The 4 Most Common Objections and How to Overcome Them

Meeting with a potential client, you’re connecting, sharing what you do, thinking everything is going smoothly and that they are ready to sign up…you are going to change this person’s life! Then out of nowhere they hit you with an objection. Your excitement is quickly deflated and you don’t know what to say next.

The good news is, when someone brings up an objection, it is actually a buying signal. They are ready to sign up with you if you fix whatever the objection is.

There are four main objections that will come up:

• 1. Time
• 2. Spouse
• 3. Money
• 4. Motivation

Knowing that one of these four objections could come up do not wait until the end of your meeting to start tackling them one at a time. Right away address these objections before they even come up!

Time

One of the first questions you can ask them is about their schedule. How many days a week are you planning to workout? We are open Mon – Friday from 5am – 8pm and Saturdays from 7am – 1pm. Do those hours work for you? By bringing this up at the beginning you can find out if a time objection will come up and address it now.

Spouse

When someone calls in or emails us to set up an initial strategy session we always ask if they have someone who is supporting them who would like to come too. Ideally, they bring their spouse with them! If not, they’ll usually let us know if their spouse is supportive or not so again you can address this objection early. Having a low barrier to join, such as an initiation fee under $100, can help with this.

Money

Throughout your meeting your goal is to build up so much value for them that they are surprised how inexpensive it is when you come down to asking for a sale. A money objection is usually an issue with not showing them enough value. Unless it is a situation where they truly can’t afford you, the only reason they’ll bring up money is if they don’t think you are offering enough value for what you charge. Be sure to exceed their expectations of what they are getting as part of their membership.

Motivation

Since they are already meeting with you, hopefully motivation is not going to be their objection. They are ready. While you are meeting with them take the time to really listen to them and what their motivation is. Use this throughout your meeting to show them you have a solution to what they are specifically looking for.

By addressing these four objections ahead of time, you’ll find the sales presentation will go much more smoothly. If they do bring up another objection, remember, if you fix it they will join. Show them a solution to their objection and change their life!

Rachel Cosgrove, 2012 IDEA Personal Trainer of the Year, co-owns and operates Results Fitness, located in Southern California, open since 2000. She has authored two best selling books, The Female Body Breakthrough and Drop Two Sizes published with Rodale and created the Drop Two Sizes DVD set. She lectures nationally and internationally on topics such as strength training, fat loss, business and nutrition. A consultant for Nike, she is also on the advisory board and is a columnist for Women's Health Magazine and has been featured in almost every fitness magazine on the market. She oversees a team of 20 who help her run the gym while she works full time coaching up-and-coming fitness professionals through ResultsFitnessUniversity.com, and www.resultsfitnessmentorship.com, a resource for trainers to join in on the mission of changing the way fitness is done. Rachel is also a AFS Educator with the Association of Fitness Studios and presenter at SUCCEED! the AFS Business Convention & Expo.