"It's more than we expected"

The price objection that isn't about price. Answer it with an ROI case and you will lose politely.

You are

An account executive at a compliance-automation vendor. You sent pricing on Friday for a 60-seat deployment at 84,000 a year.

The situation

Michael Brandt, Director of Risk at Ashcombe Financial, asked for a call this morning. His email said only: 'Got the pricing — it's a lot more than we expected. Can we talk?'

What you want out of it

Find out what is actually behind the objection before you answer it, then respond to the real thing.

What you already know

• — Quoted 84,000/year for 60 seats.
• — He has been engaged for six weeks and brought two colleagues to the last call.
• — You have not discussed budget explicitly at any point.

4 things they won't volunteer, 2 of them buried.