Finding something in Common with your Customers

You need to build trust, long before the customer commits to the product. The more we have in common with someone, the easier it is to develop a selling relationship. This is a relationship where it’s base is on trust; but the question is how do you do it?

You must find something in common with your customer; somehow a bond or trust will be formed from a shared interest or mutual acquaintance. A shared experience added within a conversation big or small but meaningful could produce positive feelings in a prospect, customer or client.

To build trust quickly in a sales transaction, all you need to do is ask a series of "open-ended, personal questions." One of the easiest ways to build rapport and trust is to get a customer chatting about something that he loves to talk about himself!

It is true that people buy from people like themselves, but, finding something in common with a keen decision-maker just takes too long in today's fast paced selling environment and is often too difficult to uncover to build the trusting relationship that actually produces sales success.

You could just ask what I said earlier, a series of questions that are open-ended, personal but straightforward questions, these could just peel of their “walls” one by one, but provided that the time and situation is favorable; a two-minute talk in a fast-paced environment is not enough to get the confidence that you would want.

People are far more interested in themselves than in you, your organization or what you are selling. But, when a customer opens up something personal about herself/himself, that's when a strong and trusting relationship is formed. Always remember, "People buy from people they trust!"

In your conversations, give questions and really listen. Listening builds trust between you and your customer. If you mostly talk during your sales presentation or sales transaction, you are talking too much! Customers do not care about your company, your marketing strategy or even about you, they only care about the product and themselves. Always remember, closing a sale is a process not a technique, so don’t rush it.