Application to Objections
Your Prospect Isn't Objecting, They're Signaling a Misunderstanding
The most powerful way to handle an objection is to treat it as an unanswered question.
I. The Hook (Problem/Aspiration)
"This is too expensive." "We don't have the budget right now." "We can just build it ourselves." These statements feel like roadblocks, but they are almost always symptoms of insufficient clarity. When a buyer has 100% conviction in the value, price becomes irrelevant. An objection is simply a loud, frustrated signal that a teaching opportunity has been missed.
II. The Old Way (Pitching)
The traditional rep treats objections as confrontation. They rush to defend the price, defend the features, or defend the timeline, reinforcing the adversarial relationship. This creates a circular, win-lose conversation that quickly erodes trust.
III. The New Way (Clarity Tactic)
Your Clarity Tactic is to Embrace Objections as Learning Moments (from Chapter 9). Your immediate response should be diagnostic, not defensive.
The tool for this is Reframe and Isolate: Reframe the objection as an unanswered question and ask clarifying questions to isolate the root confusion.
IV. The Implementation (3 Action Steps)
Reframe the Objection: Instead of getting defensive, validate the objection and then reframe it. "I completely understand where you're coming from on the price. That often means I haven't been clear enough on the specific ROI you'll see. Can you tell me exactly what part of the value equation you'd like me to clarify?"
Isolate the Confusion: Ask specific questions to find the source. If they say "too expensive," ask: "Is the price the concern, or is it the value we've proposed that doesn't yet justify the investment?" This forces them to pinpoint the missing clarity.
Teach the Missing Piece: Once isolated, immediately pivot back to the Teacher role. Teach the specific, missing piece of information (e.g., show the ROI model, share a relevant case study, or use a new analogy) and then use the Teach-Back Technique to confirm they got it.
V. The Payoff (Clarity Metric)
The measurable payoff is Faster Time to Resolution on Roadblocks. By treating every objection as a call for clarity, you bypass the argument and quickly move back to the shared journey, significantly speeding up the sales cycle.