How to establish contact with a client: methods, example phrases

Communication with clients is a process through which relationships between people are realized, and an important component that makes up almost the entire human life. But communication is not just a conversation between people, but a whole communication system consisting of communicative parties, their mutual influence, ethics, communication techniques, and other components. In everyday life with close people, a person does not think so much about what intonation he has, the tone of his voice, and how high-quality information he conveys. But when the communication process is closely related to work and directly depends on it, then a person must master certain techniques for communicating with clients, methods of conveying information, and be guided by certain rules and ethics.

A person dealing with consumers must make communication a way to achieve a goal. Professional communication and communication skills always have a final positive result for the seller and the client who has satisfied his needs and purchased the service. Achieving mutual understanding, eliminating disagreements, attracting a person as a regular consumer - these are the main goals of communication with clients of a company that tries to preserve its reputation.

Why is it important to establish contact with the client?

Many clients do not trust managers and salespeople. The principle here is: “everyone likes to buy, but no one likes to be sold to.” This is often due to negative experiences with consultants. Therefore, it is important to find an approach to the buyer at the dating stage.

An opinion about the interlocutor is formed in 40 seconds, while the client evaluates the manner of communication, clothing and competence of the manager. Due to the peculiarities of the psyche, it is difficult to change the first impression: if the buyer feels hostility, he will not accept the seller’s proposals and arguments, but will look for confirmation of his emotions.

To overcome the barrier and not get confused during the dialogue, managers use psychological techniques and use sales scripts. These are prepared scenarios for conversation with the client, rules for working with objections, and methods of non-verbal influence. They are created for each business, taking into account its specifics and the needs of the target audience.

conclusions

It doesn’t matter whether you automate communication or not, you need to be able to communicate with customers correctly. Taking care of consumers is the main task of such communication so that they bring profit. Give a person a choice of channel to communicate with the company, monitor the quality of service, save his time and help him find interesting offers. The best ways to build the right interaction with customers is through high-quality collection, integration and intelligent use of data. We are confident that thanks to our system you will receive effective communication with every consumer in any channel and loyal regular customers!

Stages of establishing contact with a client

Working with a new client is a step-by-step process where you need to think through every step.

Tune in to the conversation

This is a preparatory stage to work out the sales script and psychologically prepare for the conversation. Prepare for the formal part of the conversation: study corporate ethics, come up with a greeting and presentation.

Emotions and non-verbal communication are very important: intonation, facial expressions, gestures. People often don't understand how they look from the outside, so practice your greeting in front of a mirror.

Say hello and introduce yourself

The first impression begins with a greeting. It can be neutral - “Good afternoon”, or a little emotional - “Hello, nice to see you.” Then tell them who you are, what you do, and how you can help. Emphasize your own competence. For example, not “I am the seller Peter,” but “My name is Peter. I am a specialist in the smartphone department” or “I am Alina, an expert in paints for exterior and interior use.”

Ask the client's name and periodically address him by name during conversation - this will help make the conversation more personal and trusting.

Try not to use templates - they are only relevant when working with a flow of clients. For example, a hotline specialist in a clinic may use the following greeting: “Ulybka Dental Center, consultant Anna, hello.” And in personal conversations it is better to act according to the situation. If you know a client, personalize your message: “Hello, Sergey Gennadievich, how are things going with...?”

Ask a Question

The next step is to identify the client's problem. Don’t ask: “Can I help you with anything?” — the client will automatically answer “No”, even if he really needs help.

There are two types of questions that will help uncover needs and start a dialogue:

• Open. They provoke a detailed answer, excluding “yes/no”, for example: “Are you choosing for an apartment or a private house?”, “What characteristics are important to you when choosing?”
• Alternative. Questions in the “either/or” format, which invite the client to choose from the proposed options: “Are you willing to wait for delivery from Europe or will we select what is in stock?”, “Which color did you like better: the first or the second?” This technique will help get the client talking, clarify his request, or gently push him to make a decision.

Listen

A good salesperson listens 80% of the time and only talks 20% of the time. Don’t rush to give out the entire script at once: give the client time to think about the question and formulate an answer. Show your interest - nod affirmatively, praise the choice, do not ridicule or devalue his arguments, do not interrupt.

To get more information, ask clarifying questions with the wording: “Did I understand correctly?”, “What do you think?”, “Why?”. The client will have the feeling that the seller wants to solve his problem, and not just fulfill a sales plan.

Offer a ready-made solution

When you understand the client’s request, proceed to the presentation: tell the characteristics of the product or service, their advantages in comparison with other offers. Focus on the benefits for the client. For example, you could say “The blender has 1,250 watts of power.” Or you can - “With this blender you can crush ice, grind coffee, chop frozen vegetables for children.” The first formulation is boring and uninformative, while the second one shows the benefits of the product and evokes emotions.

Think about related products: you can offer a bracket for a wall-mounted TV, a cooling pad and a bag for your laptop. Tell us how the product will solve the problem, for example: “It is important that the laptop is cooled under high load, otherwise the chip will burn out.” This way the client will see care and practical assistance, and not the imposition of an assortment.

Metrics to monitor performance

There are several metrics by which you can judge the effectiveness of implemented customer service standards.

• LTV - Lifetime Value - the total profit that a client brings while working with the company. The metric shows customer loyalty and the benefits of interacting with each of them. This is a financial indicator that can be calculated without the participation of the client himself.
• CSAT - Customer Satisfaction Score - a satisfaction index, in fact, its assessment of the work of a specific operator or service department based on an application. This is a direct assessment of the client, which is worth obtaining from him after the closure of the next request.
• CES - Customer Effort Score - effort index. This is another assessment from the client, which asks him to estimate the amount of effort on his part that was required to resolve the issue. Like the previous one, the metric relates to a specific request and evaluates the work of the service department at a given time.
• NPS - Net Promoter Score - customer loyalty index - his own assessment of how likely he is to recommend the service to colleagues. This metric shows the level of service as a whole, and not the work of a specific specialist. At the same time, it may be influenced by previous negative or positive experience of interaction with the company.

These metrics do not have an objectively “bad” or “good” level. They need to be monitored over time in order to notice the deterioration of service in time and see the results of innovations. This can be done using dashboards from help desk systems, such as Okdesk.

How to contact a buyer

Hackneyed marketing techniques in dialogues cause irritation. To establish contact with the client, use non-trivial methods.

Neutral phrase

Observe the client: how he behaves, what products he chooses. Start the dialogue with a neutral phrase: “Today there are discounts on these models,” “The exhibition will continue on the other side,” “How do you like this color?”

Small-talk

The small-talk technique is a short conversation on abstract topics. Such conversations relieve tension and show interest in the buyer as a person. You can ask about the weather, how the client got to the office, offer to relax and drink tea, tell an interesting fact. The main thing is to show sincere interest, avoid controversial topics and not violate personal boundaries.

Example: “There are such traffic jams today, it’s because of road repairs. How long did it take you to get there?” Contact with the client has been established, you can proceed to the standard greeting according to the script.

Compliment

This technique must be approached with caution: a compliment can win over or repel the interlocutor. Praise is usually used for repeat contacts and in B2B transactions. It is important that the compliment is appropriate and natural. Examples: “A reputable company like yours...”, “We could really use the advice of a specialist with procurement experience like yours.” “As always, you are on time, how do you do it? I try, but I’m still often late.”

A few more tips

Communicate as equals

Do not curry favor with the client, do not fawn - he should feel not like the king of the Universe, but your equal partner . You will have to learn this - especially if you are not a manager, but an ordinary employee. The client must respect you and value your opinion. To do this, you will have to prove yourself to be an excellent expert and show that you really understand the subject of the conversation.

Give compliments

Do you think these are mutually exclusive paragraphs? But no. We do not encourage you to use rude flattery - the standard phrases “You have good taste,” “You have an impressive portfolio on your website,” and so on are quite enough. The person will be pleased, and you will reduce the distance with the client and win him over.

Chat on unrelated topics

For example, about events in the world . Or the market situation in the area your client represents . Or about news from the same sphere - those that he knows for sure. Such conversations will quickly move you from the rank of a talking head to a full-fledged partner who understands the situation and is ready to give expert advice.

Mention an expert

A real expert in the field of sales or a person whom your interlocutor knows for sure. For example, the president. Or the head of a federal company. There is a risk, of course, that it is with this expert that your counterpart has a personal score - then a reference to him will be inappropriate and will only cause irritation. Correct the situation immediately by changing the tone and direction of the conversation.

Refer to a quote from a great man

Your interlocutor definitely has no personal accounts with Socrates, Newton or Pushkin. People love quotes - it brings them closer to the great and seems to give them a piece of wisdom. Stock up on such sayings for all occasions and use them in conversation. Don’t take too hackneyed quotes - it’s better to include something similar and not hackneyed. This will earn you the reputation of being a skilled communicator and earning the respect of your client.

And most importantly: remember that making contact for the first time is not everything. Customers need to be tamed and attracted so that they become permanent . One client for life is better than a dozen one-time ones. Good luck in business!

Psychological techniques for first contact

They are called marketing triggers. They involve the buyer in a conversation, help him open up, and help you strengthen the emotional connection with the client.

Smile

A friendly and sincere smile always comes in handy: a positive attitude is attractive and arouses sympathy. A manager who is in a good mood will sell more than a competitor with a tired or dissatisfied face.

"We are a statement"

Emphasize that you and the client are united by common goals: “We will decide with you,” “Our goal is...”. Such formulations help the buyer to feel involved in the affairs and values ​​of the company - this inspires trust.

Intonation

It is intonation that places semantic emphasis in sentences, shows interest or detachment, and helps manage the emotions of the interlocutor. The main rules: speak confidently and clearly, pausing so that the client has time to think about what has been said. Important details can be voiced a little louder and slower.

Mirroring

A powerful tool for emotional influence. The essence of mirroring is the repetition of poses, facial expressions, and gestures. If you analyze the behavior of the interlocutor and adapt to his mood, pace and manner of speech, then he will feel comfortable, and a tense business conversation will become much more pleasant.

Communication goals

In any communication, a person consciously pursues three goals:

• cognitive – dissemination or acquisition of new knowledge, skills, material things;
• incentive – stimulating other people to take certain actions;
• expressive – expressing or experiencing emotions.

These goals can be achieved if you have:

• knowledge and skills - a person knows something, can do it and can share it with others;
• incentives that encourage action;
• emotions.

Agree, you can sell a product only by thoroughly knowing everything about it and being able to share this knowledge so that a person has a desire to purchase it and at the same time experiences positive emotions.

Features of establishing contact with a client by phone

It is more difficult to keep the attention of your interlocutor over the phone: many techniques will not work here, and the voice is the only marketing tool.

In telephone conversations it is important:

1. Greetings. Introduce yourself: state your name, position and company, and state the purpose of the call. Clients don’t like it when strangers call them, so tell them where you got your contact information: “You left a request on the website,” “You asked to call back when a free spot becomes available.”
2. Acquaintance. Ask how you can address your interlocutor. If you need to contact a decision-maker, find out the position of the interlocutor or ask a clarifying question, for example: “Tell me, with whom can I discuss issues of cooperation?”
3. Interest. Formulate a request that will attract the client's attention. Example: “Are you interested in increasing employee productivity by 50%?”

Here it is also important to pay attention to intonation, speed and manner of speech. During a personal meeting, you can compensate for mistakes with a joke or draw attention to the product. It is almost impossible to revive an unsuccessful telephone conversation.

To collect customer requests from any sources - calls, chats, messages - connect the MANGO OFFICE contact center and process all requests in one window. Using a cloud application, you can create a contact center for the tasks of any business: you only need the Internet, a computer and a headset.

How to resist arrogance and rudeness

Unfortunately, the culture of our society is not as high as we would like. Working in the service sector, you will often encounter arrogance, rudeness, inappropriate behavior, and sometimes aggression. First you need to learn to take this for granted and stop being surprised by this behavior. This will give you the opportunity to learn to demonstrate to your interlocutor that you are not affected by his behavior. The roots of rudeness and arrogance go back to a person’s childhood and upbringing; it is impossible to change his behavior pattern. The most correct behavior would be to demonstrate that this behavior does not work with you and that the person himself will reorganize the dialogue with you in a constructive manner. How to do it? There are several options that can be used depending on the situation.

1. If you are approached in a rude manner, you may not notice or ignore the request. In general, a policy of completely ignoring inappropriate behavior can often help;
2. You can quickly ask a rhetorical question. The goal is to unsettle the manipulator, make him think and thereby seize the initiative;
3. Laugh it off. Often a boor does not expect you to laugh, he expects your resentment and anger. Hearing laughter, he is lost;
4. Astonishment. You can show your disappointment in the person as an interlocutor. Try to shame him by saying a general phrase like “yes, I see the language of Chekhov and Dostoevsky died a long time ago.” I’ll say right away that this tactic will only work if you are being rude not out of malice (this also happens), this trick will not work with boors, manipulators and insolent people.

Recommended reading:

Mistakes when establishing contact with a client

Common reasons for failed sales:

• Too close contact. The minimum distance is a meter. If you stand closer, the buyer will feel uncomfortable and will leave.
• Obsessiveness. If the client interrupts the conversation, there is no need to insist on continuing the dialogue, give him time to think.
• Wrong tone. A greeting that is too emotional or cold will cause hostility - it is better to choose a neutral intonation and then adapt to the interlocutor.
• Repulsive appearance. Managers must be neat, without unpleasant odors of sweat or cigarettes. Sloppiness causes rejection.
• Managers' focus on themselves. A person who is interrupted, overloaded with professional terms, or forced to listen to lengthy monologues will not want to buy anything. It’s good when the staff memorized the speech block of the script. But it’s bad when you haven’t learned to listen to the client.

When do standards fail?

It is important to remember that it is not only the lack of service standards that can be the bottleneck of your service. If you, in principle, do not organize the work of field installers or the supply of missing spare parts, developing a service standard will not help create in the client the idea of ​​​​quality service. When a client has to wait several days for a repair service to arrive, a smile on the field engineer’s face is unlikely to neutralize the negativity.

Before you start developing service standards, you need to make sure that your core business processes are working as they should.

Ethics of relationships

Negotiations of any nature must be carried out respectfully and correctly. Following this style of communication with a potential buyer helps him form a positive opinion not only about the manager, but also about the company whose interests he represents.

A core component of business ethics is courtesy. It should be manifested not only in words, but also in behavior. Specific actions, actions, and even facial expressions have an important influence on a person’s opinion. You can show respect for your interlocutor by listening carefully to the object of your desired acquisition, as well as through intonation and tone of voice.

During the negotiation process, you should not be distracted by resolving extraneous issues.

The manager must delve into the buyer’s words and answer all his questions. It is unacceptable to raise your voice at your interlocutor, even if he provokes such a reaction by his behavior. The seller's elevated tone and hostility will certainly have a negative impact on his desire to make a purchase. The manager must be able to defuse the situation and set the client up for a deal. A company representative is not recommended to interrupt the interlocutor, interrupt the conversation, or leave him in the dark regarding issues that interest him.