We Tried Something Like This Before
A previous failure can create caution, but it can also reveal exactly what the new solution must do differently.
Someone already sold them this once and it failed. That is not paranoia, it is experience, and it is a gift - they are telling you what will kill the deal if you repeat it.
What they say
- “We tried this before and it didn't work”
- “The last vendor burned us”
- “We've been down this road”
What's actually underneath it
Real scar tissue - the risk is reputational, not financial
The failure may have been execution, not the product
They are telling you in advance what will kill this deal
The ten questions that open it up
Ask one. Then stop talking. The answer is worth more than anything you were about to say.
- 1.“What happened the last time you tried to solve this?”
- 2.“What do you believe caused that effort to fail?”
- 3.“Was the problem the strategy, the provider, the execution, or the internal follow-through?”
- 4.“What did that experience teach you?”
- 5.“What would have to be different this time?”
- 6.“Did the previous solution fail completely, or did parts of it work?”
- 7.“How has that experience affected your willingness to try again?”
- 8.“If you do nothing because the first attempt failed, where does that leave you?”
- 9.“What safeguards would help you avoid repeating the same mistake?”
- 10.“If we could clearly demonstrate why this approach is different, would you be open to examining it?”
The trap
Promising "we're different" without naming the mechanism that makes it true.
Agree with the caution. Do not defend an industry, and do not claim to be different without naming the mechanism that makes it true.
Related objections
Do not minimize disruption. Compare the temporary inconvenience of change with the permanent cost of dysfunction.
A contract affects timing, but it does not prevent planning or evaluating alternatives.
Do not tell the buyer what should matter. Help them compare this issue with the priorities already competing for attention.
Try it live
Paste the objection you actually got this week and get the question to ask back.
Reverse your objection