When “I’ll think about it” goes south!
Every entrepreneur I’ve known has had this experience. You have a conversation with a prospect who is considering working with you. They are totally “in.” You can see so clearly how you can help them, and it is also clear that they are present to what is possible for them through your partnership. You’re so excited, you just love it when the Universe delivers you the exact right fit.
Because you’ve studied Universal Law, and because you’re really committed to helping people through the work you do, you know that you can’t get attached to the sale, so you’re busy reminding yourself not to get too excited. 🙂
While you’re working on your own mental game, the prospect suddenly slips in those six dreaded words, “I need to think about it,” and before you know it you’re agreeing to call them back in two days.
Or perhaps it was, “I need to talk with my spouse,” or, “I’ve got to see if I have the money.” Any number of reasons can be given in that moment that are just the right thing to have you agree to let them wait. HINT: It is usually the exact reason that you use yourself when you’re afraid to commit to something, and that’s why it hooks you.
So, you’ve got the follow-up scheduled in two days. After one night’s sleep you receive the email from the prospect. You know the one, with any number or reasons attached, that says, “I’m going to have to say no at this time.”
And of course you’re crushed. They would have been such a perfect client.
One of two things happened here.
- They had no intention of working with you.
- They really did want to work with you, but their ego took over their life.
I’m creating one of my favorite trainings for my Amplify group right now. It’s all around “sales”. Handling the ‘dreaded “I’ll think about it” is a key to pushing through the no’s to get to the yes’. And I know it’s important for you too. So let’s address what likely happened and how you can deal with it.
1. No intention of working with you.
If someone asks you for time to consider their decision for any reason, you want to be sure to ask follow-up questions to get clear about whether they are actually serious. Crazy as it may seem, most people would rather make up a little white lie than tell you directly that they don’t want to work with you. We are programmed to be polite, and we think saying “no” will seem rude. You can tend feel pushy doing this, but remember clarity is service.
Help them get clear
Here are some follow-up questions to help you get clear about whether they really do want to work with you.
- “I have to think about it.”
- What, specifically, will you think about?
- If you have to think about it, that generally means there is some piece of information you feel like you don’t have. What questions do you still have?
- Do you usually have to think about decisions, or do you usually have a gut feel? What does your gut say.
- If you didn’t have to think about it, what would be the next thing you tell yourself about this decision? (Often people have 2-3 excuses lined up for themselves, might as well address them now).
- As you’re thinking about it, what will be the different factors you’ll consider? What is most important to you?
- “I need to talk to my spouse.”
- What kind of agreements do you have with your spouse about money?
- If your spouse were on the line, what do you think he/she would say?
- Tell me about how you want that conversation with your spouse to go.
- If your spouse were on board, would you be ready to sign up?
- How will you handle it if your spouse doesn’t think it is a good idea?
- “I need to figure out where to get the money.”
- If you had the money, do you know you’d want to invest it here?
- What, specifically, will you do to figure out where to get the money?
You can see that the basic purpose of these questions is to help them to think through their reason to find out if it is a real reason, and if so, to make a plan for specifically what to go do between your calls. Often you will find that people either realize their reason isn’t as real as they thought. “You know what, my husband will want me to do this.” Or, they will at least tell you directly that they really don’t want to do it so you can move on.
2. Their Ego Took Over
If you hung-up the phone clear that they were committed to working with you, and then they change their mind, all that happened is that their ego took over. When I say ego, I don’t mean that they are egotistical, I mean their subconscious mind’s programming, or their ego-based fears, took over in an attempt to keep them safe. The ego is a powerful thing, and it will create or attract the exact right circumstance to keep them stuck. If working with you will change something significant in their life, health, business, career, or relationships, (which I hope it will!), then it will feel scary to them and their subconscious mind to make the commitment.
Be certain about what is really happening.
You have to know with 100% certainty that this is what happened in order to shift yourself from being victim to their “no” to being empowered to support them in getting back to their Truth. When you start to support people, lovingly, through their initial doubt, you become the type of person who has uncommonly helpful conversations, and you become the type of person people want to pay.
No one skips it.
NO ONE skips this part in business. EVERY business owner goes through the “I’ll think about it” stage where every client is giving some form of this objection. Some business owners never leave this stage. When you become comfortable pushing people gently past their fear, because you KNOW their ego going to generate fear in those two days and, you welcome it as an opportunity to help them truly transform, you will become a master at helping clients transform through sales.
So how do you do it?
I’ll cover that next week in The Prospect Ego Trip Part 2: How to stand firm when they waffle.