Entrepreneurs: Here’s How Every Rejection Brings You Closer To A Yes!

Nov 25, by Tanya Alvarez

For small business owners, “No!” is a powerful word, sometimes even more powerful than a Yes. The effect of this scary N word compounds like 50% more when it comes from a would-be-could-be customer. Having your proposal declined, your offer rejected, your product ignored can make you feel paralyzed; after all, by approaching your prospects you are making your ego vulnerable. A “No,” instantly makes you doubt your worth. It leaves you feeling so small…that all you want to do is shrivel up inside an invisibility cloak till that painful feeling dissipates. In extreme cases, small business owners develop a phobia of rejection and what ends up happening is they stop trying and putting themselves out there, and that’s when their downfall begins.

Well, Why Not?

But successful business owners know that every “No” is like a sculptor that’s chiseling away at the stone till they are left with the exact replica of their vision in real form. Every “No” is an opportunity to ask your prospect, “Well, why not?” and using that information you can carve your product, service, and your pitch to increase your chance at getting a “Yes” from your next prospect. It can be difficult to predict why a prospect does not want to give you their business. You can guess their reasons, but that will be just an assumption. If you treat your “lost customers” as valuable teachers then you will have no fear of making yourself vulnerable to hundreds and even thousands of possible customers.

Here is how Jason handles his “No’s”

Jason is an OwnersUP member who runs his own marketing agency. Pitching to new clients is part of his everyday grind, and like every entrepreneur he wants his agency to keep receiving fresh clients. One of the side effects of pitching so much is rejection, and Jason is now Okay with a No. Why? Because he has gained so much value from taking the rejection personally…. but personally he makes every “No” count by going the extra mile to ask his prospects why they chose to not move forward with his offer.

He does this by following up with them through an email. The one he uses is mentioned below, but note that as an OwnersUP, you get to access to a bank of response generating templates that have been vetted by our OwnerUP expert members.

Subject: Can I Ask a Quick Favor?

I’m working on improving my sales process by getting in touch with people who I met with recently. I wanted to get your feedback on how I can improve and what we can do better as a company. Do you have 10 minutes to talk?

If yes, let me know the best time that works for you Thanks! What to ask on the call

Once you have them on the phone, here are some questions you can ask:

• If this was a client who initiated the contact with your company first, ask them what made them interested in approaching your company. This can give you insight on if your brand’s value proposition is being reflected exactly as you intend it to, and what your customer’s initial expectations are from a company like yours.
• Get to the heart of the call. Ask why they are choosing not to move forward with you. The answer to this question will help you identify where exactly the weak links are in your sales cycle.
• Ask which competitors they are going to and why. This not only gives you a crystal clear list of your active competitors but it will also show what exactly they are doing better than you.
• Ask them how you can improve your process and offerings. Be ready for honest responses because people often give you the truth when they are leaving a brand or an offer.
• Close the call by asking if you can do anything to change their mind. Keep this question last because otherwise they’d think it’s just a disguised sales call and hang up. Besides, there is always a chance that a few of them will be willing to give you a try.

Treating your lost customers and prospects as teachers will lower your future customer attrition. To optimize a sales process you need to know where the profit leaking holes are, and asking your lost customers the reason for their exit is the most effective way to identify them.

If you want to access more power templates like the one above and join a network of like-minded entrepreneurs who want to grow fast and help each other flourish, then Join OwnersUp now. We are accepting new members for a limited time only, and will be happy to have you join us!