Ep. 286 Trust + Affinity = Rapport

What does the word ‘rapport’ mean to you? Joe Pici shares what it takes to establish and maintain rapport for increasing sales and improving customer experience.

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Get ready for an unfair advantage over your competition. This is The Sales Edge podcast. Where globally recognized sales expert and trainer Joe Pici helps you sharpen your skills for booking more appointments and closing more deals. And now here’s your host Joe Pici.

Joe Pici (JP):

Welcome to the sales edged podcast number 286. I’m your host, Joe Pici. And we want to thank Pici and Pici Inc. and sell more virtually.com, which are online and live training platforms. Sell more virtually. I’m out there every Thursday Night Live doing a Mentorship doing a coaching doing a mega training with our members. There’s also downloads in e-courses and so much to offer in in Pici and Pici is are speaking coaching training consulting firm where what we do is help companies, negotiate higher profit. Margin navigate Gatekeepers, overcome objectives, get in front of your target market and we especially want to thank you who your loyalty, you know, we’ve been doing this now.

Every Tuesday, every Thursday is because of you as helping us grow this this podcast around the world and we appreciate that. So let’s get started, you know for years Dawn and I have studied and taught what Rapport is and how to attain it. In fact many many, many years ago. Many years ago. We were sitting in a training ourselves and the word rapport was thrown out on the table to which I observed. And every person at the table, had a different definition, a different level of relationship, that they believed Rapport was. We’ve heard the most famous speakers trainers, authors share, their perspective of what is Rapport there. All right, you know some things we agreed on something we don’t. And in fact, I know this beyond a shadow of a doubt

You don’t agree with everything I say and that’s a healthy thing, you know, just like you, you’re going to disagree, but we’ll pour is one of those words that it really spans. So many. So, you know, some people think it’s the entry level of relationship and some people think it isn’t. So, we’re going to get into this. I’m gonna ask you a question today, and I know you might be riding a bike or driving a car. You can’t pull over but sometime, I’d like you.

Now, Googling it without checking a definition. If I say, Rapport. What do you believe that word means to you? You know, once again, many many people will just throw it around as being an entry-level, to a relationship. There’s some famous people that believe mirroring is a high level of Rapport, you know, it builds. Building, Rapport, quite frankly for us takes time. So we’re going to give you the Pici and Pici definition. Once again, this is our opinion for. What we believe Rapport is Rapport, is the deepest level of relationship between two people in business, which involves sharing common ground, and it establishes, when Harmony and Accord has been reached between both parties. This does not mean that a

Re on every issue. It does mean that they have attained a mutual respect for each other’s opinions, at Rapport and individual knows you like you and trust you the simply put trust plus Affinity Plus testing equals Rapport. Now, again, that’s our definition, but if You like our definition. We have to agree on one thing today. It’s going to take time. This is not a handshake. This is not mirroring people across the table. This is not just clarifying. Okay, as in Chris voss’s book. This is not just labeling. All of these things can help on the road to Rapport. However, if you agree with our definition of Rapport, then you can see, it’s going to take

Time to get to that know like and Trust level of a relationship and then our business Joe and on peachy’s philosophy and our business is to get to the Rapport level with our clients. That is such a vital thing. So let’s talk about as trust. Being one of the key components to developing rapport. Trust is a firm belief and the reliability truth and ability. And strength of someone or something. We say that again. Trust is the firm belief and the reliability, the truth, the ability and the strength of someone or something can people trust us? Is this how you gauge your trust for other people? Certainly is for me Affinity. Okay. Is a feeling of closeness.

Understanding. That someone has for another person because of similar qualities, ideas, interests, and communication. This is more about liking someone, so trust again, trust. Is about hard core beliefs and and abilities and strengths, and delivering what, you promised, whereas Affinity is more relational, they like you. And so the combination, as I said, when you bring together trust in Affinity, but then testing that’s the road. That’s the road we go on for Rapport, once Rapport is reached.

The next level becomes trusted advisor. Now the mistake we can fall into here and the challenge I have for all of us is to assume we’ve gotten to Rapport is to think. Well, I’ve spent this many years with this client is really not about longevity. It has nothing to do with longevity. And let me tell you something else. You don’t determine when you have the rapport with. They do. Because the minute you have Rapport, you’re no longer sitting across the table from them. They’ve invited you to their side of the table. Question is like, Joe. What do you think? We should do? Joe? What do you think would be the best plan of operation? Joe? What do you think we should do with that employee jo1 hiring somebody.

What do you think we should looking for all of a sudden? The questions come from them and they truly and sincerely want your input. Why? Because they trust you. And they like you and they can count on you. You know, the whole thing about, you know, we’re doing a lot of training now on negotiation and we’ve added that. We’ve always done it, but we’ve really punched it up and added that to our portfolio to work with our clients. Whether it’s in our boot camp where we go do corporate training, you know, this negotiation think quite frankly becomes a lot easier when you have rapport with the people you’re negotiating.

That’s not going to happen, right away in the beginning, you’re negotiating with people that you don’t have rapport with but the day you hit the rapport. The negotiation will change because both now stay with me here. Both parties want a win-win solution. See if you don’t have Rapport the the whole negotiation thing, one might want to win while the other losses. But when Rapport is front and center both parties, want to come to the table with the win-win because they

A long-term relationship. So you add that report. You’re going to break free of cost and pricing. You’re going to break Break Free of the fact. Do they believe you can deliver you do as a leader in a manager of your team? It’s not just about sales is about developing rapport with people that work for you that you work for for people to follow you. This is about influence. They, how do you have to get to Rapport? And so, you know, at Rapport, you had gained respect, this is whether you’re dealing with your clients, your employees, your, in your employer.

Whatever. They value your opinion. So now they respect you and it puts a higher value on your opinion. You have attained higher credibility. And this isn’t that the hard part. I was on Marcus Ogden’s podcast, just last Thursday, and he said to me Joe. Can you speak to some of our audience? That’s just getting started in business. They’re just, they’re just rolling things out. How do you build credibility? And I said, number one. Everybody’s had a first climb but you build credibility by doing what you say, you’re going to do when you’re going to do. It being on time, on scope on budget, returning every phone call.

Never being late. Remaining and he said to me, that’s it. What’s where you start? You want to build credibility, you start by executing what you promised. The next one is, you’re going to have a greater impact. So it’s you develop respect, you have much higher value on your opinion. You have higher credibility and you’re going to have a greater impact. Why? Because you have the time to deliver it. And so, when you’re looking at that, I want you to start doing this self-assessment.

How many people have rapport with me? In other words, are they seeking to develop rapport with me? How can they develop rapport with me? Do I trust them? Do they return? My phone calls? Are they on time? Do they deliver what they promise? Or do they execute situational ethics? Do I like them? And you know, we go into a whole training on this. There’s, we have as part of our live boot camp as part of our corporate training and part of our Mega course, on sell more virtually. There’s a section here called the Rapport Mastery section and I don’t have the time to go into the depth of this, that I’d like to, but that section teaches you how to attain rapport with

Client with everyone you work for. And even people you live with. Once again, the byproduct of Rapport is to become the trusted advisor and that’s a great place to be because now you have a seat at the table. I don’t care if you’re not there employee. I don’t care what it is. The day, you become a company or an individual’s trusted advisor. You the whole body language of your relationship changes. Don’t all of a sudden, they feel very comfortable calling you at 8:00.

Thirty at night and Sam got a situation Joe. Can you help me? They feel very comfortable with that? Because now you’re part of the Inner Circle. How many people are you part of their Inner Circle? How many companies do you have this relationship with? Here’s a homework assignment and don’t call them up. Don’t call your clients up and say am I your trusted advisor. Do I have rapport with you? You don’t have to ask them. You just have to watch their actions. It’s easy to know when people trust you. It’s easy to evaluate.

Relationships, but be really honest. And so what I call them, these are pressure points in our business. Our pressure points, are those companies that we have tremendous rapport with. But here’s something else. I’m going to tell you right now. Everyday, you seek to re establish Rapport, never assume. You’re going to stay there. Never become entitled to that relationship and be very careful. You don’t break a trust, you know, if you break an affinity thing with people and maybe you embarrass them or something. It’s want to be you break a trust.

You have a very hard time walking. I have very rarely seen in my life. Trust rebuilt. So we must be very careful. Which means every project you do for a client better, be on time, which means everything you say to them. You better evaluate your words before you execute, which means, you return every phone call. I don’t care. If you’ve had a client for 20 years, you still return that phone call. Because crust can be broken because of actions not being executed. So, you know, as we close out, I want you to consider something here. I really want you to take

Go to sell more virtually.com. And look at that, video course, that free video course, non-essentials of sales, success and really go through the whole thing and consider the mega course. Because in the mega course, things like overcoming objections. Navigating the gatekeeper value propositions, 20 steps to lead generation and on, and on and on, but

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Thanks for listening. New episodes will air each Tuesday and Thursday. So make sure to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts and give us a five star review. The Sales Edge is sponsored by Pici and Pici Incorporated. A firm which provides training, consulting, and keynote presentations. Empowering corporations and individuals to attract and retain quality clients, for higher revenues and growth. Make more money in sales, speak with Joe in person by calling 407 947 2590 or visit www.piciandpici.com