OBJECTION HANDLING
"I've Tried This Before": 5 Things to Say
November 3, 2026 · 2 MIN READ · THE DRILLO TEAM
The buyer says they had a trainer last year and saw no change. They do not want to hear you say your program is different. That pitch sounds like every other person who promised results. They need a real reason to believe this time is different, not a promise that it will be. Here are five things to say instead, in the order you would use them.
1. Say you get it, and stop there
The buyer is cautious because they spent money on an old trainer and saw no results. That caution is a reasonable response to what happened. Acknowledge their feeling without adding a "but" to the end of your sentence. Let the words land before you move forward.
That makes sense. If I'd spent money on something and didn't see results, I'd be cautious too.
2. Ask what exactly didn't work
Find out exactly what went wrong with their last trainer. Their answer shows where your plan is different or reveals an expectation problem you can fix. You stop guessing and start knowing.
What was it about that experience that didn't work?
The questions that get the whole story out of a buyer →
3. Refuse to recommend anything yet
Hold the plan back until they have told you why the last trainer failed them. Your refusal to offer a plan right now shows them your process is different. This builds trust before you talk about your program.
I'd want to understand that before I recommended anything. Tell me what happened.
4. Honor the decision they made back then
The buyer is braced for you to treat last year as proof they cannot do this. Their instinct to hire a trainer was correct even if the result was poor. A person whose past attempt is respected can look at a new one.
Getting a trainer last year was the right call. It didn't get finished, and that's worth understanding, because the instinct was correct.
5. Ask before you show the difference
You know what failed in their last program. Name the one honest thing you will do differently about that exact failure. Ask permission to show the difference before you start your pitch. This makes the buyer listen on purpose instead of waiting for you to finish.
If I could show you exactly how we'd approach this differently, would you be open to hearing it?
The one story that rebuilds belief: social proof from somebody like them →
The honest version is the one that works
Using a past failure against the buyer makes them the reason it failed. They will defend their choice or leave your desk. The honest version names one specific thing you can do differently about what they told you.
Say it before you need it
Your instinct to defend yourself is faster than any of these lines because you have run it for years. These new lines only become the automatic ones after you have said them out loud. Drillo is a pocket sales trainer app where you drill one sales moment at a time and roleplay the conversation against an AI buyer who hesitates like a real one. Drillo is live on Google Play. Run your first drill tonight, because the only thing that changes what you say in that moment is having said it before.
Not sure this is the objection that costs you most? The free Deal Diagnostic, 10 questions →