Membership Overview
Learn what being a member does for you
The Seller Styles
NASP Programs
Catalog
See a summary of all our programs and certifications
Online Certifications
Certified Professional Sales Person(CPSP®)
Develop your potential as a certified sales professional
Certified Professional Sales Leader(CPSL®)
Grow your impact as a certified sales leader
Certified Master Sales Professional (CMSP®)
Join the elite group of sales professionals and leaders
Certified Master Sales Trainer (CMST®)
Online Programs
Advanced Sales Influence (ASI)
Take your influence and leadership to the next level.
Certified Professional Sales Associate (CPSA®)
Learn foundational sales behaviors, strategies, and skills
Power of Contact Marketing
Learn from marketing expert and author Stu Heinecke
ProSeries Programs
Join the top 1% of sales professionals in the world.
Next Level Virtual Coaching
Sales Mastery
Join our ongoing dynamic virtual coaching community
Career Center
Explore job postings from some of the best companies in the country looking for sales professionals
Training Resources
Daily Dose of Influence!
Enjoy our video series of influence tips and strategies
Leads To Growth
Dig into our podcast featuring industry leaders and experts
Coaches Corner
Learn from our high-level sales coaching video series
Women of Sales & Influence – Facebook Live Series
Be inspired by our Facebook Live series spotlighting top women influencers
Women of Sales & Influence – Video Blog
Enjoy valuable, high-level sales strategies to empower your sales goals
Sales Resources
The Growth Quotient
You’ve heard about IQ, but what is your GQ?
Our Commitment to You
We are here to help your approach to sales, how you interact with others, and how you perform and execute
Articles
NASP Sales Blog
Learn from our member-submitted articles for sales professionals
About Our CEO
Standards of Conduct
Testimonials
Common Questions and Answers
Contact
by Jim Klein
How To Quickly Establish Rapport With Your Prospects: I’m sure you’ll agree, establishing rapport and trust with your prospects is one of, if not the most important presentation skills you can learn. It’s been said many times, people only buy from people they like and trust.
Have you ever had an experience with a salesperson and you have said to yourself “I will never buy anything from that person”? You have probably also had the experience where you hit it off with a salesperson and you would buy just about anything they recommend
Why?
Because you didn’t like or trust the first salesperson and you did like and trust the second. Why did you like and trust the second person so much? Because they took the time to establish rapport with you. In simpler terms they probably showed a sincere interest in you and/or were like you.
The last sentence sums up the points I want to discuss in this article.
The first point you should learn in establishing rapport and trust with your prospects is, show a sincere interest in them. How do you do that? The first thing to remember is you have two ears and one mouth, so you should listen twice as much as you talk. Sales really is all about asking the right questions and then shutting your mouth and waiting for the answers. Then ask another question and so on and so on.
You see the second point I talked about earlier was people like people who are like them. So find the common interests and expand on them.
Don’t take this step lightly. This is very important! People love to talk about themselves. Don’t you agree? So let them talk as long as they like. The more they talk and you show a sincere interest, the better they will like and trust you.
This technique can be accomplished in a couple of different ways.
One way is to pay attention to their communication style. Do they like to get right down to business, tell stories or joke around? Do they talk soft,loud, quick or slow? Do they communicate visually (use words like see, clear, reveal), or auditory (use words like hear, clear as a bell, tune in),kinesthetic (use words like feel; get a handle on, concrete).
The second way is pay attention to how their sitting or standing. Are their legs crossed, arms folded, do they use their hands when they talk, do they lean forward with their arms on the desk.
Then once you understand their communication style, mirror and match them, in other words, do what they do. If they talk loud, then you talk loud. If their visual, use visual words in your communication.
If they cross their legs, then you cross your legs. Now, I’m not talking about right away, use some discretion. Don’t immediately cross your legs when they do. Use a slight delay. This will take some practice. However, in time you can become a master at this.
Once you establish rapport and they like you and trust you, and feel you care about them, then and only then should you begin to ask qualifying questions.
Many salespeople fail to establish rapport and then can’t figure out why the prospect won’t buy.
About the author