Five Ways to Deepen a Prospect Relationship
1. Invite your prospect to attend a public event with you. This is most effective in a business-to-business selling environment.
2. Learn about your prospect’s family. Be curious about your potential client’s life outside of work but always be sensitive in your approach. Avoid issuing a barrage of questions. Know what questions are appropriate to ask and which are none of your business.
3. Share something personal about yourself. Choose something that is funny and magnifies a similarity you have with your prospect. Again, exercise good judgment and avoid anything too personal. I sometimes share the challenges of having both a teenager and twin four year olds. This works well because many prospects can identify with my experiences: those with young kids, those with teenagers and those who have grown children.
4. Find a way to laugh with your potential client. Learn the art of humor that doesn’t cross any ethical boundaries but makes it fun to spend time together. I often poke fun at my challenges, inviting laughter with comments like, “I can’t believe after 20 years in this business, I still can’t figure out how to get past your receptionist…”
5. Have a conversation where you allow your natural curiosity to come through. Forget about yourself for a moment and focus on the other person. Don’t just act interested, be interested.
