(Part six of a seven-part business coaching series on sales strategies that work for small business. ) If you missed the last installment, you can read part six here.

Have you ever been at a party with a “close talker”?

No matter how many times you back away, they seem to get closer and closer, invading your personal space. This is an example of a rapport breaker – not respecting someone’s personal space.

Instead, you want to be a rapport builder; make others feel comfortable being in your presence and encourage an atmosphere where people want to talk with you more and are so engaged with you that they lose track of time.

In addition to using the right words when communicating with others, it’s important to use the right words the correct way.

A person’s body language, rate of speech, and tone of voice will also give you clues to what type of Language Pattern your client or prospect prefers.

The easiest way to gain rapport with someone you’ve just met is to model his/her behavior in a natural way. Try to mirror his/her hand movements, eye contact, and rate of speech.

Keep in mind that this does not mean copying their movements exactly. Rather, it’s a respectful way of honoring a person’s communication style of interacting with others.

Case Study:
Theodore was in Best Buy, trying to figure out whether he should buy the current X-box gaming system, or if he should wait until November when X-box 360 is released.

The salesperson had successfully gained rapport with Teddy. But even after showing him the differences between the two products, this young gaming enthusiast was reluctant to choose one over the other.

Teddy has a DIGITAL Language Pattern, and should be treated uniquely, and respectfully, allowing him to process and think about his decision. If the sales professional tries to rush Teddy into making a rash decision, he may simply walk out, or he’ll come back and ask for a refund for his hasty purchase.

The need for Teddy to justify this purchase in his mind (or on paper) is a simple process that will help him feel more comfortable with his buying decision - regardless of the product he chooses.

When you notice your prospect saying things like, “I need to understand and process this decision.” You’ll want to walk them step-by-step through a system or comparison chart of pros and cons in order to help them make the best decision.

TAKE ACTION!

The better you are at identifying the approach a person prefers, the more you can assure yourself of long-term success by adapting your words and style to the way he/she most readily receives information.

If you are interested in learning the key words and phrases commonly used by people in each of the four Language Patterns, send an e-mail to news.support@RPMsuccess.com and ask for the “Words that Trigger Buying” Action Sheet.

Utilize the action steps contained in this seven-part series combined with the right words and tools for communication, and you’ll begin to develop more meaningful connections with people 20-30% faster than before.

Deborah Micek is known as the “Business Communication Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club™.

Official Life Coach for the Dream Makeover Hawaii TV show aired on NBC, internationally published author and weekly columnist for the business section of the Honolulu Star Bulletin. Deborah is a managing partner with the international small business coaching company RPM Success Group Inc.®

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc.® and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

(Part six of a seven-part business coaching series on sales strategies that work for small business. ) If you missed the last installment, you can read part five here.

Have you ever felt like you were talking to a brick wall when communicating with someone you know?

Whether you are showing someone a strategy, or delivering an elaborate power-point presentation, if you think you’ve presented your case perfectly, yet you are being met with a blank stare, you just might be communicating the wrong way.

Case Study:

Katrina is a sales representative for a large insurance firm in Texas. She came highly recommended and graduated at the top of her class. Yet her supervisor, Susan, doesn’t understand why Katrina’s sales aren’t as high as her peers.

Susan decides to send Katrina home with a stack of books, all about closing tactics. However, since Katrina has always been primarily an Auditory learner, she does best when she hears a strategy taught to her, rather than reading it in a book.

If Susan gave her an audio book or DVD on sales, Katrina would have been able to tune in better, and been in harmony with her supervisor’s goals to get better results.

To discover if your team member or prospect has an Auditory Language Pattern, you can pose the feedback question, “Do you hear what I’m saying?” or “Does that sound good?”

If her response sounds something like, “Yes. That rings true!” you’ll know you’ve tuned in to her preferred style, and are coming through loud and clear.

TAKE ACTION!

The better you are at identifying the Language Pattern a person prefers, the more you can assure yourself of long-term success by adapting the way you phrase your words to the way he/she most readily receives information.

Communicating effectively is about opening the doorway to positive relationships. Adapting your style is not about being “phony.” It is merely about accommodating another person’s preference in order to allow the conversation to continue.

As your relationship progresses, the other person will get to know you better. People will accept others who are different from themselves – as long as they trust the other person in the relationship.

On the other hand, if you turn someone off within the first few minutes of your introduction, you will have lost him/her forever; all because of an underlying mistrust that developed within seconds of communicating “out of style.”

One teacher from Kaimuki Middle School contacted me, very excited about this seven-part series on language patterns, remarking, “This has huge implications for teachers!”

She’s absolutely right! Whether you’re a teacher, a resident advisor at Hawaii Pacific University, or you’re a business owner, when you speak to people according to their preferred learning style, they’ll hear what you’re saying without tuning out.

This is the secret of getting your point across quickly - and influencing those around you – for everyone’s benefit.

In part seven of this series of business coaching articles, we’ll show you how to look beyond words for the secrets of how to influence and close more sales.

Deborah Micek is known as the “Business Communication Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club™.

Official Life Coach for the Dream Makeover Hawaii TV show aired on NBC, internationally published author and weekly columnist for the business section of the Honolulu Star Bulletin. Deborah is a managing partner with the international small business coaching company RPM Success Group Inc.®

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc.® and licensed under a Creative Commons License.

(Part five of a seven-part business coaching series on sales strategies that work for small business. ) If you missed the last installment, you can read part four here.

Too many people have adopted a false belief that treating everyone the same is a good thing. Unfortunately, that mindset is one of the most ineffective methods for communication; especially if you need to get your point across – fast!

While it may seem fair to treat everyone the same, in reality, it does more harm than good.

Think about it. Look at your right-hand index finger. Does anyone else have the same fingerprint as you? If we’re each as unique as our fingerprints, doesn’t it also make sense that we each have a unique style of how we prefer to communicate and learn?

Despite how politically correct it sounds to focus on how alike we are, if you don’t spend the same or more time thinking about all the ways we’re different from one another, you’ll sell yourself short. You’ll never communicate as clearly and effectively as you could unless you actively learn how other people prefer to communicate and learn.

Like an ostrich hiding his head in the sand, the sales person who rejects the fact that we’re all different, will stubbornly stick to a one-size-fit-all approach. And when he does pull his head out of the sand, he’ll be left scratching his head, wondering why his sales are the lowest on the team.

How to Start Adapting Your Communication Style:

Keeping in mind that there are four language/learning patterns that people have (Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic and Digital), let’s grab hold of an understanding as to how the Kinesthetic-style person prefers to be communicated with.

When you are talking to someone who has a high Kinesthetic Language Pattern, you’ll notice he/she uses words that pertain to touching things or interacting with their environment.

When selling to people with a Kinesthetic Language Pattern, give them something to do. Perhaps you hand them your product. If you’re selling over the phone, you could ask them to go to your Web site, and visit certain pages together or ask them to complete something and turn it in. Anything they can “try before they buy” will appeal to high Kinesthetics.

Here are a few phrases that click with people who have a preferred Kinesthetic Language Pattern:

I’m just calling to touch base with you to check how you’re using the cleaning products in your home.

Toss the idea around and see how it feels.

Can you grasp how that might work?

Does that click with you?

Coach’s Corner:

When coaching Internet marketers, I coach them to include something interactive on their Web site for their kinesthetic visitors. Examples may include a questionnaire or survey, or an interactive poll or forum where they can connect with others who use the product or service being sold.

Whether it’s selling in your store, online, or in your client’s office, keep in mind that kinesthetic people need to interact with your product or service to feel comfortable.

In part six of this series of business coaching articles, we’ll show you how to listen to your prospects for clues on how to influence them and close more sales.

Deborah Micek is known as the “Business Communication Coach” by business owners around the world thanks to members of the Business Owners Coaching Club™.

Official Life Coach for the Dream Makeover Hawaii TV show aired on NBC, internationally published author and weekly columnist for the business section of the Honolulu Star Bulletin. Deborah is a managing partner with the international small business coaching company RPM Success Group Inc.®

The © Copyright to all audio, video, images, and text are held by RPM Success Group Inc.® and licensed under a Creative Commons License.