“Tom, I responded, “why not make it a little easier on
yourself? You know that in a competitive situation you have to get them to
know, like and trust you before they will buy. What if you knew, going in,
a way to get to Trust faster?”

“It would be better still if I didn’t have to go through all
that,” Tom groused.

“Okay,” I said, “All you have to do is practice a little Friendly
Persuasion before during and after the meeting. Here’s how:

Before Check out
his/her bio on the corporate web site, on Linked In and possibly Facebook and
other sources. Look for similarities to your background and these conversation
starters:

• Where
  they grew up (or moved here from)
• The industries
  and businesses they have worked in
• Their education
• Sports
  participation
• Single?
  Married? Kids?
• Pets?
• What
  they do for fun
• Association
  participation
• Friends
  or contacts in common

During  Use questions based on the knowledge you
have gained to build rapport. Consider:

• I see
  you were previously working for (Company) in (City) what brought you here?
  (This is an opening to tell what brought you here and begin bonding.)
• There was
  a photo of you on face book doing (activity) Is that what you do for fun? (Again
  a way to talk about what could be common thing between you or a way to
  better understand the prospects viewpoint.)
• I
  noticed that you and (friend’s name) are both members of (association). I’ve
  been thinking about joining. Do you think that would be good idea? (This
  is a way to allow her/him to ask you to attend as a guest and build a
  bonding experience among his/her colleagues.)

After Be sure to enter
the data you acquire into your CRM system immediately.

If you don’t already have fields consider adding these:

• Education
• Birth date
  and Place
• Connections
• Family
• Affiliations
• Hobbies/Recreations
  
• Special
  interests
• Key
  Career Points
• Major
  accomplishments
• The Unexpected

A little Friendly Persuasion goes a long way toward closing
the deal.”

Jerry Fletcher Speaks Professionally: www.NetworkingNinja.com

Learn his consulting viewpoint: www.JerryFletcher.com