How to Handle:
“We're too small for this”
The prospect believes your solution is designed for larger organizations and wouldn't be appropriate or cost-effective for their size. This may reflect pricing concerns, feature complexity, or a perception that your target market is enterprise.
Why Prospects Say This
Small companies often get burned by enterprise software that's too complex, expensive, or requires resources they don't have. They may be projecting past experiences onto you, or you may genuinely be targeting larger customers than they represent.
Best Responses
The Right-Size Assurance
“I appreciate you raising that. Actually, companies your size are right in our sweet spot. We specifically designed [our entry tier/our SMB plan] for teams that need the capabilities without the enterprise complexity. What size-related concerns do you have?”
Why It Works
Directly addresses the concern and positions your offering as size-appropriate.
Best For
When you genuinely serve their segment
The Growing Into It Angle
“You're at an interesting stage. Many of our customers started at your size and grew with us. Starting now means you build the right foundation before you scale—instead of scrambling to fix things later. What's your growth trajectory looking like?”
Why It Works
Reframes their size as an opportunity. Appeals to growth ambitions.
Best For
Growth-stage companies, startups
The Efficiency Argument
“Sometimes it's actually the smaller teams that benefit most. You don't have spare people to throw at manual processes—you need efficiency more than anyone. How much of your team's time goes to [manual task] that could be automated?”
Why It Works
Flips the script—small teams need efficiency tools even more.
Best For
Productivity tools, automation solutions
The Customer Story
“I hear that concern. Let me share an example: [similar-sized company] thought the same thing initially. They started with our basic plan and within 6 months had freed up enough time to [specific outcome]. Would you like to hear more about their experience?”
Why It Works
Social proof from similar companies builds confidence.
Best For
When you have relevant small company case studies
Do's and Don'ts
Do This
- Show you have offerings appropriate for their size
- Share case studies from similar-sized companies
- Position them for growth—start now, scale later
- Emphasize efficiency benefits that help small teams most
- Discuss flexible pricing that works for their stage
Don't Do This
- Push enterprise features on a small company
- Dismiss their size-related concerns
- Over-promise on what they'll achieve without appropriate resources
- Sell them more than they need just to hit your quota
- Ignore implementation resource constraints
Follow-up Questions to Ask
“What specifically makes you think you might be too small?”
“What's your current team size and growth plans?”
“Have you had bad experiences with solutions that were 'too big' for you?”
“What budget range would work for a company your size?”
“Would it help to see how similar-sized companies are using us?”
Industry-Specific Variations
“We're just a 10-person startup—this seems like enterprise software.”
“Actually, startups are one of our fastest-growing segments. Our startup tier is designed for exactly your stage—powerful enough to scale but simple enough to implement without a dedicated team. What's holding you back from evaluating?”
“We're a small boutique firm, not a big agency.”
“Boutique firms often see the biggest impact because every hour matters more. We work with firms from 5 to 500 people. For smaller teams, we focus on the essentials that drive billable time. What's your biggest operational time-sink?”
“We're just a few locations, not a chain.”
“Multi-location can mean two or two hundred. We have a tier specifically for growing retailers. In fact, smaller operations often see faster ROI because there's less complexity. What would make the biggest difference for your locations?”
Pro Tips
- Small companies often assume they're not your target. Make sure your marketing and sales conversations explicitly include their segment.
- Pricing flexibility matters for small companies. Having a startup tier or SMB plan removes this objection immediately.
- Implementation burden is a real concern. Emphasize low-touch onboarding and self-service capabilities.
- Reference customers at their size, not just your logo-worthy enterprise customers.
- Small companies make faster decisions but also churn faster. Focus on quick time-to-value and early wins.
Tired of Handling Objections?
Let us handle the prospecting and objections for you. We book qualified meetings with decision-makers who are ready to talk - no cold call rejections.
Get Qualified Meetings