Price Pushback
“That’s more expensive than I expected.”
“I completely understand — most of our clients felt the same until they saw the return they were getting. Let me show you how it pays for itself.”
“Let’s talk next month.”
“I get it — what’s changing between now and then that makes next month a better time?”
“I need to talk to my boss first.”
“Of course — what typically matters most to your boss when approving something like this?”
“I’m not sure this is worth it.”
“That’s fair — what result would make it feel worth it to you?”
“We already work with someone else.”
“Good to hear you value this type of service — what do you like most about your current partner?”
“We don’t have budget right now.”
“Totally fair — when planning budgets, do you typically allocate for growth or maintenance? Because this actually supports both.”
“We’re just too busy right now.”
“That’s actually why most clients start with us — to save time. What’s taking up most of your bandwidth?”
“I’m not the final decision-maker.”
“No problem — could we loop in whoever is so they can hear the full context?”
“How will this really help us?”
Great question — can you share your top two challenges right now? I’ll show exactly how this solves them.”
“We’re happy with who we use now.”
“That’s great — are there any gaps or frustrations that you’d fix if you could?”
“Can you give me a discount?”
“We could reduce the scope to match your budget, but the full package ensures you get measurable results. Which is more important to you — price or performance?”
“We’ll revisit this after the holidays.”
“Makes sense — if we start planning now, we can have everything ready to launch once the new year hits. Would that be valuable?”
“Our team will discuss and get back to you.”
“That sounds great — what kind of feedback are you expecting from them so I can help prepare answers?”
“We’ve tried something like this before and it didn’t work.”
“I hear that a lot — can you tell me what went wrong last time? That’ll help me show how we do it differently.”
“They’ve been with us for years.”
“That’s loyalty — and it shows you care about relationships. Would you be open to seeing a comparison just to benchmark performance?”
“Your price is higher than [competitor].”
“That’s true — and it’s because we include ongoing support and data reporting they don’t. Would it help if I showed you how that impacts your ROI?”
“We’re waiting for leadership approval.”
“Got it — would it help if I provided a short summary or ROI sheet for you to present to leadership?”
“Procurement has to approve everything.”
“Understood — do you want me to send you some details they’ll likely ask about to speed up the process?”
“We’re not convinced it delivers ROI.”
“Let’s walk through a quick example using your numbers — that’ll make the return clear.”
“They offer the same thing for less.”
“Understood — if the results were better, would price still be your deciding factor?”
“We’re already over budget this quarter — maybe next time.”
“I hear you — budgets can be tight. What if we start small now to lock in pricing before it rises next quarter? That way, you stay ahead.”
“We’re not ready to commit this quarter.”
“Totally understandable — but if we delay, we lose the momentum you’ve built. What would need to happen for you to feel ready this quarter?”
“We’re reorganizing and leadership roles are changing.”
“That’s helpful to know — would it make sense to get an intro to whoever will handle this moving forward so you’re not stuck waiting?”
“I just don’t see how this fits our strategy.”
“That’s fair — can we take 5 minutes to map your strategy together and see if there’s alignment or not? If not, I’ll tell you straight up.”
“We just signed a new contract with them.”
“Makes total sense. While you’re in that contract, how about I show you a few metrics to track — so when renewal time comes, you have a clear comparison?”