Objections are really pretty simple. They can be broken down into two parts. Part one is the concern of the client or prospect; part two is the solving of that concern. As an agent, the more proficient you are at approaching each of these parts, the more successful you will be.

Objections can be like a landmine. If an agent makes a mistake on the first part, they blow up, and lose any opportunity to be successful in the end. The way to sidestep this landmine is to be focused enough to understand the concerns of the clients or prospects.

Listen

When you get an objection from buyers or sellers, make sure that you hear clearly what they are saying. If you interpret the objection wrongly, the answer you give, no matter how eloquent, will not be sufficient to overcome their area of concern.

Here is a technique that can turn objections into dollars. When a client gives you an objection, pause to make sure you clearly understood and repeat what they said or ask them to explain further. First, this allows you to confirm what their objection was to insure I had understood it properly. Second, it enables you to be well prepared when you respond. You will buy yourself a few seconds while your brain prepares an appropriate answer. Then you can respond in a powerful, well-planned manner. Third, you will avoid interrupting the buyer or seller with a too-ready answer.

Objections are very real and legitimate to your client, no matter how ridiculous they may sound to you. Interrupting can cause the seller or buyer to become irritated with you.

Respond

Once you have properly understood and evaluated the client’s concern, you can move to the solving stage. Train yourself mentally to believe that objections are good at this stage. Before you reread that sentence a few times and then decide that I am nuts, think about it. If clients were not interested, they would not be giving you objections. They would simply say, "I'm not interested" or give you an unvarnished "no."

Objections truly are an opportunity to get a signed contract. When a buyer or seller gives you an objection, he is presenting you an opportunity to close. S/he is basically saying, "I like this, but there is one factor I do not like." The buyer might say, "If the home you are showing me had a larger patio, it would be right for me." All you have to do is find a way to get a larger patio and you have made a sale.

Are the number of bedrooms a problem? Ask, "If this home had one more bedroom, would you buy it?" "Is this home what you want in every other way?" Offer to run the numbers on a possible add-on, or look for spaces that can be expanded. Do the numbers make sense for the home? Does an add-on price it beyond the neighborhood? How do homes in the neighborhood with one more bedroom compare to this home? You client may decide to go with the home, go with a larger home in the same neighborhoodl, or go with a larger home in a more affordable neighborhood. Any way you look at it, your handling of the objection got you closer to a sale.

You must put your problem-solver hat on. If you solve the problem, then you get the opportunity to ask the buyer to buy. The client can say, "Yes," or give you another objection. If he gives you another objection, you have another opportunity to solve the problem and ask him/her to buy.

This procedure may continue for a few objections. Do not give up; you are getting closer to a sale. As long as you are able to continue to solve his problem the client will buy. Remember, you are the problem solver.

You are the one in control, as long as you continue to ask questions. Your questions will move the client forward to the ultimate decision. The goal is to get a decision out of a client quickly. Even if that decision is "no," you will have invested the minimum amount of time to get there.

Join the ranks of the highly skilled and highly paid professional realtors. Change your mental approach to objections. View them as the opportunity to make the sale. Make sure first that you clearly understand the objection of the client. Then put on your problem-solving hat and make the sale.

Agent News Marketing Advice

Published: March 30, 1999

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Editor's Note: This article reflects the opinions of Dirk Zeller only and not necessarily the views of this or any other publication, organization or Website owner.

Dirk Zeller is a sought out speaker, celebrated author and CEO of Real Estate Champions. His company trains more than 350,000 Agents worldwide each year through live events, online training, self-study programs, and newsletters. The Real Estate community has embraced and praised his six best-selling books; Your First Year in Real Estate, Success as a Real Estate Agent for Dummies®, The Champion Real Estate Agent, The Champion Real Estate Team, Telephone Sales for Dummies®, Successful Time Management for Dummies®, and over 300 articles in print. To learn more regarding this article, please visit www.realestatechampions.com.