When you prospect says, “Your price is too high”, I hope your immediate reaction is not to start discounting! Read about a simple sales tip that you can use to effectively handle the pricing objection.

Here is a secret  that Buyers will never tell you. The  “Your price is Too High” Course is the second module that Purchasing Agents and Buyers take when they are learning how to do their job.  Really! 

Buyers use this one consistently because they are rewarded on how much money they can save.  They will offer lots of reasons why they need to get your product at a lower cost. 

“My budget has been reduced”, “we need to save 5% on all purchases this year”, “we  are re-evaluating all of our current suppliers for better pricing” are all ‘standard justifications’ for their objection.  I’m not saying they are not telling the truth, its just that you don’t want to play their game – you want to play yours !

It is important to realize that this objection is a very “standard one”. You should never be surprised when you get it. Notice, I said, ‘when’, not ‘if’. So, be prepared. 

The new sales person will often get drawn into pricing discussions early in the sales call.  And if you are not prepared to handle the objection, then you are immediately put on the defensive. While pricing is often a key part of any negotiation,  the best sales strategy is to use discounting to your advantage and only when necessary.

There are many strategies you can employ. For this post we are going to focus on the one called “relative to what”.

The ‘relative to what’ sales tip.

This is the easiest strategy to implement and is great for the newer sales person as they are developing their skills.

Before your meeting with your prospect,  the first step is make a list of the various competitors that you have. Then, narrow that list down to the ones you likely will encounter when you make your sales call.  Be sure to have a good understanding of their pricing relative to yours for a similar product (or service).

Now, when your prospect  says, “your price is too high”.  Your reply is to politely ask, “can you tell me about your current supplier?”  Or “What other vendors  (suppliers, services) have  you met with or are considering.” This is not the typical response that a buyer would expect. Instead of being defensive and immediately dropping your price,  you are engaging in a much more meaningful discussion with your Buyer. 

Now that you know your competition, and you know their pricing relative to yours (remember that research you did earlier?)  you can shift the conversation back to  the features of  your product vs. your competition. Be sure to discuss your product’s benefits for your Buyer’s company.  Stay away from discussing pricing. If you do a good job here, your Buyer might realize that your product is superior and your pricing is justified!