If a prospect says, “I want time to think it over,” you may be encountering concerns related to time. Resistance related to time is often referred to as the stall. A stall usually means the customer does not yet perceive the benefits of buying now. In most cases, the stall indicates that the prospect has both positive and negative feelings about your product. Consider using probing questions to determine the negative feelings: “Is it my company that concerns you?” “Do you have any concerns about our warranty program?”

It is all right to be persuasive if the prospect can truly benefit from buying now. If the price may soon rise, or if the item may not be available in the future, then you should provide this information. You must, however, present this information sincerely and accurately. It is never proper to distort the truth in the hope of getting the order.

Renewing a contract also calls for renegotiations. In these cases, be upfront and explain the benefits in precise terms concerning what additional values the new price will bring to the client. Sometimes it is advisable to offer a break in the payment schedule to overcome the client’s adverse feelings about the price hike.31 To enhance the relationship with long-term business partners, the seller sometimes has to look at the market to reevaluate what is really fair pricing and voluntarily renegotiate with the buyer to lower the price before the buyer asks for it.32