Advisor ethics: Dating, emotions and the truth about price objection

Instead, meet emotional objections with emotional responses. Your client just told you they're not interested in dealing with you, at least not on this subject. That's not a price problem; that's a relationship problem. And that's a big deal. You need to quickly show you respect their objection.

First, stop pushing the sale. Don't argue value; don't argue at all. Respect their wishes and drop the subject. You need to earn back the right to offer advice. You do that by empathetically listening to the client. You might try something like this:

"Too expensive? Oh, OK. Sounds like maybe this might not be the right thing for you. I might have misunderstood your situation. Sorry about that. Would you mind backing up and going over again with me how you see your needs in this area?"

Your objective here isn't to see what you missed the first time; it's to make sure this time, the client feels heard. They may or may not change their mind, but the point is for you to leave them feeling you care about them and their needs, and you're committed to helping them, rather than selling to them.

If you can do that, you've done a lot. The client will let you know if and when they're willing to re-engage. If they do, they'll suggest the equivalent of "how about next Tuesday or Thursday?" and you'll know the difference.

Charles H. Green is founder and CEO of Trusted Advisor Associates. The author of "Trust-Based Selling" and co-author of "The Trusted Advisor," he has spoken to, consulted for or done seminars about trusted relationships in business. For more information, go to http://trustedadvisor.com/cgreen.