1. Thoughts on Rapport for Telemarketers
One could argue the importance of several aspects ofthe sales process—the company practices, service
guarantees or the reliability of the product.In my opinion, the aspect which is most relevant to success is rapport.
Rapport is the precursor to trust,and without some degree of trust, the customer will neither agree to purchase nor
provide the necessary information (billing info. and social security number) necessary to complete the transaction .
Depending on who you ask, there are several “techniques” used to build rapport. Often times it is advised
to ask questions unrelated to the transaction in order to lull the customer into a feeling of security. Commonly, these
are questions regarding the weather, recent sporting events or other cliché “water cooler” topics that reek of a vain
attempt at connection.My advice is to dispense with these and simplify the approach to an actual human interaction.
Many sales people are caught up in thinking of their customers as “customers” and not as actual human beings.
Remember, people like to be conversed with, not pitched.
In order to establish this connection,it is EXTREMELY important to be as perceptive as possible. Listen
attentively to the customer’s voice as soon as they answer the phone.Make note of their tone, pace, and accent. Be
mindful of background noise (do they sound busy?!).Do they sound like they are in a good mood? A bad mood?
You can gather an abundance of information from one word: “Hello”
Gauge their reaction to your introduction. If they respond positively, proceed a bit more aggressively.If
they are guarded in their response orthey seem to be suspicious ofthe nature of your call, immediately relax and
proceed as casually as you can. Being able to pick up on the nature of their mood in the beginning will assist you to
controlling the progress ofthe call.
Once you have ascertained the mood/attitude of the person you are calling (you should be able to do this in
seconds)you can tailor yourvoice to play upon the emotional state of your customer. Example(s): If the person is
obviously in a good mood, let yourapproach reflect that. If however the person seems to be surly or put off by your
call, speak calmly and slowly; be colloquial and casualabout your introduction; under no circumstances should you
become chipper and up-beat—this will only succeed in annoying them further.
If you end up working in sales, it is safe to assume that you are not antisocial, misanthropic or socially
awkward. Put simply, you have some degree of people skills. Use your personality as a base to craft a sales style that
is a natural fit. If you have a good sense ofhumor, joke with your customers to lighten the mood—don’t force it, let
it flow naturally. If you are aggressive by nature and have the ability to forcefully persuade,exercise control until
you have established common ground and are in a position to close. Analyze yourbehavior outside of work and note
how you interact with people. If you approach the call in a manner that comes naturally to you,the customer will
subconsciously let their guard down. Instead of interacting with a synthetic sales person,they will be dealing with
anotherhuman being.
By Daniel Lee