Selling Skills Training | The Importance of Building Rapport
When was the last time you made a major purchase from someone you didn’t like? Chances are, it doesn’t happen very often. The same thing is true about our prospects. Granted that someone likes us doesn’t guarantee a sale. But if our prospect doesn’t like us, there’s little chance of developing a strong business relationship. That’s why is so important to build a rapport with our customers quickly and consistently throughout the sales process.
What is rapport? It’s simply a combination of good interpersonal skills, effective listening, credibility, and professionalism. It is a process that builds confidence and establishes a relationship between a potential customer and a sales representative. When we have a good rapport, the atmosphere becomes friendlier and more relaxed. Trust develops. The prospect is more inclined to answer our questions and to share information more freely. This is very important as we gather information to develop the right solution. In turn, a strong rapport usually means that people will be more open to the ideas, suggestions, and solutions we present.
Building rapport is something we begin at the first interaction with a prospect and continue throughout our entire relationship. It doesn’t matter whether that relationship lasts thirty minutes or thirty years, because our ability to build rapport makes a big difference in virtually any type of selling environment. In long sales cycle with large-ticket items, rapport is the key to lasting business relationships. In transaction-based selling, the rapport we build with customers not only affects the current sale, it often leads to referrals for future business.
Based on what we have learned from experienced that that 90 per cent of all sales calls, the fate of the meeting is determined in the first two minutes. Why? At this point, the prospect is still preoccupied with other things. A meeting she attended. A phone call she just finished. A report that’s due to her manager by the end of the day. Employee evaluations she must complete. The list goes on.
With that understanding, make it a priority to start building rapport immediately. Before you go into each meeting, ask yourself these questions: What starts to build trust and puts a person at ease? What makes my prospects say, “This person listens and is capable, and I like him,” or, “I believe she can help me solve my problems”? Taking time to reflect on these questions will make a difference in how you approach each meeting.
Let’s face it: There are few companies that have a product that sells itself, where customers break down the door to get it. In all other cases, we need rapport.
