Questions (That Work) to Understand Your Prospect's Money Objection

When they're waiting to hear about a financial package, that doesn't mean you just sit there and wait, too. Dig into what they're really thinking, Coach...here's how:

The scenario:

Your prospect has their offer, maybe their FAFSA numbers (or maybe not), but not their full scholarship and financial package from your campus.

In other words, there’s a long way to go when it comes to them feeling like they’re ready to give you a final answer. (And let’s be honest…even then, they may not end up being ready. But that’s another article for another day).

So while they’re waiting (and delaying, and listing excuses, and blaming their parents or their coach or your financial aid office) I’m here to suggest you proactively engage them in effective, but non-threatening, questioning. Why? Because I’d like to see you uncover some of their underlying thoughts and feelings on whether or not they’re really seriously considering you (because, surprise: they may not be).

If you have a prospect that fits the description of who I’ve described, ask them one of these questions. Or, as many as you think might apply. Remember, our goal here is to get them talking. So let’s go:

“What are your parents saying about money for college?”

Always, always, always start with the parents. They’re usually behind the instructions to wait to see what the offers are going to be, and without knowing what the behind-the-scenes instructions are for your prospect, it’s going to be very hard to adequately assess the right strategy to move forward with when it comes to the next step towards committing to your program.

“Besides money, what else are you still trying to figure out about us in order to make a decision?”

We need to make sure money isn’t the only thing their decision is hinging on.

Here’s a video outline of how to make sure it isn’t: