It’s hard to make a sale if you don’t have clear and open lines of communication and an understanding of clients’ and prospects’ needs and feelings. Rapport building is key to long-term relationships. Here’s how to start building it:
- Show personal interest in who your client is. Take the time to learn about his professional and personal goals, his interests outside the sales transaction, his family and what he wants for it. Remember his spouse’s and kids’ names. Ask him about his golf game. Inquire as to whether or not he made that big sale at work.
- Make her priorities yours. Is she house shopping for a residence in a particular school district? If so, commit to finding her a new home in the neighborhood that meets her needs and desires. Demonstrate your understanding of what she wants, and don’t steer her to settle for something less. If you’re the sales agent who gets her a home in her dream location, she’ll remember you next time she’s buying and refer you to her friends.
- Reward customer loyalty. Did he refer a friend or colleague to you? Did he bring you more of his business two years after you closed a deal with him? Say thanks with a gift certificate to his favorite restaurant, or give him a discounted commission rate on his next transaction with you.
