Preventing the Price Objection, Continued

Yesterday sales trainer Dave Kahle gave us some excellent advice on how we can reduce how often we hear the price objection. He's back today with a few more ideas - try some out next week and let us know how they work for you!

4. Don't advertise your willingness to discount.

Sometimes, in our eagerness to make the sale, we advertise our willingness to make price concessions in order to secure the business. We say things like, "We'd be happy to discuss pricing with you." Or, "We may be able to do better." Or, "If you give me the last look, I may be able to sharpen the pencil."

I was shopping for office space. As I looked through one location with my realtor, I asked the listing realtor what was the lease rate. He told me, and in the same breath said, "But we're willing to work with you on that."

After hearing that, why in the world would I accept his original terms? He broadcasted his willingness to discount, and I'd be foolish not to take him up on it. By broadcasting your willingness to get the deal, you encourage the customer to ask for price deviations.

5. Be careful about ever discounting

If you discount your prices in response to a customer's request, on even one occasion, you have conveyed to the customer the idea that your quoted price is not your final price. Now, forever in the future, the customer will remember that you can discount when pressed. He will, therefore, press for discounts.

If, however, you never discount from your quoted price, you convey that there is some integrity in your pricing, and that you are quoting him your best price from the beginning.

It's OK, on some occasions, to walk away from a piece of business rather than to discount in order to get it. The net impact is that the customer respects your pricing, and is less likely in the future to ask for a discount.

If you get almost every deal, your prices aren't sufficiently high. You need to lose some in order to gain the customer's respect as well as a sense of where the market price is.

I've often thought that the idea of asking for the opportunity for a "last look" - which most salespeople strive for and proudly proclaim as proof of a good business relationship - is merely another way of saying that you'll discount the most. Why would the customer give you a "last look" if he wasn't expecting you to discount some more?

It's so easy to complain about the customer and the constant pressure to reduce our prices. It's the thoughtful salesperson who understands that our own behavior can often be the cause of the price objection. Change your behavior, and you'll improve your results.

Dave Kahle is the President of the DaCo Corporation, specializing in helping business-to-business companies increase sales and develop their people. Learn more at www.davekahle.com