Strengthening the Front Line
Professional impressions
Face-to-face client meetings call for special skill sets
By Emily Huling, CIC, CMC
Suppose you’re a sales person or senior service representative, and you’ve just gotten what you’ve worked so hard for—large account assignments and more responsibility with clients. As a result, you’ll be making more solo visits to clients’ offices and conducting face-to-face business meetings.
Creating a positive image that serves both you and your agency outside the office requires professional courtesies and personal presentation proficiency. Without these, your knowledge and capabilities can fall on deaf ears. To be taken seriously, you must consistently look and act the part of a business authority.
Here are some suggestions to enhance your confidence and credibility when dealing with clients on their turf:
Build rapport. The key is to remember names of and personal facts about as many people as you can within the client’s organization. This includes support staff and key players. What can you learn about someone that will warm up the relationship? What will enable you to pick up where you left off from a previous conversation? It can be as simple as “How long have your worked here?” “What’s your background in this business?” “Where were you raised?” “What sports teams do you root for?” “Where do you like to vacation?” Find a nugget of information that will allow you to create an exchange of positive responses.
When you are interested in others, people find you interesting. Striving to relate effectively with others can help business transactions move smoothly, even when there are difficult issues to address. A basic principle to remember is to make others feel important and enhance rapport. Say a person’s name in the conversation.
If you struggle with remembering names at networking events or business meetings, here are three tips. (1) Start telling yourself you are good at remembering names. Positive affirmations work. (2) Repeat the person’s name at the time of introduction and use it in your conversation. (3) Make a mental note connecting the name with a personal fact or characteristic. If possible, make written notes to reinforce your memory.
Have a firm handshake. Whether you’re a man or woman, handshakes should be firm and eye contact should be made. Here’s a trick to be sure your handshakes are consistent. Open your right hand vertical to the floor with your thumb pointed up. Extend your hand to the other person in this position linking your hand to theirs in the same fashion. This is a “web to web” grip. Give one quick pump, make eye contact, and then release. If you are sitting when someone offers you his or her hand, always stand and squarely face the other person when shaking hands.
Be approachable and practice perfect posture. Smile. Let people know you’re glad to be there. You don’t have to grin like the Cheshire Cat. A slightly upturned mouth will do fine. Your body position should be open and inviting to your colleagues. Stand tall with your shoulders relaxed and horizontal to the floor. Your chin should tilt slightly outward away from your neck. Your arms should be relaxed at your side, hands out of your pockets. When sitting, don’t slouch. Lean slightly forward demonstrating engagement in the proceedings. Having both feet on the floor, rather than crossed, helps keep seated posture professional and attentive.
Dress appropriately for client visits. Appropriate attire is broadly defined here. Insurance professionals inspecting a construction site will sport different attire than when visiting a law firm. Here’s the basic principle that covers most situations: Attire should meet standard professional guidelines—clean, pressed, and well-fitting. In addition to that, dress one step better than those you are meeting with. Even if the client’s office is casual attire (golf shirts and khaki pants), dress in business casual clothing. That means at minimum a jacket, for both men and women, worn over a collared shirt or blouse. The message sent is “I’m here to do business.” Dressing up even one step more with a tie for a man or business suit for a woman would be appropriate as well.
Turn off electronic devices. Cell phones and PDAs ringing or vibrating distract, intrude, and change the momentum of a meeting. Since you wouldn’t take the call anyway, it will go immediately to voice mail. If you are waiting for a critical call, let the others in the meeting know and use the vibrate mode. Slip out of the room quietly before answering the call.
Keep your agreements. Let the outside client know of any changes to your original plan. More people coming? Fewer people? Running a few minutes late? Need a flip chart? A larger conference room? This is what cell phones are for. Let your host know as much as you can ahead of time. It demonstrates respect and courtesy.
Parking at a client’s office or job site. You’re not a customer. You’re a business partner. Park far from the door, leaving close spaces available for the real customer. I’ve been giving this tip for more than 20 years. I still receive thanks from company people and agents who tell me their clients have noticed their regard and respect for their business relationship by not parking in customer spaces.
Joint calls. This is now common practice. Members of the account handling team arrive from separate points for a meeting. This can reflect poorly on an organization’s professional image! The time to plan, strategize, and set the tone is not in the client’s parking lot. Meet off-site at a fast-food restaurant or nearby parking lot to get organized. Arrive at the same time (even with separate cars) to make it easy on your client. A host shouldn’t be expected to offer coffee, hang coats, and take people to the conference room multiple times. Handling this effectively will set you apart from the competition, I assure you! I’ve witnessed this botched business practice more times than I’ve seen it handled correctly.
Lunch host. When possible, make reservations. This demonstrates you’ve thought ahead and avoids long waits or no available tables. Let the server know to give you the check. Allow your guests to order first.
A few notes about table etiquette: Place your napkin on your lap immediately upon being seated. If the silverware is wrapped in the napkin, place the silverware in the traditional position in front of you. Your bread plate is on the left, glassware on the right. Most of us eat in the traditional American style. We cut a piece of food using a knife and fork, then lay down the knife, place the fork in our dominant hand, and take a bite. Do not cut up all of your food at one time. It may seem efficient to do so, but it’s not proper etiquette.
When you have finished, do not push your plate away from you. The common way to show that you have finished your meal is to lay your fork and knife diagonally across your plate. Place your knife and fork side by side, with the sharp side of the knife blade facing inward and the fork, tines down, to the left of the knife. The knife and fork should be placed as if they are pointing to the numbers 10 and 4 on a clock face. Once you have used a piece of silverware, never place it back on the table. Do not leave a used spoon in a cup; place it on the saucer.
E-mail etiquette. Business guidelines include a clear descriptive subject line, the message in quality letter-writing form, your e-mail signature at the end of all messages, and only copy those who absolutely need a copy.
The most important thing to remember with external clients—respond promptly! Even if you don’t know the answer or don’t have time to respond thoroughly, send a quick, “Got it! Will get back to you shortly.” Clients need to know you’re on top of things.
Voice mail messages. Rule number one: Speak slowly. As we all know, replaying a message several times to get the information needed to return a call is not good business. Since we don’t know from where messages will be retrieved or who will be retrieving them, be sure to leave your name, company, and repeat your phone number twice. Briefly state the purpose of your call and whether you need a call back personally or if a voice mail message will do. You’ll avoid a lot of telephone tag this way.
Following up after the visit. Obviously, get back to the client with any information you’ve committed to send as promptly as possible. In addition, a personal thank-you note on agency stationery for their extra time, effort, hospitality or simply to thank them for their business is always a welcome gesture.
Impressions are made in a matter of seconds. Take the time and effort to present yourself at your best to those you do business with externally. Your attention to these details will contribute to lasting positive relationships that will enhance your business success. *
The author
Emily Huling, CIC, CMC, helps the insurance industry create top-performing sales and customer service organizations. She is the author of Selling from the Inside and Kick Your “But.” For information on her programs and products call (888) 309-8802 or visit www.sellingstrategies.com.