For red herrings: Pause, Acknowledge, Ignore the distraction, Steer back to what matters.
Pais Framework
Core Principle
Blount's PAIS Framework handles red herring objections -- the distractions prospects throw out that aren't their real concern. Pause to avoid reacting, Acknowledge so they feel heard, Ignore the actual red herring, and Steer the conversation back to the real issue or next step.
Step-by-Step Execution
Example in Action
You've been having a great conversation about their lead gen problem. Suddenly: Prospect: You know, I just read an article about how AI is going to replace all marketing software. Is your product going to be obsolete in 2 years? [This is a red herring -- they're deflecting from making a decision.] You: [Pause] That's an interesting point. [Acknowledge] Going back to what you mentioned earlier about losing 30% of your leads to slow follow-up [Steer] -- you said that's costing you around $15K a month. If we could solve that in the next 30 days, how would that change things for your Q2 targets? Prospect: I mean, that would be huge for Q2. You: Then let's focus on that. [Continue forward]
Practice this technique with an AI-powered roleplay scenario.