13 Ways to Resolve Concerns and Get to Yes

Before your dream client makes a decision, they suffer through a period of indecision. They worry about making a mistake. They have concerns, and it is your job to help them solve concerns and resolve any uncertainties they may have.

1. References: Some of your dream clients will be confident moving forward with you only after they speak to a few of your existing clients. Providing them references will resolve concern.
2. Testimonials: Testimonial letters serve the same purpose, but without your dream client having to call and speak to anyone. Some sales organizations use these proactively, providing them early in the process.
3. Site Visit: When your dream client is concerned about the size of your company or doesn’t know enough about you to move forward, a site visit can help them gain the confidence they need to say yes. Such visits are a valuable opportunity to solve concerns directly and demonstrate your company’s capabilities in a tangible way.
4. Client Visit: If what you do requires you to be closely integrated in your client’s processes or workflows, a client visit can help you provide your dream client with a vision of what an engagement with you might feel like.
5. Team Meeting: Sometimes the concern your dream client is struggling with is about your team. Having a meeting to introduce the actual team they will be working is often enough to boost their confidence. Much of the time they like the team better than they like the salesperson.
6. ROI Analysis: Every client you meet doesn’t need a formal ROI analysis. But some do, especially when they are economic buyers. Crank the numbers into a spreadsheet and show them how fast they benefit.
7. Implementation Plan: Transitioning can be difficult. It can be uncomfortable and disruptive. Marking off the tasks, dates, and all the ways you are going to mitigate the disruption will help prove you have a plan, that you’ve done this before, and that you can make it work.
8. Milestones: How do we get from here to there? Some of your dream clients will need to see the milestones, the “what” and the “by when” in order to feel comfortable moving forward. Map out the milestones.
9. Review Meetings: You might get it wrong. Your dream client wants to know you will make adjustments and learn quickly. Scheduling 30, 60, and 90 day review meetings provides your dream client a chance to help you change faster.
10. Scorecard: If you keep client scorecards, sharing your scores across a common set of metrics can help your client to see that you are serious about results, and you know what outcomes you are responsible for producing.
11. Guarantee: Guarantees reverse the risk. If you can eliminate the risk, you also eliminate a lot of concerns.
12. Shared Risk: Sometimes resolving concerns about results requires that you put some of your fees at risk. This resolve concern, but it is best to share the risks by requiring an equal upside to ensure your dream client is all in on doing whatever it takes on their end, too.
13. A Handshake: There are some people who only need you to look them in the eye, shake their hand, and commit to doing what you say you are going to do. They need to hear the words come out of your mouth.

If you don’t know what concerns are preventing your dream client from saying yes, ask them. And then help them discover what evidence you can provide that will make them 100% confident moving forward with you.