the phone for your 4pm follow-up are low.
So there you have it, a step-by-step guide for identifying smokescreen objections and handling appropriately. Here’s a review of what we’ve discussed:
- How to differentiate between real objections and smokescreen objections
- How to “walk through” a smokescreen objection
- Different strategies based on whether the smokescreen is weak or strong
Remember, real objections are like brick walls. Smokescreen objections are like clouds of smoke. Real objections need to be handled. Smokescreen objections can be walked through.