Advice for signing reluctant advertisers on the benefits of your deals program

In the sales process, dealing with objections is a common occurrence. Ideally, the more objections you hear, the better you will be at countering them. Deals programs are still relatively new and sometimes the concept can be difficult for advertisers to understand. The more knowledgeable you are about your market and program the better you will do. It’s your job to inform the advertiser, be honest and genuinely concerned that they have a positive experience with your program. My personal motto for approaching advertisers with objections is to find out their real issue and sell them the solution.

Before actually approaching an advertiser it’s advantageous for you to do some research. Search the name of the advertiser online and add in the phrase “deal” or look up similar deals in surrounding markets that pertain to your advertiser. Look at their Facebook site, see how many “likes” they have and check to see if they have a website already. The more information you have in your arsenal, the better you’ll be able to handle objections they throw your way. Below I listed a few of the more common objections I have heard and how I counter them.

1. “I’ve done one of those “deals” programs before and I’ll never do another one!”
   I totally understand, sometimes deals just don’t go the way you plan. Do you mind if I ask exactly what happened to make you not want to do another one so that I make sure that we don’t repeat that incident? Our deals are structured so they benefit both the advertiser and our program. It may interest you to know that we are learning more advantageous ways to setup our deals so that our advertisers get a better response and increase their yearly ROI. I have to meet with another client near you do you mind if I dropped off some information to you?




2. “Is that like the “Groupon thing” where I have to give 75% of my money away because I’m not interested in that.”
   I understand your point, but discounting your service is not the main objective of this program. Do you mind if I asked if you knew the value of each customer that walks through your door? I only ask because our deals program is a promotions opportunity that our advertisers take advantage of to bring in more customers, and in turn, more money to their establishments. The discount is simply a one-time offer that brings in new faces that could potentially turn into loyal customers. It may interest you to know that advertisers that have participated in our deals program see a retention rate (new loyal customers) of approximately 20%. This increased their yearly customer base and ultimately increased the revenue for their business.




3. “I just did a deal program last month and I’m already swamped.”
   I completely understand and the last thing I want is to do is occupy even more of your time. Do you mind if I followed up with you in about two months? We really do provide great promotional value for advertisers who participate in our deals program. Perhaps it would be more appropriate to schedule your deal closer to a slower time of the year for your business.

..and if your advertiser still won’t sign up?

When your advertiser is skeptical, the best approach is plain and simple: ask them why. Usually it is because they’ve read a negative article on deals, had a bad experience or their colleagues advised against it. It is important for you to pinpoint the main issue and sell the advertiser the solution.

Dealing with an advertiser who just won’t sign up for your deals program can be tricky. You don’t want to give up, yet you should be careful not to be overbearing. Remember that your deals program is not only a privilege, but an extremely beneficial media venue that this particular advertiser hasn’t seen the value in yet.

You are providing advertisers with an avenue to gain new, loyal customers. You shouldn’t be marketing, “I want and need you to be in my deals program”, but rather “I’m offering you the opportunity to be featured in my deals program.”