1. Sales Readiness Series
Ford EBC
7/21/ :23 AM
Microsoft 365 Business
Sales Readiness Series
Hi and welcome to the Microsoft 365 Business Sales Readiness series. In this video Gabe and I are going to help you identify and overcome common sales objections that may come up when selling Microsoft 365 Business.
Microsoft 365 Business brings together productivity, device management, and data protection into a single product and provides additional IT management benefits such as an easier, a more consistent deployment and a single administrative console. Because this product is new in the market, we’ve heard a bunch of feedback from customers and partners about their objections and considerations for adoption of Microsoft 365 Business.
We’ll take you through the top 5 objections that we’ve been hearing and tackle them head-on. Let’s get going.
Handling Objections

2. “I’m happy with my current Office 365 plan.”
7/21/ :23 AM
“I’m happy with my current Office 365 plan.”
If your customer is saying that they are happy with their current Office 365 plan and don't need Microsoft 365 Business, then they may not understand the product fully.
Taking your company to the cloud can optimize productivity, mobility, and collaboration
Reduces costs of managing IT by reducing or eliminating on-prem architecture.
Office 365 is just a component of the larger Microsoft Business platform
By moving to the larger product, this will allow their company to:
Manage all employee devices from one location
Clear data off PCs or mobile devices that get lost or stolen
Deploy Office apps to new devices without having to touch the device
The first one we heard from many customers and partners is that customers are saying that they are happy where they stand today –meaning that they are happy with their current Office 365 plan – and don’t need Microsoft 365.
They may already be an Office 365 customer and happy with the service they are using and not interested in exploring what Microsoft 365 Business could offer. From their perspective, why should they fix something that isn’t broken?
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This is probably just a misalignment in their understanding of either where they stand with their Office 365 plan, or with the features that Microsoft 365 Business can provide.
Microsoft 365 Business is all about taking your company to the cloud to optimize productivity, mobility and collaboration with a layer of protection to keep your company data your own. It also helps reduce their overall cost of managing IT by reducing or eliminating their on-prem infrastructure.
Now, Office 365 is a component of the larger Microsoft 365 Business solution, so moving to this new product doesn’t change how they work– but the features it delivers will change things. This product brings them the ability to manage all their employees’ devices from one location; to clear data off PCs and mobile devices that get lost or stolen; and even to deploy the Office apps to new devices without even having to have physically in front of them.
Customers should leave your conversation understanding that while they have a great productivity solution with Office 365 – they only get a portion of the benefit an organization gets by moving to Microsoft 365 Business.
© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

3. 7/21/ :23 AM
“I don’t trust the cloud.” OR “I’m already comfortable with my IT solution.”
Many small business’ may not be aware that their company information could be at risk, or may even fear taking their data off-prem and moving it into the cloud.
Microsoft 365 Business gives you enterprise-level security all the time, so you know your data is safe and secure
40+ years of experience with enterprise solutions means you can be assured your company data is safe
Over 85% of Fortune 500 companies trust Microsoft with their company data
Microsoft offers full transparency about the location of data and who has access to it. Visit microsoft.com/TrustCenter for more info.
Your customer’s data on mobile devices and PCs is always safe
Microsoft 365 Business gives you the ability to remove your company data from PCs that are lost or stolen
Allows you to offboard employees easily by removing sensitive data from their machines remotely
Set consistent security configurations across mobile devices and PCs
Data security is obviously a huge deal and many small business owners are comfortable with their IT solutions as long as they are not a target any kind of cyber-attack--they may not even be aware that they’ve been attacked. On the other hand, moving all a company’s data from on-premises solutions to the Cloud and making it available to employees anywhere might raise some concerns.
Talk to us about how we can tackle this objection.
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Security and Data protection is one of the key elements of Microsoft 365 Business – its enterprise-level security policies are working in the background all the time, so you and your customers don’t have to worry about it. Your data is safe and secure whether it’s on an employee’s personal device or stored in OneDrive for Business.
Microsoft 365 Business gives your business the ability to remove your company’s data from either an employee-owned device or a company-owned device if the device is lost or stolen, or if an employee leaves your organization. Microsoft 365 Business also gives your organization the ability to set consistent security configuration profiles across mobile devices and PCs.
With 40 years of experience building solutions for the enterprise and over 85% of the Fortune 500 entrusting the Microsoft cloud with their data, you can be assured that your company’s data is safe. Microsoft provides best-in-class data protection, privacy, and security through access control, encryption, and strong authentication. Microsoft also offers full transparency about the location of customer data, who has access to it, and under what circumstances. You can learn more about this by vising our Trust Center at microsoft.com/TrustCenter
© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

4. “I’m already on Windows 10 Pro – why would I pay for it again?”
7/21/ :23 AM
“I’m already on Windows 10 Pro – why would I pay for it again?”
It is an important distinction to make between Windows 10 Pro and Windows 10 Business.
Windows 10 Pro is an operating system for individual devices, while Windows 10 Business is a suite of cloud-based services.
These services and device management capabilities compliment Windows 10 Pro, but don’t replace it.
Windows 7/8/8.1 Pro customers can get an upgrade to Windows 10 Pro with Windows 10 Business that comes with Microsoft 365 Business
Windows 10 Business adds a new suite of features
Enable centralized management and security controls
Ease deployments to new devices by using Windows AutoPilot
this third objection is the result of a common and easily remedied misunderstanding. Customers who may already be on Windows 10 Pro might feel like they are paying for Windows 10 twice. That that is not the case. While Windows 7/8/8.1 Pro customers can get an upgrade to Windows 10 Pro with Microsoft 365 Business, it’s additional functionality called Windows 10 Business that provides the security and management controls the business needs to protect their data and devices.
It is an important distinction to make between Windows 10 Pro and Windows 10 Business to your customer.
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While Windows 10 Pro is an operating system used on their employee’s individual devices, Windows 10 Business is a suite of cloud-based services and device management capabilities that complements Windows 10 Pro. This product adds new features that enable centralized management and security controls, as well as ease of deployment to new devices through Windows AutoPilot.
So if your customer already has Windows 10 Pro, let them know that they’re actually in better shape for the upgrade to Microsoft 365 Business, as it will add services that seamlessly integrate with the platform they’re already used to.
© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

5. “My organization just isn’t ready to upgrade to Windows 10.”
7/21/ :23 AM
“My organization just isn’t ready to upgrade to Windows 10.”
It’s okay if your customer isn’t ready to make the jump to Windows 10 Pro, but we think it creates a much better path for our customers if they adopt.
Windows 10 Pro is worth the upgrade for it’s security additions alone
This is the most secure Windows ever, and can help protect their businesses from ever-present threats
99% of apps are Windows 10 compatible and your customers can do an in-place upgrade in most instances
You don’t have to pay twice for Windows 10 Pro if you move to Microsoft 365 Business
If your customers have a licensed copy of a Pro version of Windows, then Microsoft 365 Business provides a upgrade
Windows 10 Pro is a prerequisite of deploying Windows 10 Business
This is the time to make the benefits of Microsoft 365 Business clear by highlighting the features that would benefit your customer the most
If there is still resistance, consider revisiting the Office 365 plans and talk about gradually moving your customer to the cloud.
another key objection that surrounds Windows 10 that we’ve heard is that customers may feel they aren’t ready to upgrade to Windows 10. We heard this a lot and know that there may be some resistance.
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If your customer isn’t ready for Windows 10, that is okay. But we do believe there is a better path for our customers by adopting Windows 10. It is the most secure Windows ever and the benefits we are bringing to customers to protect them from threats are well worth the upgrade. We know that over 99% of apps are Windows 10 compatible and customers can do an in-place upgrade in most instances.
It is also worth noting that some customers might be concerned that they have to pay to upgrade to Windows 10. If your customer has devices that are licensed for a Pro version of Windows, Microsoft 365 Business provides an upgrade benefit to Windows 10 which is the prerequisite for deploying Windows 10 Business. Make the benefits of Windows 10 Business as clear as possible by highlighting the features or services that would benefit your customer the most.
If Windows 10 Pro deployment remains a sticking point and your customer has requirements that make the move from their on-premises solutions unrealistic you may need to revisit Office 365 plans or look at Microsoft 365 Enterprise and talk to your customer about gradually moving their on-premises systems to the cloud. Stay in touch with them, and keep the conversation open.
© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

6. 7/21/ :23 AM
“I’ve recently made a large deployment, and I don’t want to do it all again.”
Deployments can be huge investments of time and resources. Make sure these customers know the benefits and features of Microsoft 365 Business. This way they will be willing to make the commitment.
Microsoft 365 Business can seem like a big investment, but they get a lot for their money
Customers need to understand the features and benefits that they would bring to their business if they shift to Microsoft 365
For new customers:
They will be primed and ready for the deployment costs already
They also may be in a better state to fully move their business to the cloud
For existing customers:
Use our targeting guidance from the Licensing video to make sure they are the right fit
Look for compelling events that might drive them to make the decision
The cost of deployment may not actually be that high, and you could often mitigate the cost by using funds that would otherwise be spent on hardware upgrade like server expansions, and put that towards the migration to the cloud
our last objection has to do with cost, not subscription cost… but the cost of deployment. Deployments can be huge investments in time and resources – some customers think that completing a second deployment is a waste of money after they have already deployed Office 365 once. So why should they go through the hassle again?
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While Microsoft 365 Business can seem like a big investment for some SMB customers, they get a lot for their money. Make sure that your customer understands the features and benefits that are being brought to their business with their shift to Microsoft 365.
My guidance to everyone is to first target new customers. They are primed and ready for that deployment cost and they may be in a better state to fully move their business to the cloud.
For existing customers, use our targeting guidance that we talked about in the licensing video to make sure that they are a right fit. You’ll want to look at some of those compelling events like a hardware refresh. The cost of deployment may not actually be that high, but if you can offset that cost by taking the money that would be slated for a new server and allocating it to the deployment of Microsoft 365.
© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.

7. 7/21/ :23 AM
Next steps
Review this video to refresh you on the concepts of each objection  
Perfect your pitch
Keep practicing and reviewing this information to gain confidence 
© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, IMPLIED OR STATUTORY, AS TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PRESENTATION.