Welcome back and welcome to Part 2 of our objections mini-series, thanks for joining us!  Did you know that you can actually overcome your potential customers’ objections BEFORE they ever come up in the first place AND completely set yourself apart from the pack?  In, this episode we are sharing basically a SECRET with you about how you can become irresistible to your potential customers or team members.

Today we’re basically going to pick right up where we left off last time, so if you missed the last episode called “How To Make Objections Your Best Friends” you may want to go back and get yourself caught up.  Can’t wait for you to hear this episode, let’s do this!  

Find this episode on iTunes or your favorite podcast platform, or use the player below to listen:

SHOW NOTES:

ANNA:  OK, so we are really excited for this episode, we hope it blows your mind and helps your sales all at the same time!  This is the 2nd part of our objections mini-series, so if you missed part one, please go back to the previous episode and get caught up!  Also, if you haven’t already, you can get the free download to go through the steps we are referencing in this miniseries by clicking the graphic below.  OK, so let’s just dive in, shall we?

AIMEE: Yep, ok, so the last episode was all about identifying your potential customers’ pain points and objections….we’re going to take this one step further today and, talk about how you can address objections up front so that they never come up in the first place.  THIS is A MAGIC BULLET to totally transforming your sales, ok? You can actually overcome your potential customers’ objections before they even come up AND set yourself apart from other similar businesses – by creating an offer for your leads that blows everyone around you out of the water and makes you irresistible to to leads!

Now, no matter what industry you’re in, more than likely, there are thousands of other people selling generally the same thing as you.  Photographers would be a great example of this, but no matter what you do, there are many others who are selling something similar, right?

And then, wow, in network marketing this is REALLY true because you are selling the same exact products as thousands of other people in your company, and given the same exact tools and marketing information, right?  So how do you set yourself apart? That’s what we’re talking about today. As we get going here we want to talk a bit, again, about how attraction marketing plays into all of this – because it really does all tie together…

 

ANNA: Yeah, so the point we want to make as we dive into this, and we’ve actually done an entire episode on attraction marketing previously as well….but the point we want to hammer home as we kick today off, is that helping is the new selling.  In order to sell, you need to provide answers for your target market, you need to solve their problems and lead with value. I think we can all agree that the sales landscape has really evolved over the last decade especially, and old, pushy sales tactics just aren’t effective like they maybe used to be, right?  No one wants to be sold to! So, instead, you can use attraction marketing and focus on solving problems and providing value to attract people to you, build trust and a relationship with them, and then get the sale. So let me give you an example of what I’m talking about….Now, um, let’s say that you’re a gardener, right, that you love to garden (we love to have a garden on our property), and you walk into a convention for gardeners, have you ever been to one of those big home or garden shows, do you know what I’m talking about?  And there are a million vendors there all trying to sell you their stuff? So, you walk in and there’s a hundred people in there with all these different products and they’ve all got these huge signs and they say buy this, buy this, buy this, and buy these organic seeds, buy these gardening tools or whatever, 25% off today. And then there’s one person out of the 100, that has a sign that says, here’s some tips on exactly how to map out your organic garden for the best harvest, right? Who would you go to? You’d go to the person who’s helping you and THEN sells you.  The person who leads with help, and then the sale. That’s the same thing you’re going to want to do to draw in your own business leads.

So, the person who leads with the help is the one who’s always going to sell more ok?!  Looking on FB, I have such a love hate relationship with facebook actually, mostly because there are so many people (and I guess I’m specifically calling out people in network marketing here haha!) just blasting their product out there, or ads from their company, and they’re leading with their product.  They’re taking all of these selfies you know, in the gym saying, you know I got my drink today and it’s organic and full of this vitamin and that vitamin, I’m in the gym why aren’t you with me? I hate that, it drives me nuts. Don’t be that person, ok? Deliver real value instead. Let’s say if you’re in the beauty industry, you could say here’s 10 easy steps to keep your skin glowing even during the dry winter, or whatever it is that you’re in, ok?  Help! Just help people! We’ve talking about this in our attraction marketing 101 episode as well…

 

AIMEE: Yeah, and then there’s the flip side of traditional business owners. They so often do not use their personal profile to help sell! Like I only know of two or three traditional business owners that bother me with the amount of times they post about their business. BUT – I will say of all the traditional business owners I know that DO share about their businesses, don’t typically lead with help! They still lead with their product or service! So – to all of our traditional business owners out there. YOU CAN USE YOUR PERSONAL PROFILE/SOCIAL MEDIA/PERSONAL CONNECTIONS to sell your product or service without annoying your friends!!! Teach them things, give them value about whatever industry you’re in.  I hearby grant you that permission. When I was a photographer I just didn’t do that. It was SO rare for me. So rare in fact I’ve since had people telling me they didn’t even realize I was a photographer – when I ran a successful international business for 5 years!!! It wasn’t until I started learning more about how to market without being spammy, that I was able to see the huge marketing opportunity I left on the table back then. Please don’t make my same mistake and NOT put your business out there to your friends, or share what you’re working on, or share your accomplishments.

 

ANNA: So when you’re going through your sales or recruiting process, there are generally 5 standard questions a potential customer has, whether or not they actually say them out loud, because most of the time obviously they’re not going to specifically ask these questions out loud.  And, if you can answer these questions well in your marketing and sales process, your sales or your recruiting is going to skyrocket.

Here they are.

1. They want to know who you are.
2. What do you have
3. Why should they listen to you
4. Is it worth it?
5. Can I be successful in this or with this product/service also?

 

AIMEE: And this is why no matter what business your in, it feels easiest to start by promoting yourself or your products/services to your warm market – because they already know the answer to these first 3 questions, right?  They already know who you are, what you have, and why they may want what you have. So the first 3 questions are really important, but they’re not nearly as important as the last 2, alright? Can I also do this? And is it worth it?

So let’s figure out how to actually go through this.

Who you are:  Aimee Durrance

What do you have: I have this awesome product, service, or if you’re in NM, this awesome opportunity

Why should I listen to you: Well, because I’m generating a lot of leads without cold messaging and spamming family and friends, which is absolutely amazing.  Or for a traditional business: Because my product/service solves your problem!

 

ANNA: #4: Is it worth it?  Now the best way I’ve found to help people overcome this question is to share a whole lotta stories of success, right?  It’s a great persuasion technique because people will see themselves inside of those success stories, right?

Have you ever gone to a car salesman before?  I’m sure you have if you’ve bought a car before, or looked at a house.  How do they sell you? They sell you by putting you in the car and going on test drive.  They sell you by walking you through the house and saying “hey this is where your table’s going to go, can’t you see little timmy playing with the dog over there???”  And they get you to future pace, that’s what it’s called. They future pace you. Meaning imagining using the product in the future, and if you can get people to imagine using it and seeing how it would fit into their lives, uh, then you’ve just completed that question of “can they do this” for them.

You can use success stories from your current network marketing or business or whatever, and that helps get them to say or think, yeah, I can see myself using this product and it helping me, or see myself being successful in this business, this actually is possible in the future.

So here’s what most people do when they market their business.  Our company or product or service is GREAT! Our company is amazing!  We’re 1000 points up in the stock market! We have the best compensation plans!  We have this we have that, what we offer is amazing! Or whatever it might be. And this is how most people promote their business and their products.  And what they should be doing is promoting what it DOES, and helping their potential customers see how they can be successful using their products/services or in their opportunity.

 

AIMEE: OK, so quick example of this is asking, ok what do your products do?  Make you help people look more beautiful right? And maybe the root of that is, that you help people be more confident, right?  That’s what your product does, not what it is. So, you need to focus on selling benefits, not features, right? That’s another way of saying it.  If you’re in network marketing, maybe what you’re selling is the freedom your business provides. Let’s you fire your boss! Financial freedom/success.  Those are more examples of what it does, not what it is. People care about what it DOES for them! And when you do this effectively, they’ll be like I don’t even know what it is, but it sounds great, whatever it is!  Right? I hope this makes sense. If you’re an kale salesman, (the answer to everything these days, am I right?) you’re selling flavor and health, not an kale. If you’re a pet salesman, you’re selling companionship or not being lonely, not a dog.  Does that make sense? Sell what the benefit is.

 

ANNA: You know a fun experiment would be to start asking yourself this about the things you buy. Next time you’re’ in a store, start looking around and ask yourself, what is the benefit of this product?  And ask yourself am I buying a benefit or a product? You’re obviously buying a product, but it’s the benefit that sold you.

Anyways, I digress, so, anyway, the best way to show what your opportunity or product does is to show examples of people who’ve used the product and have a testimonial for what it does, ok?  Then, you can answer the big question, the 5th question.

 

AIMEE: And the 5th question is ‘Can I do this too?’  Now, testimonials do help with answering this question, like I mentioned, but it’s usually not enough.  And so how do you do this? How do you help them see that they can do it as well? This 5th questions looks very different for a product/service vs. the opportunity of starting a new business with network marketing, so let’s dive into both of those.  

Alright – for a traditional business or product sales when a person thinks this question they are thinking the product won’t work for them or they won’t get the same results out of your service as others have. They are thinking ‘that’s great it worked for them, but will it really work for me?’ This is why, as a photographer, one of the most common concerns I heard as a family photographer was something like this: “These families all look so happy and perfect. My family is so hyper OR my husband doesn’t smile easily OR I don’t like my smile when I’m just standing looking at the camera. How will this work for me too?” I would explain some of my process and go through some of those ‘perfect images’ and explain the reality of the session. See this little girl? She was shy for the first 20 minutes of our session. See this dad? He didn’t want to be at the session so badly that he drove a separate car so he could leave whenever HE wanted to (yes, that’s a true story). So for the longest time I would have this conversation with like 80% of my clients. And then I did something to change that, but we’ll come back to that in a minute.

So for network marketers presenting the option of an opportunity the dialogue in that person’s head is: That’s great that she’s done it, that’s great that she’s had all of this success.  But I don’t know, do you think I can really pull this thing off, you know what I mean? That’s the biggest question people have in their minds. If you know that primary question, then you can help people overcome that.

 

ANNA: So right now I’m going to give you one of the best marketing tips I could ever give you to change the process of this question even coming up. Ok? So write this down.  Here it is. Stop promoting what it is and start promoting what it does and how you’re going to help them do it, or use it successfully.

The best way to do that, I love this because it’s so dang effective and smart, is you gotta get your prospects to envision being in your business or using your product successfully BEFORE they purchase or join.  So what do I mean by that? You basically need answer that question for them of ‘can I do this also’ or ‘use this also successfully.’ Does that make sense?

 

AIMEE: But here’s the golden nugget alright?  If you’re in a traditional business, the best way to help someone successfully using their product/service is to promote how they’ll use it and why they’ll be successful with it. To go back to my family photography example. I hired out a marketing video that showed behind the scenes of a newborn session with a toddler, the results of that session, and my voice explaining my why and process. I also designed a packet of materials that I kept with me to go over or giveaway to new clients/potential clients. That question that I was having to spend time on for 80% of my bookings suddenly became nonexistent. These worked together to bring a client through my process, picture themselves there, and then be able to see their end result and how they would use it. I noticed a HUGE shift in my percentage of bookings. Not only did my booking rate increase, but my bookings were also more of my ideal client AND there was a higher level of trust in me right off the bat.

 

ANNA: If you’re in network marketing, the best way to help someone envision themselves inside of your business is to promote your marketing strategy with it’s simplicity or ease.  If you can do that, that’s the key. If you can do that, show people the exact system that you used to build your business, how simple and step by step it is, how it works. Show people that checklist they’re going to follow, show them the security they’re going to have when they join.  Hey, we gotta plan for you, you know what I mean? Um, that way when they get into the business for themselves, they’re not in business by themselves. Ok? That’s why it’s so crucial for you to learn this as a leader, you gotta learn how to market, you gotta learn how to promote yourself.

 

AIMEE: I find it funny, so many people will join a company, and they’ll jump in, and then they’ll say, ok so I’m in, now what do I do, you know?  But the majority people do that. And they come with the hopes of being successful but they have no clue how they’re going succeed, and they don’t really ask those questions up front.

Show, them, BEFORE they join, how you will make them successful, marketing your marketing system, right?  Whatever system you use in your company to sell and be successful, show that to them! That is kind of the final step that people leave out in their sales process for recruiting.  Does that make sense?

 

Examples:

ANNA: Not only do you want to think about the problem you’re solving by someone buying whatever it is that you sell, you gotta take it one step further, you have to.  And this is like really getting into some of the deeper psychology of marketing and sales….you gotta take it a step further by thinking about and listing out the problems that are actually created for your customer when they DO purchase your product or service.  Let me say that again. You need to figure out what problems are created when your customer purchases your product or service. Now, you may think right off that bat that there ARE no problems created when someone buys what you’re selling, so let us give you some examples:

–Beauty Products/Makeup/Makeup Artist: They may not want to buy your products because they don’t know how to do their makeup.  So, they have a pain point of maybe wanting to wear makeup, but they don’t buy it because they feel lost and unsure of how to use your makeup if they do purchase it…ugh, this is so dang powerful – because when you think of it that way, there are so many things you can do to overcome this secondary problem.  You could create tutorials for your products that they can follow, you could include a personal consultation or a personal makeup lesson when they buy, etc. You know, we are often so focused on the initial sale, that we don’t really think this far into things. And no matter what industry you’re in, this applies to you.  Someone may want to hire a family photographer, but they may be intimidated by having to choose outfits or a good location for their shoot, so they put it off. But, if they see that you actually provide a guide on what to wear or do a personal wardrobe consult with them before their shoot – that solves that problem for them, right?  So start thinking about these secondary problems that you customers have WHEN they purchase from you, and start thinking about how you can solve those problems UP FRONT.

 

AIMEE: You guys – solving these problems UP FRONT will dramatically impact your sales in a positive way!  This is like mind ninja tricks that will set you so far apart from other businesses, it’s like not even fair!

Now, let’s talk about how you can apply all of this in your marketing and your sales:  A super valuable skill you can practice to take this one step further is to think about stories (and practice telling them effectively!) to combat these objections and/or pain points:

So, for this beauty products example:  In your marketing or sales process, you could tell a story about how you had a client who had never worn makeup in her life, because she didn’t know how, but was self conscious about it, and she chose to buy YOUR products because she knew they came with tutorials on how to use them, as well as a personal consult…now she wears makeup and feels so much more confident in general that she actually got a promotion at work! You can also start breaking these down by doing live videos explaining how to use your products, you can also talk in your marketing about how you offer these extra services and consultations or tutorials to all of your clients!

 

ANNA: Yeah, and here are some other examples of how you can break down these barriers with your potential customers.  There are many different ways you could go about this, but some of the most basic and effective would be to tell your personal story about the epiphany you had that changed your thoughts or created your emotional desire for your product/service or Give a testimonial story from a past client or customer.

So, let me walk you through some examples:

–Business opportunity through a network marketing company: Let’s say that you always get the objection from people that they don’t have time to add the business to their life.  You could post a testimonial from a single working mother that talks about her concerns about fitting this into her life and how big her first paycheck was or how well she is currently doing….but take it one step further by solving the problem….and promote that you have a guide for your entire team that walks them through how to have the exact same success she had in just one hour a day, that you all just follow a simple system and everyone on the team has access to it. Hopefully you have something like that from your company or team.  Marketing the way you market!

 

AIMEE –Personal Fitness Coach: Post a picture with a client (make sure they are ok with this!) describing how much fun you guys are having – and the best part? Xxxx had such a hard time actually showing up. Accountability was one of her/his biggest issues. But not now, because we have a really special accountability incentive for all of our clients!!! This helps her make sure she shows up everytime and she’s killing it!

 

ANNA –Photographer selling prints: Maybe you get an objection often that people don’t need wall art or prints with their session.  You could create a video showing another client’s reaction to all of their prints and products that they ordered. You could talk about where they are hanging it and how they are planning to use their images, and again, take it a step further by maybe promoting that you will actually come to your clients house and do a custom wall art consult with them before their session, and then install everything on the walls for them afterwards. If you don’t have a client willing to do this, then post a video! Show off the piece(s) and explain how they’ll be used. Even better if you can give a customer testimony with it!  Do you get where I’m going with this?

 

AIMEE –Wedding Planner: Maybe you constantly get an objection that they decided to plan their wedding themselves rather than hire you.  You could use a customer testimonial that talks about how you have all of these organized systems that other planners don’t have that makes sure every single detail is covered, and how there were at least 20 things you handled in the planning process for them that they had never even thought about, that would have been disasters if they’d tried to plan their wedding themselves, or how they wouldn’t have actually been able to relax and enjoy their day without you. Talk about how much joy it gives you to take all the stress off of your clients and how happy that made this bride or what extras it allowed her to do.

Using stories this way, during your sales pitch or interaction with your customer, helps to change the narrative that people may have about your product/service in their minds and overcome the subconscious objections they have in their mind before they even have a chance to verbalize them.  This is so powerful. This process can lead someone from skepticism to feeling like they literally can’t live without whatever it is that you’re selling, and can even make the cost less relevant.

 

ANNA: AND, that leads us to your action step and really the MEAT of this episode and the main lesson:  We want everyone listening to start thinking about how you can actually create a better offer for your customers based on your customer’s objections or pain points, that solve all of their problems up front.  We will probably go into this EVEN further on a future episode in more depth….because this is such a blow-your-mind concept, and it’s so effective.!

-Create an offer that solves their problems and projected problems

-Branding Photographer: Potential clients don’t know what they want/need, what to wear, how to prep

-Offer:

• Includes a thorough branding photo strategy guide
• Private wardrobe consultation or work with a stylist
• One on one consult with me to go over their marketing strategy and work through what photos they need
• Hair and makeup included
• How to prep leading up to the shoot, like a timeline checklist
• Include different size photos that would work for every social media or marketing platform
• Reveal session to help them select their photos and talk about how they can use them in their long term strategy, helping them select and design cover photos etc.

The possibilities are endless you guys, oh my gosh.  If you were looking for a branding photographer, would you go to the $50 headshot photographer, or to the person who was offering you this complete package and solving all your problems?

 

AIMEE:

-Boutique Store: Women get overwhelmed when building outfits

• Create a style guide showing how you can use items for different outfits

ANNA: Now in network marketing, the root problem most people have is that they don’t know how to sell

We solve that problem by having an exclusive step by step training system and scripts, amongst other things that are in the works for our team right now that we’ll talk about and share our journey with in future episodes as we implement them so you can learn with us

 

AIMEE: You guys, if you can solve their problems in your offerings, you will win every time against your competition – hands down.  Other people aren’t doing this or thinking this way!

 

ANNA: OK, wow, that was a lot, but man, we’re passionate about this stuff.  Obviously, if you implement these tactics, you’re not only going to totally set yourself apart, but you’re going to avoid a lot of objections right out of the gate….and that is so powerful!  So powerful!

 

CLOSING/Call to action:

 

AIMEE: OK, so we hope that you’ve enjoyed this info, this is where we are actually going to break and end this episode and this second episode in the mini series!  We’re covering a lot here, so we want to break it up into bite sized chunks for you.

 

ANNA: Yes, so, we’ve talked about how to identify your prospect’s objections and pain points, we’ve talked about how to create an offer to prevent objections from coming up in the first place….next time we’re going to pick right back up and we are going to talk about how to deal with the objections that DO come up in during your sales process in an effective way.  We’re going to actually help you craft answers and responses to objections for your own business, and tell you how WE answer the most popular objections as well – maybe we’ll even do a little awkward role playing haha, we’ll see.

 

AIMEE: But for now, we’d love to know:  Did you like this episode? Was it helpful to you?  Please leave us a review if you haven’t already and let us know, or connect with us in our free Business & Motherhood community over on Facebook.  You can find the link for that, as well as the show notes for all of our episodes at businessandmotherhood.co

 

ANNA: Yep! And one more time – you can find the free download and notes for this mini-series at businessandmotherhood.co/objections.  Thanks again for joining us today, and we’ll see you next time!