DUMOHome › Guides · Updated · By Kevin Lim, founder of DUMO Innovations
"No budget this year": how to reply without dropping the price or giving up
What they mean"No budget" usually means "not a priority yet" or "I can't get it approved right now".
Ask first"When does your budget for next year get decided? And for something like this, who usually signs off?"
Then send"We could start with one small part now, or I hold the current price until January and we set a date to talk in November. Which is easier?"
The 15% discount that went nowhere
The quotation went out two weeks ago. You follow up and finally get an answer:
The most common reply:
You have just told the customer that the price was negotiable all along. If budget was the real problem, a discount of 15% does not make it appear. If it was not, you have given away margin for nothing. Either way the customer says "let me check" and the chat goes quiet.
Four things "no budget" can mean
- It's the polite way to say "not a priority". If it really mattered, they would find the money or move something else. Nobody wants to say that to your face.
- The money exists, but it has a label. It is for the new hire, the renovation, the year-end event. Your item has no label, so nobody can approve it.
- Someone else decides and they haven't convinced that person. The contact likes you but can't make the case. See our guide on "I need to ask my boss".
- The budget is really gone. It happens, especially near year end. Here the right move is to be the first name they think of when the new budget opens.
Only the last one is a true "no". The other three can still move, but a discount fixes none of them.
Three ways to answer "no budget"
✅ Thank them, then ask how budget works
You learn the calendar and the approver in one message. No pressure, and it sounds like planning, not chasing.
✅ Ask what would have to be true
This separates "no money" from "no priority". A customer who says "yes, I'd do it" has just told you the deal is alive. A customer who says "other things come first" has told you what to ask about next.
✅ Offer a small start or a plan for next year
The price stays where it is. What changes is that a smaller yes is on the table, or a date is fixed. Anything you give, trade it for something back: a start date, a first order or a meeting.
Copy-paste replies for each kind of "no budget"
Ask which kind of "no budget" it is, then send the matching reply. Swap in your own product and numbers.
| They say | Send this |
|---|---|
| "Not a priority for us this year" | "Understood boss. What would you need to see to move it up the list? I can send that this week."Asks what moves it up instead of arguing with the priority. |
| "Budget already used for other things" | "Got it. Which cost would this sit next to, hiring or equipment? I'll write the proposal under that heading so it's easier to approve."The money has a label. Give your item one. |
| "My boss said no" | "Thanks for trying for me. Can I send a one-page summary he can read in 2 minutes? Only cost and what he gets."Your contact can't sell it alone. Give him something short to forward. |
| "Budget finished, only next year" | "No problem. When do you decide next year's budget? I'll send you a short update a month before, so you're ready when it opens."Be the first name they think of when the new budget opens. |
| "Cannot afford the full thing now" | "Fair. Start with 2 salesmen first at RM600 a month, then add the rest next year if it works?"A smaller yes keeps the deal alive. The price per seat stays the same. |
Practise these replies on an AI customer that pushes back. Free trial →
If the cost is the real worry, show the cost of waiting once. Example with made-up numbers: a shop loses about 3 orders a month at RM1,200 each from slow replies, which is RM3,600 a month. Then ask, "Does that number look right to you?" Let the customer correct it, because a number they fix is a number they believe.
Three habits that cost you next year's order
- Offering a discount straight away. It answers a price question that nobody asked. You teach the customer that your price moves when they push.
- Arguing that they can afford it. "But it will pay for itself in six months." Maybe so, but now they have to defend "no budget", and people who defend a position hold on to it harder.
- Going quiet until next January. Next year's budget is often decided in the last two months of this year. If you wait until the new year, someone else is already on the list.
What the studies say about budgets and arguing
None of these studies is about companies saying "no budget". They are the closest we found, so read them as hints and not as proof.
- Arguing makes people more sure. In international debating competitions, debaters were randomly assigned a side to argue. The researchers found they became more confident in the factual beliefs behind their side, and the effect held after an hour of hearing the other side's arguments. This is about debaters, not buyers, but it fits the advice: if you push a customer to defend "no budget", they may believe it more. Ask a question instead. Peter Schwardmann, Egon Tripodi and Joël J. van der Weele, 2022, American Economic Review. doi:10.1257/aer.20200372
- Money is treated differently depending on where it came from. In online experiments with a student sample and an adult sample, people who received windfall gains tended to spend them on enjoyable things, while people who received hard-earned gains tended to spend them on useful things. This is about personal spending, not company budgets. The point we take from it is that money sits in mental pots, so it helps to find out which pot your product would have to come from. Lin Cheng, Yinqiang Yu, Yizhi Wang and Lei Zheng, 2023, Frontiers in Psychology. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1162916
- Practising this before it's real helps. A study of 18 B2B salesmen found structured practice helps newer salesmen build expertise, so a "no budget" reply is worth rehearsing before a live customer hears it (Daniel P. Köhler and Andreas Rausch, 2022, Vocations and Learning, doi:10.1007/s12186-022-09301-y). See how to set up practice for a team.
Practise it before a real customer
DUMO SALES is an AI sales coach for Malaysian teams. Your salesmen practise replies like "no budget this year" on their phone, with an AI customer built from your own products and prices. The customer goes quiet if you jump to a discount, and opens up if you ask how the budget really works. After each session, DUMO SALES analyses the conversation, scores it across 8 dimensions and coaches you on the line that decided the deal. Managers get a data-driven view of who needs coaching and which objections the team keeps losing on.
FAQ
What do I say when a customer says there is no budget this year?
Say thanks for being straight with you, then ask what the budget is for this year and how a purchase like this normally gets approved. Don't cut the price yet. Find out if the money is really gone, or if this just isn't a priority. Then ask to talk again before next year's budget is set.
How do I know if "no budget" is real?
Ask what happens if the problem gets worse before next year. If they say they would find the money, it is a priority question, not a money question. If they say they would wait, the budget is real, and your job is to be the first name they think of when it opens.
Should I offer a discount when a customer says no budget?
Not first. A discount answers a price question and "no budget" is a timing and approval question. If you do offer something, trade it for a start date, a smaller first order or a signed plan for next year, so it moves the deal forward.