Objections for Sales: I’m Just Looking

You start your day with a good attitude and a cup of joe. It is a beautiful day – selling weather!

For the sake of nostalgia and a little pick-me-up, you put on a Zig Ziglar CD as you head to work.

By the time you arrive, you’ve drained your coffee cup and filled your mind with a strong, positive outlook on life.

When your caffeine/Ziglar-induced high can’t get any higher, a customer leads off your first sales conversation of the day with one of the most common objections for sales, the three words you seriously, passionately do NOT want to hear:

“I’m just looking.”

Cue the sound of a Wile E. Coyote Acme bomb going off. Note: you are the coyote …you are the target. Boom.

For many sales professionals, “I’m just looking” represents a sales-stopping moment. They may maintain a calm external demeanor, but the words “I’m just looking” often trigger internal dialogue like this:

“Great – another ‘just looking.’ The whole world is ‘just looking!’ Do you think I could get like, I don’t know, ONE person who is actually in the market to buy and not just kicking tires?”

Lest you think that your customers exist for no other reason than to waste your valuable time, let me remind you that saying “I’m just looking” is about as common as the sunrise. And, by the way, you do it too!

Are you going to tell me that you never use this line when you are the customer?

There is a description for the phrase, “I’m just looking,” and that description is …“normal.”

In fact, it is not only normal, it is honest!

I feel certain that if we hooked our buyers up to polygraph tests whenever they said, “I’m just looking,” they would pass!

They very likely believe this is exactly what they are doing. The important thing for you to remember is that when they say this, they haven’t yet seen your product.

They are not yet in love (yet!) with what you offer, so yes, they are just looking.

First things first: stop fretting over normal behavior. Don’t let this phrase take you off your mental game, even a tiny bit. This is merely a customer being a customer. Don’t fault them for that.

Instead, let’s start over.  Act on these three strategies:

Let It Roll Off Your Back

The most important step is to let this statement roll right off your back. It is water, and you are a duck. Since this is normal buyer behavior, there is no reason to believe that it means this customer will not purchase. They say it, you forget it, you both move on. It’s that simple. Don’t even flinch when you hear it. Be the duck.

Agree With Them Automatically

It is essential to have an auto-response for each of the more common statements, delays, and objections you regularly hear from customers. Deliver your auto-response in a casual, conversational tone:

“Of course, I understand.” Or, “Got it. I’m glad that you chose to look here.”

Communicating this kind of acceptance and understanding is a huge draw to your customers.

Offer to Help

Respect the fact that customers do not want you immediately up in their face with a sales presentation. Instead, extend the conversation by offering assistance in the “looking process.” Your well-timed, well-toned response might sound like this:

“Of course. I understand. I want to assist you in any way I can. May I ask you a few quick questions so that I can help as much as possible in your search”?

Or,

“Got it, and thank you so much for looking here. I want to make this as painless for you as possible. If I can ask you a few quick questions, I can make this very easy on you.”

You will always face the “I’m just looking” customer.

Have your auto-response ready, stay mentally strong, and you will be well on your way to changing your customer’s world!


FREE TRAINING:
Get BRAND-NEW episodes of Jeff’s 5 Minute Sales Training sent to your inbox every Saturday!

Sign up below.

 

About the Author: Jeff Shore

Jeff Shore is the Founder and CEO of Shore Consulting, Inc. a company specializing in psychology-based sales training programs. Using these modern, game-changing techniques, Jeff Shore’s clients delivered over 145,000 new homes generating $54 billion in revenue last year.