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Sales & Retail vocabulary · Objections & Closing

Push back

Meaning in sales & retail, with examples

/ˌpʊʃ ˈbæk/phrasal verbCommon term

In sales & retail, push back means: To resist or argue against a price, idea, request or deadline, usually politely and as part of a discussion rather than as a final refusal.

In Turkish: itiraz etmek, karşı çıkmak, direnç göstermek

How it is used

Very common in business meetings. Customers push back on price; sellers push back on unreasonable discount requests. The noun is pushback (or push-back): “We got some pushback on the timeline.”

Example sentences

  1. The buyer pushed back on the price, so we offered longer payment terms instead of a discount.

  2. Don't be afraid to push back if a client asks for something you can't deliver.

Common collocations

  • push back on price
  • push back on a deadline
  • get pushback
  • strong pushback
  • objectionA reason a potential customer gives for not buying or not buying yet, such as price, timing, trust or a competitor's offer.
  • negotiateTo discuss the price, terms or conditions of a deal with the other side in order to reach an agreement that both can accept.
  • concessionSomething one side gives up or agrees to during a negotiation, such as a lower price or an extra service, in order to reach a deal.
  • objection handlingThe skill of listening to a customer's concerns and answering them in a way that removes doubts and keeps the sale moving.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Objections & Closing

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