Building Rapport Effectively During A First Meeting

The number one thing to remember with regards to Building Rapport is this;

It's All About Entering Your Prospect's Zone Without He or She Feeling Uncomfortable With You Inside It.

Note - if you enter someone's zone and they don't feel comfortable with you inside it, they will try to get away from you or get rid of you as quickly as possible

Remember what we learnt yesterday?

1. 'Similar' leads to 'Like' leads to 'Trust' leads to 'Business'

In other words your most challenging moment is at the very start; getting your prospect to think / believe that you are similar to each other. Once you successfully convey the 'similarity' signals the rest is fairly straight forward.

One of the most effective ways to project 'similarity' signals is by subtly mirroring your prospect's body language.

For example

- If your prospect is sitting with his or her legs crossed, subtly do likewise.

- If your prospect is sitting with his or her back against the chair, subtly do likewise.

- If your prospect continues to shift positions, remain in a neutral position.

Note - if your prospect has his or her arms folded, do NOT do likewise, as it is a defensive and negative stance.

Have you ever noticed the body language of a young couple in their early stages of dating? They basically mirror each other. In other words without realising it they are subconsciously telling each other that they are alike, and are comfortable in each other's world / Zone. That's where such phrases as - "we just gel" or "we just connected" come from.

For both Business and Relationships, it is all about entering the other party's zone without he or she feeling uncomfortable with you inside it.