When do you take "No" for an answer?

How many times do you keep asking a prospect for the sale before you stop? I haven't had a lot of experience with this but it seems like it would be a little uncomfortable continuing to ask once someone has already said, "No". -Jackie

IMO, You have to find out why they are saying "No". Is it because of something that just needs a little further explaination. Being able to tell the difference between a no that is a no because of an objection or if it is a true rejection is very important. Continuing to ask for the sale without dealing with the objections is not going to result in a positive response. There is no harm in asking what the problem is, explain to your prospect that you want to learn what to do better next time.;)

So, directly answering your question, you take "No" for an answer when they say no and their objection is one you can't solve,... or you can tell they are begining to get frustrated with you.:D -Doc MC

If they mean it, then they only have to tell me once. If I don't believe them, well I keep trying until I'm convinced. :D -Newbie

If you have gone through your sales cycle and dotted I's and crossed T's there are on 2 results.



1: You have qualified it out before you get to that stage

2: They say yes.



If you get a NO at after 80% probability you have not completed your sales cycle properly.

-Bizal

What about when the "No" is nothing more than a stall. For instance, when one partner isn't comfortable making a decision alone? -Gilbert

IMO, a "Stall" signals that the prospect doesn't want your product/service bad enough. Or put another way, there is more pain associated with making the decision than putting it off. -MagicMan

mmmm



To us that says you have not established who all the decision makers are and what the purchasing criteria is.






-Bizal

Bizal, for sake of discussion, let's assume that you are talking to the decision maker and are aware of their purchasing criteria. With that established, when do "you" take "No" for an answer? -MagicMan

Sorry


But sales is a process and it would depend on where we were and what they were saying no to. -Bizal

That I can agree with. -MagicMan

It also depends on their tone of voice. A doubtful no can be based on someone putting unreasonable doubts in their minds while a definite NO means:
back off! -MikeDammann

To me, NO just means NOT NOW. I always leave with the words..."Would it be alright if I contact you again, down the road?" -RainMaker

I love it! :cool: -Gilbert

I believe that with good marketing and qualification process, by the time you meet buyers they are ready, it is just a matter of sorting out the details. If they are still saying no, then there is a flaw in the qualification process.
So, it is a good idea to keep the funnel full, so we don't ask for the business per se when we need it but buyers ask for our help when they need it. It is a totally different dynamic.

Let's remember Peter Drucker's words: “The aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous”. I think there is something here. But most companies don't want to market their stuff. They want it all right away, and hire an army of peddlers to go out to "chase 'em and nail 'em".

In a way it is like date rape. Meeting prospects the first time, wrestling them to the ground and taking their money while they are screaming "No".

Isn't it surprising that people have a negative image of salespeople in general? The idea is that your prospects remain in an automated "keep in touch" system until they are ready for the purchase. What is the logic in chasing people who are screaming "No"?

Cheers

Bald Dog -Bald Dog

I hate to say it, but I stand corrected with my answer ... this one is the best :) -MikeDammann

I guess I'll stick to search engine marketing ;) -MikeDammann

I learned this when dating. :p -Houston

That's where I got my "wisdom" from as well ... then I woke up and realized that I am in a forum full of professionals :D -MikeDammann

I knew that crack was going to get me in trouble. :eek: -Houston

This is the only tactic that will work for products that fall short on benefits and HIGH on price. My philosophy is that is your product is a good value, your customer can recognize it and you don't have to shove it down throat before they come to their senses (WHEN they are ready to buy). -RainMaker

I think that this is a very good point, that sometimes it is just an issue of timing. -Doc MC

But how do people recognise value? Through education, which is a significant part of good marketing. So, they come to their own conclusions about the value of the stuff. Let's remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. We can only improve the beauty, but they have to perceive it in order to buy.

Thoughts?

Bald Dog -Bald Dog

Customers can also be educated through a well design and thought out sales presentation. Would it not be just as good to explain face-to-face the value of your product? Marketing is a very important part of sales for lead generation and exposure to consumers, however without salespeople following up the marketing efforts (for most products) sales won't automatically come. -Doc MC

I totally agree. I also believe that it is the salespeople who should provide the post-sale support. After all, they have a relationship with the client.

I think the problem with educating at the sales presentation is that prospects's scepticism is high. It is an artificial environment and prospects's perception is that salespeople try to manipulate the process to their favour.

I think people in general are more receptive to doing their education by digesting the stuff we send them. And that stuff shouldn't a brochure or other self-aggrandisement piece. It should be some preliminary value around the improved condition the product or service accomplishes. -Bald Dog

Wouldn't that open the door for a misinterpretation of the marketing materials you send them? I don't mind people being skeptical before a presentation, but like I said previously if it is well thought out, they should come around to see the value. -Doc MC

I think here comes the importance of crisp and clear copy. Pictures can be misinterpreted, but written words as almost as obvious as a ham sandwich.

Yes, they can be sceptical, but I want them to overcome their own scepticism while in the automated follow-up system. Personally I don't want to invest my precious time in people while they are sceptical. Most of them never overcome that scepticism, and we end up wasting time and energy on tyre-kickers. -Bald Dog

First of all, many good comments made in the past few posts...too many to quote. There is only one problem with this one...Words are only powerful if THE PROSPECT TAKES THE TIME TO READ THEM! This is a major challenge today. I find materials sent in the mail more often than not, never get read because people are so busy and there is so much competing for their time and attention. If I send something in the mail, I will only send a postcard. They have to at least see it when they are shuffling through the mail and I try to grab them with a large headline hook because their brain will at least read that much before moving on. (of course, now we're back at marketing (lead generation) as opposed to sales. Every blue moon a sales will just "make itself" but mostly my sales only come with a live presenation. -RainMaker

I am lucky to work with one of the best sales people out there, lately we are getting some great referrals from existing clients, referrals seem to "sell themselves" basically. -MikeDammann

Oh, that is such a good point! I need to ask for referrals and often I forget!! -RainMaker

In my experience referrals seem to "sell themselves" when it comes to the "provider" but still need guidance when it comes to the "product/service." -Gilbert

I would like to add my thoughts to this discussion--but I have a question. How many times do you hear the actual word "No" as you have decribed? I mean "No" with those two letters. If my guess, based on my experience, is correct, you seldom hear that word. And--if my guess is correct--what do you hear? What words do they use to express what you hear as a no? -Gary Boye

My guess is things like "nah", "no, not really" or "sorry but ... I really ...". -MikeDammann

It depends on the sales person and his/her people knockledge to determine if the NO is really a NO here and to decide to put more effort in the sell to approach a YES or just to take the NO and move on. -Sanddollar

Yes Gary that is right, I often hear the words *maybe*, *Im not sure yet* *I'll get back with you* or they need to discuss the sale with a 2nd or 3rd person who is not at the meeting at this time. -Sanddollar

I can't think of 3 ocassions in 10 years time that i have heard the word no. Think about it, sleep on it, call you back, bad time, maybe even shopping but hardly ever 'no'. -klozerking

That being the case--and so consistent with my own observations and that of others I have talked to, wouldn't it be beneficial to get "NO" out in the open? Isn't that more meaningful honest feedback than the fluff and red herrings that prospects offer in place of a simple "no"? Isn't it easier, if we are so inclined, to ask a direct question as a reply to a direct answer--such as "Why?"

So the question of "When do you take 'no' for an answer?" is almost hypothetical. But to answer it, I think we take "no" for an answer when we are prepared to face a current truth with the full realization that the truth can change. The alternative is to play a pretend game that "Think about it, sleep on it, call you back, bad time, maybe... " means something other than "no". -Gary Boye

In my experience, "Think about it, sleep on it, call you back, maybe..." rarely mean "No" as in "No, I do not want this." -Agent Smith

anything the customer says that isn't "no" means I need more information so that I can make a new decision. Help me find a way to own your product so I can save face. -klozerking

Think about that. As I recall, the conversation rate was 23 percent. And--you have admitted that you have very rarely ever heard "no". So the other 77 percent who ultimately reject your offer with other words want you to help them find a way to own your product so they can save face? -Gary Boye

In your experience what does "Think about it, sleep on it, call you back, maybe..." mean?

Do you take those statements literally? Do people say to you ""No, I do not want this."?

If, for instance, those statements really mean "I need further information." as the popular meme goes, then why would they want to think over or sleep on incomplete facts? Why wouldn't they say "tell me more." right there and then? -Gary Boye

In a nutshell, statements like this indicate that the buyer has an unvoiced concern that needs to be resolved.

Yes. -Agent Smith

I would tend to agree. ;) -SalesGuy

It might indicate that to you. And I respect that. But it doesn't indicate it to me. I sell with a system. Most people who are in sales at all levels have a routine--but it is a minority that uses a system. Or--perhaps they have not learned a bonafide selling system, or currently lack the experience and knowledge to develop their own. Things take time.

When someone says to me that he wants to "think it over", that "indicates to me that I am excluded from the deliberation process. That further indicates to me that the sales process is paused or ended. I file that as "no". To me it is a current reality--a current truth as I perceive it. Truth can change and--yes--it is possible for me to get the sale in the future.

Further, my system of selling probes "unvoiced concerns". I invite them to be voiced. Certainly if we can detect them through "indication", then we need to have the skills to get them out in the open. As you know, some sales take more than one session. But the process remains. "One call closes" are not alway realistic. My system employs a method to set the stage for subsequent meetings if necessary. The deliberation process resumes with me present.

My conversion rate is, and has been, inordinately high. Systems like I use take a long time to develop--and they take discipline. So do other systems that are marketed or sold through training venues. -Gary Boye

If the unvoiced concerned isn't uncovered during your probing but is instead indicated at the end of the call what is your response? -Agent Smith

I'm not sure I understand your question. I mentioned above that your indicators would not be mine. If the prospect said that he had some concerns that we hadn't discussed, I would certainly ask him to voice them. Concerns and issues and conditions are things that are addressed during the selling process. Again, I'm having trouble relating to your question.

By the way, in all fairness, I don't get a lot of "Think about it, sleep on it, call you back, maybe..." from prospects. But as I've said, when I do, I file them as "no" for the reasons I stated earlier. -Gary Boye

When the prospect says for example, "maybe", which translates to "No" do you end the call and file the prospects information away in the round filing cabinet not to be called again? -Agent Smith

I think that would be a mistake.

Last week my wife took me appliance shopping. In the end we walked out of the store telling the salesperson "maybe" and that "we wanted to think it over." Less than a week later we came back and bought over $5k in appliances. They were delivered and installed today. Yeah! :D -AZBroker

[quote=Agent Smith]When the prospect says for example, "maybe"..QUOTE]

In reply to what? You mean to a question I would ask?

If a prospect said "maybe" to me in reply to a question I introduced in a sales conversation, I would say "What does that mean?"

If they said that it means "Think about it, sleep on it, call you back.." refer to my previous post. But I don't often get that as I also said before.

What would you say? -Gary Boye

I would treat it as a "stall" vs. a bonafide "No" and probe the cause (Product, price, etc.) -Agent Smith

In treating it as such, what would you say? I said that I would say "What does that mean?"

What would you say? -Gary Boye

"What does that mean?" is always a good general question. If that question didn't open up the communication I would ask a more probing question depending on what I thought the unvoiced concern might be.

For instance, if I thought the stall was because of price I might say, "Tell me, is the size of the investment what you're concerned about?" or "Is the size of the investment what's holding you back?" or something else along those lines. -Agent Smith

Any thing other than a flat No, is not no. It is I need more justification on why I should buy. People will stand firm on whatever decision they make. Unless you can give them new information so that they can make a new decision, they will not budge on their original statement. If they do they look like a liar. So yes you do help them save face. Also conversion rate is based on how many appointments you covered, and how many resulted in sales. Mabe the person was not there, maybe all decision makers were not present, Maybe their project could not be done. Maybe their credit was too poor to be financed. So using 77 percent as a rejection is a misnomer. The office closing percentage was 46%. my own personal close was 68%. So 32% of the people I actually gave a price to did not make a purchase. And I would dare say that all of them did not see the value in the offering or they would have purchased. -klozerking

Even then, a "no" is not always a "no" if you "know" what I mean. :)

Without a doubt! -SalesCoach

I agree. In fact, a flat out "no" is so rare as a response is sales that it bears examining. In my experience, it is easier to convert that prospect into a sale than prospects who resist in other ways. However, in a cold call prospecting offer, I would take "no" at face value after asking "is this something you want." But that example is more marketing than actual selling. In prospecting, time management is a critical issue. -Gary Boye

Would you elaborate on that? -AZBroker

Only once. If I get too many "I want to think about it.", I just improve my presentation. -Wonderboy

I'm a mobile tool salesman, and I have to try to sell at all times to guys who may not be interested one week, but may the next
No sometimes is no because you dont' have what they need

Pat -toolguy_35