I wish all my prospects were just like me. It would be so much easier to sell to them. But, that’s not the case. People are who they are and it’s our job to get them comfortable working with us.

One very effective rapport building technique is to mirror your prospect's behavior. It quickly puts them at ease with you.

The toughest person I ever had to deal with was Don Diggerman. He was a wonderful man. Seriously. A real nice guy. But I dreaded talking to him.

Before calling I’d have to close my eyes, take a long breath and then slowly exhale. I did this multiple times, to calm myself down – because Don was the world’s slowest talker. When I'd catch him on the phone, I'd say something like, "Hi Don. This is Jill Konrath calling."

And he’d say, "Ohhhh, Jillllll.  Howwwww niiiiiice of yoouu to callllll. Weee've beeen trying to deeeciiiiide if Tuuuuuuuesdaaaaay or Thurrrrrsdaaaaay is beeeeeettttter for the demonnnstraation."

It drove me crazy. But he never knew, because I'd respond, "Donnnn. Howwwww abouuuuut Thurrrrrsdaaaaay? It's beeeetter for meeeeeee."

Our entire conversation went at that speed - on purpose. If I'd talked to him normally, I would have scared him to death. My natural approach, which – as you know - is a bit fast and to the point, was totally out of sync with his slower, gentler demeanor.

Because I recognized this, I chose to build rapport with Don in a way that made him feel comfortable.

It was tough for me. But it wasn’t about me. I was treating Don in the way he wanted to be treated.

We need to think about this with all our prospects. It makes a difference – to them.