“We tried something similar”
A prior coaching rollout launched with enthusiasm and faded after the first month.
We tried something similar.
Skill testedNaming the old failure and the condition that must change
Two briefs. Hand each sheet to one person only.
“We tried something similar”quotain.com/scenarios/tried-something-similar-objection
Rep brief
Everything the seller may know before the call.
- Account context
- A prior coaching rollout launched with enthusiasm and faded after the first month.
- What you know
- Only that a prior attempt failed.
- What you need to learn
- What was tried, where participation or transfer broke down, who owned it, and what would need to be different.
“We tried something similar”quotain.com/scenarios/tried-something-similar-objection
Buyer brief Private
For the person playing the buyer. Keep the difficulty at hard for the first attempt and the retry.
- Open with
- “We tried something similar.”
- What you may mean
- Choose one before the call: low trust, poor adoption, unclear ownership, weak manager involvement, or a mismatch between the old program and current need.
- How to react
- If the rep dismisses the prior vendor or promises adoption, become skeptical.
- If the rep asks for the failure sequence, walk through it.
“We tried something similar”quotain.com/scenarios/tried-something-similar-objection
Score the attempt. One row per pass criterion.
| Pass criterion | Met | Partly | Missed | Evidence (quote or timestamp) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Names the old failure. | Met | Partly | Missed | Evidence |
| Names the condition that must change before a new attempt. | Met | Partly | Missed | Evidence |
Also counts as a pass
- Ask for the failure sequence
- Identify a testable change
- Propose a small pilot with an owner and success criteria
- Agree that another program is unlikely to help
Listen for
- Dismissing the prior vendor.
- Promising adoption.
- Claiming the new approach will work without a changed condition.
Debrief
- Where did the last attempt break down?
- What changed condition would make a new attempt worth running?
Retry
One retry goal
Live call to check it on
Next scenarios. Same skill area, a different buyer.
From the guide Objection Handling Roleplay: 7 Scenarios and a Scorecard, which covers how to run, score and retry these scenarios.
Practice this buyer with AI.
Quotain plays the buyer from this brief, holds the difficulty and scores every retry.