# Objections and procurement pressure: honest answers > "Too expensive", "we already have a provider", "just send a proposal" and a procurement request for 20% off and 60 days: clarify first, answer with facts, trade instead of giving in, and never bluff. - Course: [B2B Marketing and Sales: Win Your First Company Customers](https://productovi.com/courses/b2b-marketing-and-sales.md) - Module: Selling conversations - Lesson 19/32, ~23 min - Source: https://productovi.com/courses/b2b-marketing-and-sales/objections-and-procurement ## Four objections in one week **Marta:** Quite a week. Orchid's HR says 800 a lesson is too expensive. Cobalt says they already have a provider. Another company wrote "just send a proposal". And Veloria's procurement wants 20% off and 60 days to pay. **Sofia:** I've prepared counter-arguments for each. I'll win them one by one. **Alex Tutor:** That's the trap: arguing before you understand. A **sales objection** tells you what this deal is still missing for this buyer. First find out what is behind it. **Alex Tutor:** Two moves: ask what it is compared with or what is behind it, then answer with a fact or a trade, or say plainly that you are not the right fit. No arguing, no bluffing. > **Exercise:** A buyer says: "800 UAH a lesson is too expensive." What is the best first reply? ## "Too expensive" **Alex Tutor:** Orchid's HR answered the question: a freelance tutor they found charges less per lesson. **Sofia:** Then I tell her freelancers are unreliable. **Alex Tutor:** You can't know that about this one. Compare what the price includes instead: a tutor replaced within a week, lessons around their shifts, attendance reports for HR, data handled to IT's standards, one invoice a quarter. **Alex Tutor:** And if none of that matters to Orchid, say so: for a few people with flexible hours, a freelancer may truly fit better. An honest "we're not the best choice for this" builds trust for the next deal. > **Exercise:** Orchid's HR compares Klasna's 800 UAH a lesson with a cheaper freelance tutor. Which reply is honest and useful? ## "We have a provider" and "send a proposal" **Alex Tutor:** Cobalt's "we already have a provider" is useful information, not a wall. Ask what works with them, what doesn't, and when the contract ends. Never criticise the other school. **Alex Tutor:** Then offer something small that fits their contract: a sample lesson for one team, so they can compare when the decision comes. **Alex Tutor:** One tempting reply to Cobalt, true or false? > **Exercise:** **True or false:** when Cobalt says "we already have a provider", the strongest reply is to point out the weaknesses of their current school. **Sofia:** And "just send a proposal"? **Alex Tutor:** Often a polite way to end the call. Say yes, then ask two things: what should it help you decide, and who will read it? If they can't answer, it's a brochure, not a proposal. > **Exercise:** Match each objection with an honest first response. ## Procurement wants 20% and 60 days **Pavlo:** Bad news, sort of. Our procurement read your proposal. They want 20% off and 60-day payment terms, or they'll compare you with the other two offers. **Alex Tutor:** That's normal. **Procurement** is measured on better terms, so expect a request to trade, not a signature on the first quote. It isn't personal. **Alex Tutor:** First, read the request for what it is. > **Exercise:** Veloria's procurement asks for 20% off and 60-day terms, "or we'll compare you with the other two offers". What does this most likely mean? **Sofia:** I could say our director forbids discounts. Or that prices rise in January. **Alex Tutor:** Neither is true, so neither. Invented bosses and fake deadlines get found out, and then procurement distrusts every number you send. Start from the facts. **Marta:** Fact one: at 640 instead of 800, after the tutor's 430 and 31 for video and AI, we keep 179 a lesson instead of 339. Fact two: our standard is 30 days to pay. 60 days is an exception that Hanna, our head of finance, has to approve. I asked her, and she'll approve it for Veloria at the full price. > **Exercise:** With 20% off the 800 UAH price, how much contribution does Klasna keep per lesson? (Tutor 430 UAH, video and AI 31 UAH.) **Alex Tutor:** Now put that loss as a share of what we keep. > **Exercise:** At 800 UAH Klasna keeps **339 UAH** a lesson; at 20% off (640 UAH) it keeps **179 UAH**. By what percentage does Klasna's contribution per lesson fall? ## Trade, don't bluff **Alex Tutor:** So the answer is a **trade**: any concession comes with something in return. 60 days, yes: it's longer than our standard 30, but Hanna approves it at the full price. A lower price only for something that's worth it to Klasna. **Alex Tutor:** For example: a twelve-month commitment instead of a quarter, more learners, a quarter paid upfront, or permission to publish the results as a case study. **Marta:** And it's true that any change to price needs my approval. That one I'm happy for you to say, because it's real. **Sofia:** So: yes to 60 days, no to 20% for the same scope, and here's what we could do in exchange. > **Exercise:** Veloria's procurement wants 20% off and 60-day terms. The facts: Hanna, Klasna's head of finance, has approved 60 days for Veloria at the full price; any price change really does need approval from Marta, the head of Teams; Klasna has no plan to raise prices. Which replies are honest trades rather than bluffs or giveaways? Choose all that apply. ## Your turn: the reply to procurement **Pavlo:** Can you write the reply? I'll forward it to procurement as it is. **Alex Tutor:** Keep it calm and factual. Thank them, say what you accept, what you can't do for the same scope, and offer two trades. **Marta:** No numbers about our margins in it. That's our business, not theirs. **Sofia:** And no deadline that isn't real. > **Exercise:** Write the reply to Veloria's procurement (**5–8 sentences**), which Pavlo will forward. They ask for 20% off the 800 UAH price and 60-day payment terms. Facts: Klasna for Teams' standard is 30 days to pay, and Hanna, Klasna's head of finance, has approved 60 days for Veloria at the full price as an exception; Klasna cannot take 20% off for the same scope; any price change needs Marta's approval. Offer at least two trades. > **Key ideas** > > - A **sales objection** is information about what the deal is missing: ask what it is compared with, then answer with a fact or a trade, or say you are not the right fit. > - "Too expensive": ask compared with what, then show what the price includes. If you're not the right fit, say so. > - "We have a provider": ask what works, what doesn't and when the contract ends; never criticise the competitor. "Send a proposal": ask what it should help decide and who reads it. > - **Procurement** is paid to ask for better terms. Accept what you already offer, trade every other concession for something in return, and never bluff: no invented bosses, no fake deadlines. **Alex Tutor:** Next: a case. Cobalt's learning lead went quiet after the first call. You'll write the next three messages. - Previous lesson: [The demo and a mutual plan to close](https://productovi.com/courses/b2b-marketing-and-sales/demo-and-close-plan.md) - Next lesson: [Case: a stalled deal, write the next three messages](https://productovi.com/courses/b2b-marketing-and-sales/stalled-deal-case.md) --- Productovi Learning. Free, no sign-up needed to read.