Motivation Shots from The Doc

Do you ever meet with resistance from other people – I bet you do! It might be a customer, a colleague, a member of your team or even someone in your personal life. Dealing with resistance is one of the biggest challenges faced by business people; so let’s consider why we get resistance and how we can handle it.

I’m going to talk a bit about customers and sales but the same rules apply whether it’s a colleague or someone in your personal life.

Well there’s good news and bad news – first the good news. When someone says – “I don’t agree with you” or “I can’t accept what you say” or “You’re too expensive” or “We already deal with someone else,” then they may not be telling the truth.

The bad news is – most of them won’t accept what you say, or buy what you’re selling anyway. But don’t cut your wrists just yet because, there’s more good news.
If you can find out exactly what the other person means when they say – “No” then you have a much better chance of improving your success rate, getting more sales and more agreement.

What you need to realise is that, there is no smart answer to the other person’s resistance. People are always looking for the ‘things to say’ that’ll deal with resistance. How can you possibly have an answer if the other person isn’t telling the truth is the first place?

Many sales people believe the customer when they say – “You’re too expensive.” They then start offering discounts or walk away from the sale, complaining that their product or service isn’t competitive enough.

So why do people say “No”

Well I don’t want you to burst into tears but the First and most important reason is that – they may not like you! That doesn’t mean that they dislike you, it just means that they don’t know you, and they haven’t built any trust or a relationship with you.
So firstly – get them to like you, sell yourself, be trustworthy, don’t talk too much, be a great listener, smile, be friendly.

If you want to be intresting, then be intrested!

The Second reason people say “no” could be that they haven’t understood what on earth you’re talking about. Maybe you haven’t spoken clearly enough, or you’ve used too many technical terms or jargon. This can make you seem like a real ‘smarty pants,’ and that takes us back to our First reason.
The answer should be simple enough; use language the other person can understand and keep checking by asking questions.

The Third reason may be that the person wasn’t listening. They might have been distracted by something or somebody; perhaps your big bright eyes, or the fact that they’re tired, hot and need a comfort break.
The trick is to keep checking: “Did you understand that last bit, John or did I make it confusing?”

Fourthly, they may not be the right person. The person you’re speaking with may be telling you – “I’m not able to give you an answer at this time” or “We have another supplier” or “I’d like to think about this.”
However, they may not be the decision maker. To make sure you’re speaking to the right person, be brave and ask the question – “Is it you who’ll make the final decision or do I need to speak to someone else?”

The Fifth reason could be that they don’t like change.
Sometimes our staff, our potential customers, or even our friends, like to stay in their comfort zone and they don’t want you telling them they have to change their way of doing things. Even although they could possibly save money, or make their life easier; people are generally reluctant to change.

It’s therefore important to outweigh the other person’s reluctance by emphasising the benefits of what you’re suggesting, or the benefits of your product or service.

Also, keep selling yourself and appeal to the person’s emotional side, don’t be too logical. Always remember that human beings will almost always allow their hearts to rule their heads when buying something or making a decision to change.

So appeal to their emotions; keep telling them how much better they’ll feel (not necessarily using these words) when they accept what you’re saying! How good they’ll look or how others will feel about them.

Lastly, it may just be that the other person genuinely doesn’t want, or need, or have the money for what you’re proposing

The only way to find out which of these Six points is the truth, is to keep asking questions, listen carefully to the other person and watch their body language.

If you’re in sales; always remember that – “You’re too expensive” could mean. – “I haven’t understood a word you’ve said” or “I’m going on holiday tomorrow” or “My son-in-law works for your competitor.”

When someone resists what you say, make sure you know what they really mean before you deal with it.

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