HOW TO SEAL THE DEAL IN SEVEN SECONDSWritten by Lydia Ramsey
Can you close a sale in just seven seconds? If you make a great first impression, you can do it even faster. Seven seconds is average length of time you have to make a first impression. If yours is not good, you won’t get another chance with that potential client. But if you make a great first impression you can bet that client is more likely to take you and your company seriously.Whether your initial meeting is face-to-face, over phone or via Internet, you do not have time to waste. It pays for you to understand how people make their first judgment and what you can do to be in control of results. 1. LEARN WHAT PEOPLE USE TO FORM THEIR FIRST OPINION. When you meet someone face-to-face, 93% of how you are judged is based on non-verbal data---your appearance and your body language. Only 7% is influenced by words that you speak. Whoever said that you can’t judge a book by its cover failed to note that people do. When your initial encounter is over phone, 70% of how you are perceived is based on your tone of voice and 30% on your words. Clearly, it’s not what you say---it’s way that you say it. 2. CHOOSE YOUR FIRST TWELVE WORDS CAREFULLY. Although research shows that your words make up a mere 7% of what people think of you in a one-on-one encounter, don’t leave them to chance. Express some form of thank you when you meet client. Perhaps, it is “Thank you for taking your time to see me today” or “Thank you for joining me for lunch.” Clients appreciate you when you appreciate them. 3. USE THE OTHER PERSON’S NAME IMMEDIATELY. There is no sweeter sound than that of our own name. When you use client’s name in conversation within your first twelve words and first seven seconds, you are sending a message that you value that person and are focused on him. Nothing gets other people’s attention as effectively as calling them by name. 4. PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR HAIR. Your clients will. In fact, they will notice your hair and face first. Putting off that much-needed haircut or color job may cost you deal. Very few people want to do business with someone who is unkempt or whose hairstyle does not look professional. Don’t let a bad hair day cost you connection. 5. KEEP YOUR SHOES IN MINT CONDITION. People will look from your face to your feet. If your shoes aren’t well maintained, client will question whether you pay attention to other details. Shoes should be polished as well as appropriate for business environment. They may last thing you put on before you walk out door, but they are often first thing your client sees. 6. WALK FAST. Studies show that people who walk 10-20% faster than others are viewed as important and energetic---just kind of person your clients want to do business with. Pick up pace and walk with purpose if you want to impress. You never know who may be watching.
| | The Top Twelve E-Mail Mistakes That Can Sabotage Your CareerWritten by Lydia Ramsey
You return to your office from an afternoon meeting and decide to check e-mail. An hour later, having downloaded your messages, selecting those you should read, deleting ones that look like junk, crafting replies to most important ones, filing others that you want to work on later, you wonder where your day went. It was like that when you arrived at work this morning, and tomorrow promises to be no different.What is this e-mail explosion? Was there a point in time when entire world decided to use Internet as their business communication tool of choice? Are there rules for managing these messages and being a professional and polite user of electronic mail? There are, but not everyone has gotten word. Your e-mail is as much a part of your professional image as clothes you wear, postal letters you write (assuming you still do), greeting on your voice mail and handshake you offer. If you want to impress on every front and build positive business relationships, pay attention to your e-mail and steer clear of these top twelve e-mail mistakes: 1.OMITTING THE SUBJECT LINE. We are way past time when we didn’t realize significance of subject line. It makes no sense to send a message that reads “no subject” and seems to be about nothing. Given huge volume of e-mail that each person receives, subject header is essential if you want your message read any time soon. The subject line has become hook 2.NOT MAKING YOUR SUBJECT LINE MEANINGFUL. Your header should be pertinent to your message, not just “Hi” or “Hello.” The recipient is going to decide order in which he reads e-mail based on who sent it and what it is about. Your e-mail will have lots of competition. 3.FAILING TO CHANGE THE HEADER TO CORRESPOND WITH THE SUBJECT. For example, if you are writing your web publisher, your first header may be “Web site content.” However, as your site develops and you send more information, label each message for what it is, “contact info,” “graphics,” or “home page.” Don’t just hit “reply” every time. Changing header will allow your publisher to find a specific document in his message folder without having to search every one you sent. If you change subject all together, start a new message. 4.NOT PERSONALIZING YOUR MESSAGE TO THE RECIPIENT. E-mail is informal but it still needs a greeting. Begin with “Dear Mr. Broome,” “Dear Jim,” “Hello Jim,” or just “Jim.” Failure to put in person’s name can make you and your e-mail seem cold. 5.NOT ACCOUNTING FOR TONE. When you communicate with another person face to face, 93% of message is non-verbal. E-mail has no body language. The reader cannot see your face or hear your tone of voice so chose your words carefully and thoughtfully. Put yourself in other person’s place and think how your words may come across in Cyberspace. . 6.FORGETTING TO CHECK FOR SPELLING AND GRAMMAR. In early days of e-mail, someone created notion that this form of communication did not have to be letter perfect. Wrong. It does. It is a representation of you. If you don’t check to be sure e-mail is correct, people will question caliber of other work you do. Use proper capitalization and punctuation, and always check your spelling. Remember that your spellchecker will catch misspelled words, but not misused ones. It cannot tell whether you meant to say “from” or “form,” “for” or “fro”, “he” or “the.”
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