Sometimes, it is a good thing when a potential client says "no".  Don’t take their response personally.

First off, let’s be clear that a “no” is just a two-letter word consisting of “n” and “o”. These are just harmless characters and yet we attach so much meaning to them and give them so much power over us. We think a “no” says something about us and that our services aren’t good enough. We attach so much power to a “no” that it sometimes paralyzes us. We even fear a “no” so much that we put off, or avoid, having sales conversations as we run the risk of getting the dreaded “no”. 

So when could a “no” be a perfectly reasonable response? A “no” could be the right response when:

• The potential client really has no money.
• The potential client doesn’t have a problem you can solve.
• The potential client doesn’t want the problem solved now. (If they say, “No, not now,” ensure you have a mechanism to keep in touch with them. A newsletter is ideal for this.)
• The potential client doesn’t want the problem solved at all.
• You don’t have the expertise or skills in the areas they need/want. 

I hope you can see that all the above are perfectly valid reasons for someone saying “no”. All these reasons say absolutely nothing about you and your products and services.  Never let the word "no" undermine your confidence.
 

Last 5 posts by Tessa Stowe

• Hate Selling? Start By Being “You” When Selling - October 5th, 2007
• What steps can you take to overcome your fear of selling? - September 29th, 2007
• Are You Having Sales Conversations From Your Head? - September 23rd, 2007
• Three Steps To Authentic Sales Conversations - September 22nd, 2007
• A Simple Sales Strategy: Ask Questions - September 17th, 2007

This entry was posted on Monday, May 7th, 2007 at 9:19 am and is filed under Sales, Motivation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.