The DriveSales™ | Here are the 3 simple tactics to build rapport quickly in sales meetings!
Building rapport in sales, especially B2B sales, is more than hiring competent sales representatives with an outgoing personality — it takes a comprehensive framework and rigorous discipline to ensure meticulous preparation and implementation taking place across the board within the teams.
Building rapport is a fail-proof modus operandi and a strategic skill that takes methodical planning and preparation and could exist by itself. Building rapport aids in strengthening relationships. And relationships have always been at the center of a successful business. They are the means of getting started and staying afloat, to build on a thriving business.
The problem is that relationships are not easy to develop, and it takes time to build a strong one and hinges on the rapport established through every sales call and meeting.
While it is possible to build business relationships with clients automatically or by finding a convenient conversational cue, such as a trophy in the client’s office or a vacation photograph, those who do their homework hit the nail on the head more often by connecting with more leads.
What is Rapport Building in Sales?
Rapport is the bedrock of a relationship based on harmony or affinity.
It doesn’t pay dividends, in the long run, to be casual about making connections with clients because people have a natural preference for doing business with those whom they know, like, and trust. Rapport building in sales is a neglected skill because it seems intuitive. It is a challenging skill because of its nature, making it difficult to differentiate between behaviour and skills. It needs proper honing and planning to be effective.
The techniques that have to be used need to be both genuine and appropriate for the client’s style and culture. There is no need for a long, drawn-out process, but at the same time, there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution as well. By paying close attention to both verbal and non-verbal cues including the other person’s reactions and responsiveness, it can be easy to gauge the amount of time required to be spent at the relationship-building stage and what needs to be communicated.
The following are three simple tactics any sales representative can employ to build better rapport with their clients.
1. Sharing Common Experiences
A body of research supports the idea that people feel more connected to another person if they share some experience with that person. Hence, leading us to the first powerful rapport-building technique of sharing common experiences with the client. That’s why people usually talk about the weather, sports, or current events when they first meet.
As a sales rep, the time to start thinking about finding such common experiences with the clients is during pre-call research. Research deeply about the client using easily accessible channels such as Google, LinkedIn, and Facebook. Sales reps can thoroughly research their clients and find potential common experiences such as education background, career history, geography (where the client lives or works), interests, etc.
These platforms have made it easy even for inside sales reps (who don’t have the luxury of visiting the customer in person) to uncover common experiences with the customer conveniently.
2. Active Listening
Active listening is a fundamental skill for sales communication, which is necessary not only for building rapport but also for all other aspects of sales as well.
Active listening isn’t merely hearing. Hearing is just the physical process of transmitting sound waves to the brain; however, active listening refers to suspending one’s thoughts to understand and process the information one hears. When a client perceives that a sales rep is actively listening to them, it makes them feel respected, important, understood, and appreciated.
To be a good active listener sales representative should Listen with the intent of understanding, focusing completely on listening without any multitasking/distraction like checking the phone or taking calls during the meeting, Asking ample questions, and finally, summarising the whole discussion to capture the key points discussed to make the client feel heard and understood at a deeper level.
3. Mirroring and Matching
Often, we, as humans, fail to understand why we like or dislike people. The mirroring and matching technique is based on the powerful principle that, at a subconscious level, people tend to like people who are like themselves. Neuroscientists call this phenomenon interpersonal body and neural synchronization. Conversely, when people are not alike, it becomes harder to forge relationships.
The mirror and matching techniques involve body language and voice. For example, if a client sits down and crosses his / her legs, the sales rep is supposed to “mirror” this behaviour and sit with crossed legs. This sends a positive message subconsciously of similarity. This makes them feel being considered as important and signals them that the sales rep is on their side. The same rationale also holds to mirror and match the pace and volume of someone’s speech. But do take care to avoid mimicking an accent unconsciously.
However, please be careful that these mirroring and matching techniques work at the subconscious level. So this will only help clients to be more comfortable and thus be more open to hearing out the sales representative about his or her solution.
Rapport in sales should be built on two levels: personal and business.
The internet has made researching and learning about clients much easier and faster. Even a short internet research session can unearth enough data to provide some solid questions in areas that matter to the client.
A bonus in today’s hyper connected internet era is that sales professionals also have the opportunity to learn about the larger company culture while researching the individual prospect. Such preparation proves critical in earning respect and time.
Now, as an effective SALESPERSON! We can do three things from here.
1. Not ignoring the opportunity and blaming the situation for revenue loss.
2. Taking necessary notes and revisiting your sales strategy with a growth mindset.
3. Reach out to The DriveSales™ in case you need any specialized help.
To conclude, what you believe also provides some idea of your development as a consultative salesperson. For more, please be connected to team The DriveSales™ as these are the foundations for our culture and ways of working!
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