It's sad but true that the saying, you never get a second chance to make a first impression is accurate. 3 actions will make sure that rarely happens.
There's a saying that I think most of us have heard, "you never get a second chance to make a first impression." If you've ever made a bad first impression, then you know that saying is true.
When I was doing door-to-door commercial sales for an outside sales company that sold Reliant energy, we had to knock on a minimum of 40 doors each day. So, I was constantly making first impressions and people were often making decisions about whether to buy from me based on that impression.
I've heard that most people decide if they want to buy from someone within the first 10 seconds of meeting them. Now, you may not be knocking on doors to sell something, but we are all selling something almost all the time. If you don't think you're in sales, I will refer you to a quote from Dave Ramsey at one of his conferences...
"Everyone in the room that's married put your hand up. If your hand is up, you made a sale. You persuaded someone who you were worth spending their life with you."
So, how do we make better first impressions, get people to keep listening, and, ultimately, say "yes" to whatever we're selling? These are 3 tips that I learned while going door-to-door and, since they've served me well, I believe they will work for you too! They are called the S.E.E. factors and they are as follows.
We are naturally drawn to people that we perceive as happy. Whether its walking into a business, walking into the boss' office, or up to our significant other, make sure that you have a smile on your face from the first second and don't stop smiling.
If you need help getting into the smiling mood, think about something that makes you laugh. Personally, if I think about Donkey, from the animated movie Shrek, saying, "I like that boulder! That is a NICE boulder!" I can't help but smile and laugh a little.
This is part of communication 101. Increased eye contact gives the impression that you're confident and truthful. Both of those increase trust in whomever you're talking to and you will NEVER make a sale without trust.
If you're not enthusiastic about whatever you're selling or proposing, it will decrease your believability and create questions in the mind of the prospect. Questions like, "if they don't care about what they're selling, why should I?".
Remember, most of your excitement is communicated through your eyes and voice. Enthusiasm decreases as it's passed on. So, if you want your prospect to be pretty excited about your product or proposal, then you better be very excited!
What upcoming opportunity do you have that you can use these S.E.E. factors?
Resources:
Book: EntreLeadership: 20 Years of Practical Business Wisdom from the Trenches
by Dave Ramsey
There are 5 guidelines that will make sure that your goals are great and that you see a higher level of success at the end of the year.
How can we make sure that we finish our goals as strong as we start them and not get discouraged? The answer came from 3 insights I gained from a...
Do you know your mental, emotional, and even spiritual strengths? There are 4 actions that will improve your effectiveness as a leader.