星空传媒

People tend to buy from people they trust. And the elements of trust are rapport, credibility and minimal perceived risk.

Now, the question is: should we focus first on credibility or rapport? Should we try to show how likeable, trustworthy and reliable we are, or how knowledgeable, experienced and credible we are? Or is neither of those approaches right? Should we start out by minimising their concerns about doing business with us?

In reality, we need to develop both qualities quickly, but in an oral presentation you have to establish rapport right away. And that definitely does not mean telling a joke at the outset to "win them over".

To create both rapport and credibility with the client, your best strategy is to restate your understanding of their needs right away and focus on their goals. That shows you give their interests top priority, which is a great way to build rapport, but it also gives you a chance to display industry-specific knowledge and to link your experience and general solution to their requirements.

Remember that your chances of establishing rapport increase proportionally to the amount of homework you do. Learn as much as you can about the company and the people in the room. You need both practical information and also insight into the competitive threats that worry them most, the value they place on innovation, their objectives and values.

Here are four other tips to help you establish rapport when you are presenting to a prospect or a client.

First, personalise the message. Provide examples during your presentation that are based specifically on their business and their issues. Call the individuals attending your presentation by name. Know which vertical markets are most important to them and use those types of customers in your examples.

Second, avoid using jargon, unless itis theirs. When you use your own jargon, you will be speaking an incomprehensible dialect. Your audience may not ask you to define your terms, but rest assured that they will be confused and probably annoyed. Those are not feelings that correlate well with good rapport.

Third, avoid using the common business clich茅s and buzzwords. How many times have you heard about "world-class" solutions, "best of breed" products, competitors that are "uniquely qualified," opportunities to "leverage" your technology? Because those kinds of clich茅s contain unsubstantiated claims, they tend to make people sceptical of your total message.

Fourth, be positive. Never start a presentation by saying: "I wish I had more time to prepare because there are several things I wanted to cover, but we'll do the best we can". Instead, just get to the point.

Likewise, never start by saying, "Everyone here knows the kinds of problems you've been having with your planning, so I don't need to go into that too much." You've just alienated half the group. Instead, position your remarks by saying, "Two of the most challenging tasks facing companies in your industry are planning and minimising risk. In fact, improving in these two areas is a great way to grab a competitive advantage in your market."