5 Reasons Why Prospects Don’t Buy From You

It doesn’t matter how good you are at selling, your close rate will never be 100%. But if you’re consistently losing deals you should have won, there’s probably a reason -- if not several.
Fortunately, once you diagnose the cause, you can improve your process, and ultimately, your results.

The 5 Major Reasons Prospects Don't Buy

1) You’re trying to sell to everyone

What this sounds like: “I’m not sure my company really needs [product].”

A good sales pipeline is about quality, not quantity. If your prospects aren’t buying from you, reevaluate the quality of your opportunities. Have they been carefully targeted? Do you know why they’re good fits? Or are you simply trying to sell to anyone who shows the slightest bit of interest in your product?
While it might seem counterintuitive to walk away from anyone, narrowing your focus to the most qualified prospects will make you more successful. Not only are these buyers far likelier to pull the trigger, you’ll have also more time to spend on each one -- letting you personalize your outreach and develop compelling business cases.

2) You’re driving customers away

What this sounds like: “I’m not interested; please stop contacting me.”

There’s a reason most people never answer calls from unknown numbers anymore: They don’t want to be sold to. And if reps continue to use email as a spamming tool -- rather than a means of genuinely connecting with and helping prospects -- messages from strangers will begin to go unanswered as well. (Even more so than right now.)
Dial back the fake enthusiasm. Stop pestering your prospects. Instead, act like yourself and provide real value. It might be helpful to envision yourself as a consultant rather than a salesperson. You should also learn as much as possible about your prospects so you don’t waste their time asking for basic information like how large their company is and what they sell.

3) You’re not surfacing objections

What this sounds like: “Actually, X is a pretty big concern for us, so I think we’re going to [go with Y competitor, pass].”

I get it: Digging for objections is scary. Once you acknowledge them, they’re out there -- concrete reasons the prospect shouldn’t buy. But the reality is, objections exist whether or not you hear them … and the best (really the only) time to resolve those concerns is in the beginning and middle stages of the sales process, while the buyer’s mind is still open.
To learn what’s keeping your prospect back from purchasing right this second, ask:

• “If this didn’t go through, what would the reason be?”
• “We’ve talked about why you like [product] -- can we spend some time on what you don’t like?”
• “It’s very normal to have some concerns about this type of purchase. Are you open to sharing yours with me, if you have them?”
• “We’ve discussed ‘pros.’ What’s on the ‘cons’ side of the list for you?”

4) You’re not creating urgency

What this sounds like: “Maybe next [quarter, year].”

Your product may be your primary focus, but to your prospect, it’s just another thing fighting for their attention. Without a reason to buy now rather than later, the deal is likely to die on the vine. Want it to come to fruition? Then ask probing questions that reveal why the buyer’s business or well-being somehow hinges on having the product.
Here are five examples:

• “What happens if you don’t solve this problem by [X date]?”
• “Describe the consequences of missing [Y goal].”
• “Can you explain what’s riding on [Z strategy]?”
• “Is [fixing, addressing, improving] this a priority right now? Where would you say it falls on your list of priorities?”
• “How long has this been an issue? Why are you focusing on it now?”

5) You don’t want the prospect feel safe

What this sounds like: “I’m not sure we’re ready for this yet.”

No one wants to put their neck on the line for something they’re not 100% confident about. This fact kills many deals; after all, think about what would happen to your prospect if they advocated for your product, successfully got the budget, led a time- and resource-intensive implementation initiative -- and then the solution was ineffective, or worse, completely flopped.
They might not be out of a job, but their internal reputation would definitely suffer.
That’s why part of your job involves making them feel comfortable with the investment and the risks involved. You can do this in several ways.
First, if your company offers any purchase protection terms -- like full refunds, a trial period, or your money back if you don’t see certain results -- make sure to highlight those throughout your conversations.
You should also establish credibility by:

• Referring to current customers -- the more well-known, the better
• Sending case studies and testimonials to your prospect
• Offering to connect them with references
• Sharing positive online reviews you’ve gotten
• Bringing up any awards or industry honors your product or company has received

Learning it's not them, it's you, is never fun. But now that you've figured out what's going wrong, you can take the appropriate steps.

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