How to Handle Objections “I’m Just Looking”, “Not Interested”, “I Have an Agent”

When calling your leads, you are more than likely to gain objections from your leads, and learning how to handle them are definitely going to improve your results. The “I’m just looking” is the number one objection that you will encounter when calling your leads. Think of it as it’s just the most common reaction that we offer to anyone when they ask if we need any help. If you walk into a store, let’s say you’re going into Best Buy, they offer, “Is there anything I can assist you with?”, if you’re just browsing, you’re just looking. Now, if they approached you perhaps while you’re in a specific aisle pondering between this keyboard and that keyboard, and somebody came up and asked you that question, your answer may definitely differ. Just keep in mind that it is a common reaction that many of us do in various situations.

When you get an objection, such as, “I’m just looking,” continue asking questions about their timeline to get a better idea of what that approximate timeline and/or their situation may be behind it. For example, you can ask, “How long have you been looking for?” Some of them may give you time. “We’ve been looking for six months because… ” Some of them might just say, “Oh, we just went online. We just started.” You could also ask a follow-up question that says, “Do you have a future goal, perhaps later this year or next year, to make a move?” That question often, if they don’t give you much information that first question, the second question, they often open up a little bit.

Now, one very powerful open-ended question that you could ask your lead is, “What has to happen to make a move possible for you?” often, if you ask that question, and depending on your lead and how talkable and friendly they are, they may actually give you so much information in just that one question. Again, all of that information is going to allow you to leverage your follow-ups in the leads and really offer solutions. A “just looking” lead does not mean that they are not looking to buy, as once you ask that question, you’ll actually find out that many of them actually have timelines that are approaching quite soon. Some may be three to six months out from making a move, and most definitely somebody that’s three months out, that’s more of an active buyer versus somebody that’s just researching. Right now they’re just looking, because to them, they’re not out physically looking at houses, they’re just looking at them online.

Now, the “I have an agent” is the number two most objection that you will encounter. This one here is [inaudible 00:03:03]. Definitely, you guys have rules and obligations that you must follow, but here’s a tidbit of advice. Again, you’re going to want to continue asking questions. “How long have you been working with your agent?” or “I work with several realtors in this area. Who are you working with?” Sometimes asking a question as simple as that will reveal the honesty behind that response. You can tell right away if they were being honest or if they kind of just made that up.

Now, keep in mind that the average buyer or individual knows two to 10 agents. It doesn’t mean that they’re actually working with anyone. It’s just, it’s easy for them to say, “Oh, I have an agent.” It’s also the fastest tactic to get you off the phone. So, keep that in mind that we all do it in different scenarios. For example, if somebody calls me about selling me something for my home, I tell them I just got laid off. That call ends pretty quickly. Again, we all have different tactics. If these buyers are going to register, they learned that this is a tactic to get you off of the phone.

Again, you can educate, you can ask more questions, and what I encourage that you do in your system when it comes to leads that say they have an agent is tag them that they’re a future opportunity, they have an agent, and check in on them every 30 days, as long as they’ve been active in the last 30 days. Your check-ins again, we’re never selling them. We’re just making sure everything’s okay with their home search and they’re not sitting there with any questions that are going unanswered. You’d be surprised at how many leads start actually interacting with you and aren’t actually committed with an agent and/or if they did have an agent, you’re often checking in with them more than their so-called agent maybe, but again, you’re not pursuing them for the sale. You’re just doing your customer service, making sure everything with their home search is still going well.

Now below this, we will have some clips from the Beverly live dial where we have encountered various objections on calls and how those are handled. You can watch, listen, replicate, and mimic the next time that you encounter such objections on your calls with your leads.

Check all scenarios here: https://agentlocator.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360044301191-Lead-Objection-Just-Looking-Conversations