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Breaking The Ice: Three Simple Tips
For Building Rapport With A Prospect
-by Liz Monte (c)Liz Monte - All rights reserved No doubt about it! The Internet can make attracting, sorting, and pre-qualifying prospects a breeze. Nonetheless, you still need to develop a relationship with your new recruits, preferably before they enroll, or your organization will be built on sand, and your long-term retention rate will be next to zip. The three pointers that follow will help you get on your prospect's wavelength. In my younger days, I suffered from horrible shyness and didn't enjoy small talk at all. Social situations with strangers were about as much fun as sticking my hand in a blender - I never knew what to say to people. Then one day I read this true story: A traveler found himself stuck on a long plane ride next to a totally obnoxious passenger. No doubt the traveler went through the same thoughts and emotions as anyone else in this situation -- basically, GET ME OUT OF HERE! But then, just to pass the time, he decided to play a little game with himself and see if he could figure out what factors contributed to his seatmate's offensive attitude. Without revealing his motives, he started asking him questions about his background, his childhood, his family and so forth. What happened next completely surprised the traveler! The more questions he asked, the more pleasant his companion became. They ended up having a wonderful conversation! This really hit me. What a simple solution to the problem of not knowing how to break the ice with strangers! It illustrates one of the tips I want to cover in this article: ASK A LOT OF QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR PROSPECT. This serves three important purposes. It lets her know you're genuinely interested in her; it gives you the chance to gather information about her that could be useful later on; and believe it or not, it actually allows you to maintain better control of the conversation. When interviewing a new prospect, start with a few pre-set questions to get the ball rolling. As things progress, though, let go of your agenda and base your questions on what she's telling you. This requires a little more "thinking on your feet," so don't be afraid to pause for just a moment to formulate what you'll say next, rather than jumping in on her last word. Remember, you're just having a conversation with her. Relax and enjoy it. The second tip goes right along with the first: LISTEN ACTIVELY. This means more than simply hearing what she says and nodding in agreement every now and then. Active listening means SINCERELY paying attention and paraphrasing back to her the gist of what you're hearing from time to time. For example, during the interview it might be appropriate to say something like, "I see -- your husband's job situation makes it very hard to spend time together as a family." Or, "If I hear what you're saying, you'd like a more challenging job." Active listening has three benefits (at least!). First, it forces you to really pay attention to what she's saying, which you need to do anyway. Second, it gives you instant feedback as to whether or not you really understand her. And third, and most important, your prospect will LOVE you for truly hearing her. If she's like most people, she wants to feel that someone cares about what she has to say. Unfortunately, that desire often goes unanswered. If you really LISTEN to her for a change, you'll be her friend for life. The third tip I learned only recently. It may sound trivial, but if you try it, you'll see how powerfully it can affect the conversation. You've probably been told to always sound upbeat and enthusiastic when talking about your business. And yes -- A lot of people will respond positively to this approach. One problem, though - plenty of other folks will think you sound like a big phony and won't trust you. How can you predict which way your prospect will react so you can adjust your tone of voice to suit her? Try this simple solution: MODULATE YOUR TONE OF VOICE TO MATCH YOUR PROSPECT'S. In other words, if she sounds boisterous and outgoing, respond in kind. But, if she seems quiet and shy, tone it down. This will produce much better chemistry. Your prospect will subconsciously feel that she can relate to you -- that you're just like her. When I first heard of this, it seemed like a sneaky technique to try to manipulate people. But after giving it some thought and trying it out, I realized that no, I'm just exhibiting good manners and making the other person more comfortable. After all, in order to do it right, you need to be sensitive to your prospect and listen carefully. All people want to know that their thoughts and ideas matter. They want to feel important. And that's exactly what will happen when you show a sincere interest in them by using these three simple approaches. You'll build rapport, earn their trust, and lay a solid foundation for a future relationship. ============================================ ============================================ =============================================
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