Sales Secrets (20): Yes But vs. Yes And

Hi,

All of your offers may not have been accepted. Your proposals may at times be rejected. Your ideas may sometimes be not bought. And, you may hear a contradiction that may be totally wrong. Then how do you respond? With a reactive counter 'NO?' that may make a customer feel negated and proven wrong. Or an amicable 'YES?" which again means acceptance of something that is not correct at all? Is there a way out?

Yes! That is the time when you can use the 'YES.....But' technique. When the customer contradicts you with a wrong statement, you may say.."Yes that is how it generally appears at a first glance, but it is actually...." This is good technique that helps in avoiding the customer getting a feeling of proven wrong. It shows that you respect his ideas and views and that you are only adding to his knowledge of the product or service you are offering. However it still leaves some opportunity for the customer feel negated. 

So, still better than the 'Yes, But...' technique is the 'Yes, And....' technique. Here the word 'but' is replaced by the word 'and." Your response begins with YES followed by an AND, and not a BUT. There is a difference in the way the customer feels when he hears the words 'but' and 'and....' When you say "Yes, that is how it generally appears at a first glance, and most people understand it the same way. And, when you look deeper, you will find....," it makes customers feel better. 

You can avoid a lot of arguments and also handle the objections a lot better with the "Yes, And..' technique. Just try it out in your day-to-day work. It helps.

To your sales success,

With love

Siva
PS; Pls do post your views on this 'Yes, And...' approach as compared with the "Yes, But..." & 'No, But..' methods.