Learning to interpret emotions, through body language, can be useful from diplomacy and police to nursing and psychotherapy. Sales are not the exception, an efficient use of body language can help us close a deal. During a negotiation you can use the most convincing commercial argument, however, your body is also transmitting a message, and sometimes it can contradict you, showing what you really feel: security, calm, pressure, etc.
Although a large part of non-verbal communication is unconscious, it is important to know all the communicative resources that we use to know how they influence during the sales process and to try to dominate them.
Do not let your body language betray you! Keep in mind the following tips:
Always Smile
There is no better way to start a sale than smiling. A sincere smile generates a predisposition in the client to listen to you and trust you. However, do not offer an excessive smile that instead of showing you as a friendly and positive person, project you as someone false. The positive reaches of a smile are huge. Daniel Goldman writes in his work the “Social Intelligence” that: “Smiles have an advantage over all other emotional expressions: the human brain prefers happy faces, recognizes them more quickly and quickly than those with negative expressions, a known effect as the happy face advantage.
With a good smile, you will provoke a good predisposition in the client to listen to you. Remember; a sincere smile is characterized: “by the involuntary activation of two muscle groups”, there is an elevation in both corners of the mouth, symmetrically and the second group, marks wrinkles at the corners of the eyes.
Give a good handshake
If it’s a formal sale, always say hello. In other types of sales, such as retail, the customer does not expect to receive any contact and may be uncomfortable. When you shake hands, you see the person directly in the eyes, while you smile and offer the palm facing up to project safety. When you shake hands, take care of the strength you apply, since a strong one transmits confidence, while a weak one, little confidence, one with sweaty hands, nervousness and those in which the client’s hand is squeezed, intimidation.
Stand at an appropriate distance
The ideal distance to negotiate a sale is between 1.2 and 2 meters. Being closer to the client can generate discomfort and be further away disinterest.
Pay attention to your movements
Your position should always reflect openness. Do not cross your feet or arms, because they transmit negativity and disbelief. Do not speak in a stooped position, as it weakens your voice and projects insecurity. Avoid touching your face, playing with your glasses, hair or jewelry, because these gestures convey nervousness, worry, discomfort, insecurity or annoyance. Also, in a sale they say “I do not believe what I’m saying”. The inclination of your face with respect to the client’s can reveal a great diversity of emotions: low head, defensive posture; head and eyes inclined down, submission; head and look towards the ground, boredom; head raised or tilted, interest; head and gaze to the ceiling, boredom or concentration; nodding head, approval; head movement from side to side, disapproval;
Watch your look
When speaking with your client, keep your eyes on him, report it in case he comes with other people and alternates with looks to the product, when necessary. Avoid bothering your client with long, fixed looks.
Eliminate manipulators
Self-manipulation or manipulation consists of touching the face, hair or ears with the hands; “Rub your nose; remove lint, real or imaginary threads of clothing; shake off dust or dandruff; adjust the glasses; play with hair; stretch, caress or twist necklaces, earrings or jewelry. These gestures allow us to know the state of alteration (nervousness, worry, anguish, discomfort, insecurity, annoyance, etc.)
Moderate your voice
In many cases, it is more important how things are said, than what is said. Therefore, take care of your intonation, since it can reveal a lot about you: honesty, insecurity, etc. He also learns to use the silences and pauses, without falling into excess, because it could be uncomfortable for the client.
Make a mirror effect
It is proven that people feel more comfortable with people who look like us. For this reason, he tries to imitate the gestures of the client, taking care that it is natural and avoiding that he feels imitated. Put these tips into practice and remember that an efficient use of body language can help you close a deal.
The posture
Your position should be open at all times, crossing your arms, putting a folder or a finger tie on your chest will create a communication barrier, so it will be more complicated to communicate efficiently and generate empathy with your client. On the other hand, tilting the head and slightly tilting the trunk of the body forward, will help you generate understanding, empathy, and closeness with your client.
The greeting Always say hello to your clients
When doing so, veil them directly in the eyes – while you smile – and offer your palm upwards, the foregoing will project safety and helpfulness. “Those who offer their hand in this way are people inclined to assist others, or establish constructive forms of competition”. Take care that your greeting is firm, comfortable and full contact, it is also important that your hand is dry. A sweaty greeting, giving the cupped hand, partially (only the fingers) or “warm” generates distrust and an image of insecurity.
Take care of your image
“When an individual comes to the presence of others, they usually try to acquire information about him or put into play what they already have. They will be interested in their general socioeconomic status, their self-concept, their attitude towards them, their competence, their integrity, etc. The previous sentence illustrates the importance of the first impression, it can simply be definitive. So we must take care of the details of our image, a button of the loose neck, a badly adjusted tie, a careless knot, tousled, shoes without shine, a food stain on face or yellow teeth, among many other details, they can generate an image of lack of professionalism. Customers will distrust you immediately.
Speak clearly
Remember the statistics of the mentioned study, which reveal the importance of the tone of voice. It is important to reduce the speed to be intelligible, choose a firm but adequate volume, dose your energy and concentrate not only on what but on how you express the content. While there are many who stress the importance of the 80-20 rule, there is talk that in the field of sales the proportion can rise to 93-7: according to a study conducted by a professor of psychology at UCLA, there are three elements that explain the impact we receive from other people’s messages: words represent 7%, while the tone of voice implies 38% and body language is 55%.
Finally, on many occasions, we have stressed the importance of body language to achieve sales in all areas. Its management is key when it comes to giving a conference, closing a business agreement, generating trust in customers, partners and employees or getting out of a job interview . And in the field of commerce, the thing is not different: the power of gestures is indisputable. The position of your body is essential to make a credible story, build confidence and demonstrate safety without falling into arrogance. According to Steve Maxwell, a fitness trainer, you can fix it in five minutes. It is essential to straighten up, keep the spine straight, shoulders relaxed, head up and of course, maintain eye contact.
