Should I offer a discount at the door?

Rarely, and never as the first response. It answers a budget objection when you are almost always facing a value one.

What if they genuinely cannot afford it?

Then it is a no, and a clean one. Recognising that quickly is worth more than the twenty minutes spent confirming it.

How do I find out what they are comparing to?

Ask. Most reps assume a competitor when the comparison is usually doing nothing at all, and those need different answers.

Handling "too expensive" at the door

"Too expensive" almost always means the value is not clear yet rather than that the number is out of reach. Discounting on the doorstep answers the wrong objection and trains the household to wait for a lower price. The more useful response is to find out what they are comparing your price to, because it is often not what you assume.

Price objections are usually value objections

A price is only expensive relative to something. When somebody says it is too much, they are reporting that the value has not landed yet, not performing a budget calculation.

Which is why cutting the price often does not close it. You changed the number and left the actual objection untouched.

Find the comparison

They are measuring your price against something: a competitor quote, what they paid last year, or doing nothing at all. Doing nothing is the most common and the one reps least often check for, and it needs a completely different answer from a competing quote.

What discounting costs

Beyond the margin, it tells the household your first number was not real. That travels: they mention it to neighbours, and every rep from your company who works that street afterwards starts from a worse position.

Common questions

Should I offer a discount at the door?: Rarely, and never as the first response. It answers a budget objection when you are almost always facing a value one.
What if they genuinely cannot afford it?: Then it is a no, and a clean one. Recognising that quickly is worth more than the twenty minutes spent confirming it.
How do I find out what they are comparing to?: Ask. Most reps assume a competitor when the comparison is usually doing nothing at all, and those need different answers.

More on scripts and objections

Openers, pitches and the objections every rep hears — with the answers that hold up on a doorstep.

All of scripts and objections