How to build rapport & gain client empathy

You know that our mantra at Size 10½ Boots is ‘Stop Selling & Drink Coffee’, but, what do you talk about?  what questions should you ask?  how will you know if you are making any progress?

Here are 10½ Top Tips to help you drink more coffee.

1. Preparation

Whenever you arrange a meeting with anyone, be it a twenty-minute coffee or a two hour lunch, you must prepare!

Doing a little bit of homework or 'pre coffee checks' before you meet a new contact will go a long way to demonstrate that you value a potential relationship with them. You could even argue that it’s even more crucial that you make the effort to know more about your existing clients’ wider business issues and personality than your ongoing matters might necessarily require.

Does the person you are meeting with have a company website or a profile page on a professional social networking site like LinkedIn? Have they been in the news recently? Do your research before you meet with them. Good preparation shows the person you are interested in who they are and what they do and can also give you plenty of starting points for a good conversation.

2. Don't be late

When scheduling coffee meetings with prospects and clients, you may often be running these’ back to back’ throughout the day, across town, the region or even cross country.

Either way it’s important that if you are going to reach your second, third or fourth meeting on time, unflustered and relaxed that you agree on what you both want out of the meeting and the time that you will wrap things up by.

We are not suggesting you work to an agreed written agenda (that might be a bit too much!) but try and structure the meeting a little to make sure that you both cover all the points you wanted to discuss, before they suddenly look at their watch and have to leave for their next meeting.

3. Bring Presence

One of the best ways to get great results in your career is to reflect confidence in your abilities. To stand out, you must develop a good presence. Granted, presence is usually something people talk about when referring to actors and musicians. But developing your own presence can make all the difference in your career.

4. The Venue

Choosing the right venue for your coffee is essential. Make sure the venue for the coffee is in an environment in which you both feel comfortable. When arranging the coffee ask the other person where they would like to meet. You may find that someone wants to meet in a swanky restaurant and someone is more comfortable in a small cafe bar.

5. Avoid school boy errors

Avoid making the most basic of simple mistakes by making sure that when you attend your coffee meeting everything is in order and works effectively. In order for you to not miss anything off here is a list of things to remember:

1. Make sure you have a sharp pencil and a pen ( a spare should always be carried)
2. Make sure you keep all branded stationary from competitors hidden back in the office
3. Make sure you laptop is charged at all times just in case there are no power points
4. Always take a note pad and make sure it is on a clear page.

By obeying these rules you should avoid any school boy errors!!

6. Their word

Emotional intelligence is using your common sense to view how other people’s emotions work and how your emotions in turn will respond to them. It is also about being able to read social situations accurately by being aware. If the person you have met looks uninterested or is trying to stifle a yawn, you must read that situation and stop talking about how fantastic your company is and move the conversation onto something else that will be of more interest to the other person, or give them a chance to talk about themselves.

7. Your competition

When meeting with a potential client it is important that you adopt the right mindset and focus.

Identify what key attributes your contact is looking for and consider your competitors fit in their world and how you are positioned in comparison.

8. Client Value

In this economic climate your time is more valuable than ever before. Due to this tough choices may have to be made when considering who you would like to spend time with and drink coffee.

9. Ask SMART questions

The best way to keep a conversation flowing is to ask questions. By asking lots of questions rather than bombarding people with information about yourself, it shows you are polite and have good manners. It also shows you are taking a genuine interest. Ask the person you are drinking coffee with how they got into the business they are in, or how business is going in the current economic climate, where they see the company’s future; people will open up and be pleased you are taking the interest and time to get to know them.

10. Always close with a commitment

When you have paid and said goodbye, do not leave it there. Always follow up a meeting with an email or a phone call to touch base with the person and tell them you had a good time and that you hope you can do it again soon

At Size 10½ Boots, we believe that continuously touching base with clients or potential clients is key to a successful relationship. Always be sure to reference part of a conversation you had for example an email may read:

Really enjoyed our coffee yesterday, I think we both share the same ethos on business, hope to continue our discussion soon.

10½ Give a little extra

Before meeting with someone for a coffee try and think how you can go that extra mile and do more for the person you are meeting. If you know they are interested in the topic of networking and you came across an interesting article on that subject, send that article ahead of your meeting and use it as another touch point.

You never know where going that extra mile could get you.

Famous feet

Nicole Kidman
Actress
Shoe size: 8