Objections aren’t roadblocks, they’re invitations to listen better. Active listening can turn hesitation into trust and objections into closed deals. 

This post breaks down how active listening helps sales professionals build rapport, uncover hidden concerns, and improve outcomes using proven techniques.

Outline:

• 4 Active Listening Techniques That Move Deals Forward
• 3 Active Listening Steps for Local Business Sales
• How to Measure If Your Listening is Working
• Conclusion
• FAQs

4 Active Listening Techniques That Help You Close More Deals

1. Read the Prospect's Personality

One of the biggest mistakes reps make? Treating every prospect the same way.

That's where frameworks like DISC come in handy. DISC breaks down people into four main styles: Dominant, Influencer, Steady, and Conscientious.

By really paying attention to how someone talks (their tone, pace, and choice of words), you can get a pretty good sense of their style and adjust your approach.

• Dominant types want you to get straight to the point.
• Influencers love energy and building a little rapport.
• Steady types appreciate a calm, reassuring tone.
• Conscientious folks want details and logical steps.

Pro tip: Even your follow-up should match their vibe. A Dominant prospect? Send a quick, action-focused recap. A Steady prospect? A more thoughtful, detailed email will go a long way.

"I've made the mistake of jumping into calls and just assuming this individual is just like me, and you almost get too salesy. Definitely focus on active listening.” 

2. Mirror and Rephrase What the Prospect Says

When a prospect shares a concern, don't rush to solve it right away. First, echo back what they said in your own words. This shows them you're listening, not just waiting for your turn to talk.

Mirroring builds instant trust because it makes people feel heard. It’s a small thing that can make a huge difference in whether they open up or stay guarded.

After you mirror, follow up with an open-ended question.

"How does that affect your budget?"
"Can you tell me more about how that’s impacting your team?"

This invites them to dig deeper into their real concerns, and the more they share, the better positioned you are to tailor your solution around what matters to them.

3. Use Silence to Encourage Real Dialogue

When I first started making sales calls, I felt the need to fill every single silence. If there was even a two-second pause, I'd jump in and start talking. Big mistake.

The truth is, silence is your secret weapon. When you pause, just for 5 to 10 seconds after a prospect finishes speaking, it gives them space to keep sharing. And most of the time, they do.

That extra pause often leads to deeper insights: more details about their situation, hidden objections they hadn’t mentioned yet, or concerns they hadn’t fully articulated.

If it feels awkward, that’s normal. Get comfortable with it. Silence signals that you’re giving them the floor—and it builds trust faster than you think.

4. Pick Up on Body Language and Tone

Prospects don't always tell you exactly what's wrong, but their body language usually does.

Here’s what to watch for during conversations:

• Crossed arms? That's often a sign of resistance. Try asking something like, "What concerns should we tackle first?" to open them up.
• Limited eye contact? They might be feeling skeptical. Share a relatable success story to build trust and show you're credible.
• Checking the time? They're worried about how long this will take. Focus on clear, quick solutions that respect their time.

Also, listen for vocal shifts—if their tone or pacing changes, it usually signals hesitation or doubt.

A good habit: practice doubling your listening time compared to your speaking time during calls. The more you notice, the better you’ll respond.

3 Active Listening Steps for Local Business Sales

1. Preparing Before Outreach

Before sending emails, making calls, or stopping by in person, it’s crucial to know who you're reaching out to. 

Instead of guessing, use tools like Resquared to build highly targeted prospect lists and launch personalized campaigns at scale with AI.

Each profile gives you key details like:

• Business Location
• Online Presence
• Business Description and Categories
• Staff Information, and more

This way, you can focus your energy on following up with hot leads (the businesses showing interest), making your conversations more effective.

2. Live Conversation: Using the LAER Framework

The LAER method (Listen, Acknowledge, Explore, Respond) is especially effective when speaking with small business owners.

• Listen: Pay attention to what’s said and unsaid.
• Acknowledge: Reflect their concerns to them.
• Explore: Ask clarifying questions to uncover needs.
• Respond: Offer solutions that directly match what they’ve shared.

Example: "You mentioned timeline concerns—let’s tackle those first. We have clients who had similar hesitations and saw results within two weeks".

‍Watch our video: Tips for Sales People, From a Small Business Owner

3. Turning Insights into Solutions

Active listening only works if you act on what you hear:

• Document pain points during the conversation.
• Connect those points to features in your product.
• Send a recap email confirming next steps and offering tailored recommendations.

How to Measure If Your Listening is Helping Handle Objections

Objection Resolution Rate

Your team should aim to resolve at least 80% of objections during conversations. Any new objections that come up should be documented and added to your sales playbook for future training. 

This ensures your process continually evolves and fewer objections fall through the cracks over time.

Prospect Talk Time

Prospects should be speaking for at least 70% of the conversation. 

This shows the focus remains on their needs, challenges, and goals, rather than the sales rep dominating the discussion with pitches.

Customer Understanding Score

Regularly assess how well prospects feel heard and understood, either through conversation reviews, internal scoring systems, or post-call surveys. 

Higher understanding scores lead to faster sales cycles and increased deal closing rates.

Sentiment Progression

Monitor how the prospect’s tone, energy, and openness shift throughout the conversation. 

A positive sentiment progression (meaning they sound more relaxed, collaborative, or engaged as the call progresses) often signals growing trust and stronger buying intent.

You can use tools like Fathom to capture meeting notes and track sentiment during conversations. 

We use it on our sales team, and we also have a property AI that gives a sales score based on how well our team addresses the prospect’s pain points.

Conclusion

Active listening is one of the most underrated but effective sales skills, especially when you're working with small and local businesses.

When paired with tools like Fathom and Resquared, listening becomes more measurable, coachable, and impactful.

By treating objections as an opportunity to learn (not defend), you’ll build trust, shorten your sales cycle, and close more deals.

Quick Recap: Signs You’re Actively Listening Well

💬 Prospect talks 70% of the time
🪞 You mirror key phrases and ask follow-up questions
🧑‍💼 Tone and body language become more positive as the call goes on

FAQs

What’s the best way to handle objections?

One of the most effective methods is using the LAER framework: Listen, Acknowledge, Explore, Respond.

Instead of rushing to pitch your solution, LAER forces you to slow down, understand the full context, and guide the conversation toward real resolution.

Here’s how to put it into practice:

• Listen: Stay fully present and avoid interrupting.
• Acknowledge: Reflect what you heard (“Sounds like pricing is a big concern for you.”).
• Explore: Ask a thoughtful question to get more context (“Can you tell me more about your budget range?”).
• Respond: Offer a solution that directly addresses what they shared (if you have one).

When reps use LAER consistently, they avoid jumping to conclusions, and that makes prospects feel understood and respected, which lowers resistance.

How does active listening improve sales performance?

Active listening isn’t just a “soft skill”—it’s a performance booster.

• It uncovers hidden objections early (before they kill the deal later).
• It reduces the number of follow-up calls needed, speeding up your sales cycle.
• It builds credibility and trust because prospects feel you’re there to solve their problems, not just sell.

If you're looking to close deals faster and have fewer "maybe later" answers, active listening is one of the highest-ROI skills you can master.

What tools help track active listening?

Tracking active listening can sound tricky, but some great tools make it easier:

• CRMs (like Salesforce, HubSpot) help you tag common objections and review patterns across your deals.
• Fathom automatically records and summarizes key points from your meetings, highlighting areas where objections were raised or sentiment changed.
• Manual tracking: Even simple call review checklists or conversation scorecards can be powerful when you're just starting.

By reviewing conversation data, like how much the prospect talked, what objections came up, or how sentiment shifted, you can improve based on real conversations, not guesses.