“Let Me Think About It:” How to Turn Sales Objection Into Opportunity Part 2 [+Video]

This is the second installment in my series on Agency Sales Objection Handling.

If you missed last month’s article, it’s all about how to respond when a new business prospect says “send me more information”... which is super annoying, right?

But equally frustrating is when you spend a ton of time winning a new client only to hear them say, "let me think about it."

Is it a real sales objection or just a put-off? Do they actually need more time to think about it? You’ve covered everything they need to know, so what else could they possibly need to think about?

Unfortunately, this is a pretty typical response.

I know firsthand because it was a common put off for me and my agency’s sales team.

Luckily, there is an easy solution that can be met with a few upfront questions n.

Now, if it’s a put off then your prospect just doesn’t want to say “no.”They think they’re being nice, but really have no intention of working with you.

That’s why you need a solid B.S. detector :)

However, if it's a legitimate objection (and, a lot of times it is) then you can actually prevent issues by gathering more information upfront.

3 Ways to Avoid “Let Me Think About It”

When you hear “let me think about it” it’s usually due to one of three reasons:

1. The prospect remains unclear about the plan. You may be using phrases or jargon that makes it unclear what you’re going to do for the client. You may be using agency-industry language when you should be using the client-industry language. Are you being clear and concise in how you present the plan?
   
   
2. The prospect is unclear about the results. Remember, you are not selling your agency’s services to your prospects, you’re selling them on results. Do they understand how your solution will ease their pain point or resolve their issue? Have you established trust and authority in order to build their confidence in your ability to deliver successful results?
   
   
3. Your agency is unclear on one or more of the N.B.A.T. criteria. That is, Need, Budget, Authority, and Timing…. and this one is a biggie! Make sure you understand N.B.A.T. before you even begin to gather information for a proposal. NBAT is the best way to qualify your prospects, so you don’t waste time with the wrong ones and only spend time on the ones that are ideal for your agency.

N - Need:  Ask what the specific needs are and what specific end results they’re expecting.

Ask how this project fits in with the overall company vision and their short-term and long-term goals.

If they need to pull in another person to answer that question, hold onto that nugget of information because you should be talking to the people who understand the big picture.

B - Budget: Ask for the budget within the first 10 minutes. More often than not, you won’t get an actual number and they’ll dance around the subject, but you need to know their budget and determine whether their expectations are reasonable and achievable.

A - Authority: Were they able to answer the questions about Need and Budget?

If not, and they gave you another name or two, then you know who you really need to be talking to. Get that person in the room before you get too deep. You need to be talking to the decision makers.

Sometimes “let me think about it” really means “let me pass this onto my boss.”

T - Timing: Only you know what you can do and how long it takes. You might really want or even need this project but, if the timing has unrealistic parameters you are setting yourself up for failure.

So, as you prepare for your next new business pitch, instead of dreading the “let me think about it” line, approach the pitch proactively.

Make sure you’re clearly defining the plan and the results and have a full understanding of NBAT.

When you have all these bases covered, you’ll drastically reduce or even eliminate this objection.

Be sure you check out next month’s edition to this series. And, if you have a sales objection you’d like me to cover send it to me at https://jasonswenk.com/AskSwenk/