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How to Handle Questions and Objections During a Sales Presentation

This is the moment most presenters dread – you ask if anyone has any questions and pretty much everyone puts their hands up. On one hand you’re flattered because obviously people are interested but on the other hand you’re scared stiff because you don’t know what people are going to ask, whether you’ll know the answer or if you’ll look incompetent and lose the sale.

Here are some simple tips to follow that can get you through the tough situations:

Handling Questions

• Take control of the process and tell the Customers when they can ask questions – at the end of the presentation or at particular points during the presentation. Decide what will work best for you.

• Prepare in advance – think of the questions that will probably come up and prepare your answers in advance. Having analysed the Customer, you should have some idea now what the typical objections will be so have answers ready to tackle these

• Listen to the full question – do not interrupt half way through and assume you know what they’re going to ask

• ‘Listen’ to the body language – is it defensive, what cues can you pick up from how they are asking the question or the gestures they are making?

• Think about your own body language – whilst you may feel defensive when someone asks a question, keep your gestures open – arms at your side, direct eye contact, smile, lean forward

Answering Questions

• Repeat the question back to ensure you have understood

• If you don’t know the answer….. TELL THEM. Do not try and muddle your way through the answer or make something up, your body language will give you away and someone else may know the actual answer and you will lose all credibility.

• If you don’t know the answer, open it up to the group and see if anyone else knows. This is known as Boomerang – where you boomerang the question back to the group. If you’re not good at ‘thinking on your feet’ this can also give you a chance to think about the answer. Answer it by saying, “Great question! What do the rest of the group think? Would anyone like to share their thoughts?”

• If you don’t know and no one else knows either, have a ‘Parking Lot’ for the questions (could be a flipchart on the wall or just your notepad) and commit to finding out the answer for them.

• When replying to a question, involve the whole audience – begin eye contact with the questioner, then the other audience members and back to the questioner at the end of the answer.

Dealing with Objections

• Keep calm – you can handle this!

• If things do start to become difficult to handle then politely suggest that the conversation be taken offline. Depending on the objection, some of your answers could be:

o “You have made a very valid point and I want to discuss this further. Can I suggest we take this offline and have a more focused conversation after the presentation?”

o “Thank you, that is a great point/question and I’d like to involve my colleague / Manager of that department / my CEO in answering your concern. Let me take that away and I’ll arrange a separate meeting later this week where we can discuss further. What’s your availability?”

• If you feel someone is deliberately trying to challenge you, then you could use humour. BE VERY CAREFUL though as it can come across as sarcasm and you may appear defensive

• Do not deflect the criticism or blame another colleague – it will seem your Company is not working as a team or communicating well. Even if an objection is not based on anything you have done, accept the feedback on behalf of your Company in an appropriate manner.

• Do not agree with or join in any maligning of the Company – your job is to represent the business and you must safeguard its name and reputation – be professional at all times.

• Be conscious of your body language and facial expressions – keep your gestures open and your face neutral. Avoid eye-rolling, frowns and smirking, this will only antagonise the objectioner!

• Be attentive whilst the objection is being made – actively listen with head nods and direct eye contact. If the other audience members become restless, manage them and ask them to be quiet (respectfully, of course!). Do be conscious of the group through and if the objection is taking a lot of time or the person is being argumentative then take control and suggest taking it off-line (see previous examples).

Some other things to consider if you’re put on the spot:

• Nonverbal cues can help restore order and make you appear calm…. Even if you’re not!

o Strong eye contact

o Upright posture

o Unwavering focus

• The more animated your ‘opponent’ becomes, the calmer you should be

• Keep vocal inflection to a minimum, talk neutrally

• Keep focused on the key messages you want to deliver – if you get a difficult question, repeat your main point and do not waffle, keep to the areas you are comfortable talking about.

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Start Selling Locally to Launch Your Product

For thousands of years, craftsmen have created a product by themselves or with the help of a few employees and sold the products out of their homes. But does this strategy still work in a globalized economy? It can, although most inventors start selling locally to launch their product in a bigger way.

Most often, when I hear of an inventor who only sells locally, he or she just kind of fell into it. For instance, let’s say that an inventor came up with a great new yard tool specific to his or her geographical location. The inventor only intended to use the tool him or herself, but when neighbors and relatives saw it, they wanted one too. So the inventor makes more products to sell to his or her neighbors and relatives, then their neighbors and relatives see the new tool and also want one. Soon the inventor has a small business going and if there are enough sales the inventor may be happy with the level of sales and not really look to grow. But selling locally can also be your launch pad into regional, national and possibly international sales. Selling locally can hone your sales pitch, product and prove to potential partners, retailers and distributors that your product has what it takes to make it big.

When using local sales to launch your product in a bigger way, you need to document and prove your product’s ability to succeed. You need to attack your local sales in a big way, with PR, demonstrations, and a number of other things to ensure your product sells well. If your sales are slow or stagnate, potential partners, investors, or sales reps might take that as a sign that your product is not a winner. So you need to put maximum effort into these early sales to show your product’s potential.

Why local sales? Local sales are easier, not just because you are closer in proximity. Local products can create good word-of-mouth and PR, making sales easier. Then you document these early, easier sales to convince sales reps, distributors, and retailers in other geographical areas to carry your product.

Getting Your Product into Local Stores

Getting your product into local stores is not always easy, but there are lots of ways you can make it as low-risk as possible for store owners. There are three main ways to make carrying your product low-risk: discounts, consignment and guaranteed sales.

Discounts

Discounts means that you offer a discounted wholesale price, meaning that they will make more money per sale. This still presents a risk for the retailer, but makes your product more attractive.

Selling on consignment

Selling on consignment means that the retailer doesn’t pay you the wholesale price of your product until the product actually sells.

Guaranteed sales

Guaranteed sales simply means that you refund the retailer for any products that don’t sell after a certain amount of time.

These methods help retailers take a chance on your product. Also if you offer to do the steps listed below to help sales, you will increase your chances of them taking on your product.

Key Steps to Selling Locally

Let’s take a look at what it takes to successfully sell locally.

Media Coverage

Local newspapers don’t always have lots of exciting things to write about, so when a local inventor starts selling his or her product, local media will probably be interested in a story. The key here is that an inventor just selling a product is not a story. But if you talk about how you came up with your idea, your process of product development, your current sales efforts and your future plans, that makes a much more exciting story.

Media coverage helps you by getting the word out about your product. Seeing your product featured in a news story also creates more trust in your product than an advertisement. This trust, and the fact that you have a local product, will make people more likely to buy your product.

Word-of-Mouth Advertising

Selling locally also usually creates word-of-mouth advertising. Word-of-mouth just means people telling their friends, families and co-workers about your product. Local products create local interest and can get people talking.

You can help word-of-mouth advertising by getting the right people talking. In every community, there are influential and listened-to people. If you market to these people, or even give out samples, you can get these influential people talking, and other people will listen.

Also in every community there are people who love to spread news. These people know everyone and always have something to say. Getting these people talking about your product will also quickly spread the news.

In-Store Demonstrations

One of the big benefits of selling locally is that it makes it easy for you to be involved in selling your product, even in a retail setting. One of the most effective ways to be involved is by giving out samples or in-store demonstrations.

Most retail decisions are made in a matter of seconds, so it is easy for potential customers to pass over new products. That is why in-store demonstrations or samples are important for new products. Demonstrations grab potential customers’ attention and allow them to touch and try a new product which helps them overcome any hesitation in buying a new and unknown product.

Special Displays

You aren’t able to do in-store demonstrations all the time and during low-traffic times it is probably not worthwhile for you to be in a retail setting waiting for customers. But when you are not able, or when it is not worthwhile, to do demonstrations, you still want to get customers’ attention. For these times, you want special displays. There are a variety of attention grabbing displays out there and if you go to a mall and visit stores, you can get an idea of what might work with your product. Some of the more common ones are end-of-the-isle displays and floor displays.

Sales

Sales are another way to attract attention to your product and help overcome hesitation in buying a new product. If you offer sales or coupons, you will need to pay back the retailer for all the coupons redeemed or sales made.

One tactic that you can also use is a co-op advertising program. When you receive a sales booklet or flyer from a store, manufactures whose products are listed pay for 50 to 100% of the ad in free goods, hoping to generate enough sales to cover their costs. So you might give the retailer 24 products at no cost products to sell if the retailer includes your product in its next circular or newspaper ad. This tactic is especially effective if your plan is to use local sales as a launching pad for bigger market sales.

Using Your Local Success to Take on Regional and National Sales Reps, Distributors and Retail Stores

From the very beginning of your sales, keep careful records, documenting the success of your product. Then use that information as you talk to sales reps, distributors and retail stores. Also take pictures of your product selling or people trying your product at demonstrations to use in your talks. You can approach sales reps, distributors and retailers by simply saying that you have successfully sold your product in your local area, share your sales figures, and say you are looking to expand your sales. If your sales figures are impressive, they will listen.

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Audition Tips for Actors, Presenting Your Best Talents

After attending the “IndieLink: Actors Program” at Film Independent, I came away more aware about the many variables that go into auditioning. The evening started with a Q&A with Julia Kim, a Los Angeles Independent Casting Director (CD). The session awakened my interest in this phase of the industry and I have fleshed out her comments where relevant.

She talked about the selection process, about how a casting director can help get a project off the ground. Considerations such as the name game, recognizable faces, availability, and budget are instrumental in assembling a worthy cast. She also touched on how some directors have weak communications with actors, they over direct, give too many comments, or unable to trim down suggestions to actable terms.

The selection process entails suggesting actors for various roles based on availability, experience, and demands of role. The CD culls this list down, and calls those remaining for auditions with the director, sometimes the producer. Selection process continues with call backs, negotiations, and eventual signing of cast members.

If you come in with a prepared scene, select one that displays both your range and character type. Emotional range is another consideration as is the ability to choose strong intentions that fit the scene. She said to keep the scene short, two to three pages at the most.

On assigned scenes, the normal prep time is four days, however, some productions companies are slow in sending out sides and you may end up with only two days to study and memorize the script. A good agent can help speed up this process, and with email transmissions, script should arrive giving you adequate prep time.

Casting directors usually allot only ten minutes for the audition. Thus, be ready to take advantage of this time. It means having your picture and resume handy, comment productively on them, and being ready to answer the all-important question, “Tell me about yourself?” You should also have the scene memorized, off book, and have selected strong choices about character’s intentions and emotions. Also, consider such things as dialogue delivery, gestures, facial expressions, pace, timing, and the styles of acting.

Of the twenty actors that performed that evening, the common fault was that they seemed rushed and did not use pauses to their advantage. Common reasons for pausing include search for word, change of mind, reflect on what’s heard, or set up punch line. Pauses combined with looking away can disconnect attention with the other person and create internalizations the audience can visualize. By creating focal zones for recalls, problems, and avoidance issues, the actor allows the audience members inside his head, letting them speculate what he’s thinking and/or feeling. Combine with facial expressions, gestures, and the scene’s context, these eye behaviors departmentalize issues and make internalization more apparent.

Another suggestion was to add more variety to the performance. This is done by giving the scene more peaks and valleys, stronger reactions to what the other character says, and creating an arc to the character, e.g., going from happy to angry. Instead of a one-note portrayal, add levels of vulnerability to the piece. Well-placed mannerisms and gestures also help flesh out the characterization.

Before starting, slate name and give the CD what and where particulars about the scene. For instance, the scene takes place in a courtroom where I play a lawyer questioning a witness in a murder trial. Likewise, come into the scene with an attitude and physicality of the character along with applicable behaviors. This establishes your character early on and hooks the viewer into your story. Sometimes this requires adding elements not found in the script. Acknowledging the setting or environment of the scene should also be evident in your presentation. For instance, an argument in a restaurant would be portrayed differently than one taking place in the living room.

Predictability is another issue and if you take the scene in an unexpected direction, you are more likely to be remembered and considered. The ability to make bold powerful choices and implement them honestly is a trait CD’s love. This is especially true when using an over done audition scene. The issue of contrived, forced emotions was also brought up. Emotions are what drive the story forward, especially in drama. Being able to portray the whole spectrum of feelings with integrity is a skill few actors achieve. While the actor may feel the emotions deeply, they must also be readable and appear authentic to the audience.

Be into the scene and acknowledge the other character through feel, think, act sequences. This progression of behaviors pulls the audience into the piece. It’s reacting and using behaviors such as awareness, reflections, realizations, expectations, or weighing of options. Such behaviors keep them asking that most desirable question, “What’s going to happen next?”

The genre of the scene is another consideration and demands a certain style of acting. For instance, in comedy, timing is highly calculated and precise. Timing is the ability to sense what is going on in the mind of the audience and using this time dimension to create the optimum response, e.g., laughter, tension, or surprise. Likewise, in comedy, reality tends to be suspended and unbalanced whereas in drama it tends to be lifelike and logical.

With several actors, Miss Kim gave suggestions and had them do the scene a second time. Sometimes the CD does this to improve the actors understanding of the scene or explore a technique the actor might not know. Such repetition often reveals how well the actor takes direction and his dramatic dexterity. As such, in rehearsing a scene, it can be beneficial to attempt a number of approaches assure flexibility.

One last item covered was the resemblance of your picture to your live persona. Sometimes a flattering photo does a disservice as it conjures up impressions that are not you. Catching your essence, your potential in a photo demands more than making you look attractive or handsome. It gets into what dynamic your photo evokes, your ability to portray compelling characters. Sometimes it’s the thought or emotion going on in your head. Other factors include attitude, lighting, and camera angle. Characters in films come in a variety of types and looks, and trying to remake your image into something you are not restricts your ability to find work.

The craft of good acting has to do with making and implementing choices. Knowing what to do, knowing how to do it, and knowing how to do it well. Developing solid auditioning skills is an essential part of that craft.

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