Not all sales interactions run smoothly; even the best salespeople inevitably hit a bump in the road. Maybe you’ve hit that bump because you unwittingly mishandled a situation or because your customer had conflicted feelings about a sale. Either way, if you want to salvage your hard work and make sure the sale goes through, you must learn to deal with these six obstacles to meet your customer’s needs.

Fearing the customer’s reaction.

    When salespeople are afraid of what a customer might say, they end up losing sales opportunities because they don’t find out what the customer really wants. For example, you dread hearing customers say, “Your price is too high.” It’s almost a knee-jerk reaction to offer a lower price. Instead, be proactive and try to uncover the unique buying criteria important to the customer so the price objection doesn’t come up in the first place.

Taking it personally.

    Sure, in your head you know that a customer’s bad attitude doesn’t reflect on your worth. But our egos get in the way, and we internalize the customer’s negativity. When your customer brings up a problem, don’t get defensive. Not only will the customer probably not be overjoyed with your response, but you will have failed to address the heart of the matter: how to fix your customer’s problem.

Rushing to judgment.

    As a salesperson, you should work to focus all of your attention on your customer and her needs. It’s all too easy to swoop in to present a solution instead of listening to your customer’s complaints. In this rush to cut to the chase, you’re in danger of coming across as arrogant, and your customer ends up feeling her input is unimportant and unappreciated.
    Embrace any information your prospect gives you, whether you believe it’s valuable or not. If you don’t have time to talk at length with this prospect, request the opportunity to call him back. Otherwise, put down your briefcase, close your office door, and listen to him for as long as he needs. Remember, even if you hear the story all the time, it is unique and personal for each customer. Instead of interrupting your customer with your standard solution, let him have the floor and explain his problem. Only then can you proceed with the process of finding a solution for whatever ails him.

Beating a dead horse.

    How do you know when, despite your best efforts, your customer relationship is beyond saving and therefore taking up more time than it’s worth? When that customer is demanding, confrontational, yet provides you with little to no business for all the irritation he’s giving you. Sometimes customers like this actually cost you money because you spend so much time trying to please them. You hope that if you keep doing business with them, they’ll eventually reward you for your loyalty-but let’s face it, there are some customers you just don’t want!

Shifting blame.

    For the past 20 years, organizations have embraced the concept of teamwork. When things go awry, though, it’s easy to point fingers. When customers come to you with problems, do you have someone on your team who tries to shift the blame?
    Pointing fingers only delays resolving customers’ issues. When things go well in your firm, everyone should definitely share the glory-and when things go wrong, everyone should share the blame, too.

Treating all customer complaints with the same approach.

    Some salespeople have a one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to dealing with customer objections. They may offer to lower their price or automatically throw in product extras, without listening to the reasons the customer is upset. While you’re being conditioned to respond to objections with concessions, your customers are learning that whenever they complain, they’re rewarded. For example, a customer might ask you to cut your price by 5% to clinch a deal. When you agree to this deal, you’re setting up her expectations for the next time you negotiate. She’ll think all she has to do is raise an objection and you’ll always give in. Having only one approach to resolving customer issues results in two mistakes:

• You’re not addressing your customers’ real problem.
• You end up offering more than what your customers really want.

    It’s better for both you and your customers if, instead of giving price cuts to close the deals, you really listen to what your customer tells you, then go from there. Slowing down and listening when you reach business relationship speed bumps works better in the long run than always trying to swerve around them.

Paul Cherry is President of the sales and leadership firm Performance Based Results and the author of QUESTIONS THAT SELL. Paul can be reached at 302-478-4443 or e-mailed at cherry@pbresults.com.