PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Is Your Communication Hitting the Mark?
By Mindy Gibbins-Klein
W
hat do your books and articles, A perfect balance
your speaking and training, and The answer is a perfect
your one-to-one client interactions balance between what
all have in common? In every case, there is a you want to say and what
message you would like to share. I appreciate your reader or listener
that communication sometimes is a dialogue needs to hear. I will call
and this article focuses on the part of the them ‘the customer’ for the
conversation where you are transmitting rest of this article. We all have
information or guiding the client (so not plenty of information and ideas
pure open coaching questions). In particular, we would like to share with our
we’ll be looking at ways to ensure you hit the customers, but just like you cannot
mark with your audience, more effectively drink a gallon of water in one sitting,
and more often. the customer will have a limit
Tony Robbins is a recognised master of to the amount he or she can take,
effective communication. One of the reasons and it helps if they are thirsty!
he is so successful is that he has never flinched Passion is great and it sometimes comes getting through to the customer, consider doing
from the responsibility of delivering messages across as selling or preaching. From experience, this sort of customer profiling. If you cannot
of tough love, and he does so with respect I think most people prefer other means of answer the questions with confidence, a survey
and always in rapport. An expert in NLP persuasion to selling and preaching. Simply or questionnaire can be a helpful tool. Get
techniques, Tony effortlessly tackles even the being aware of the need for balance is a start. customers to profile themselves and tell you
touchiest subjects and the most cynical clients, Then you can look at what you would like to what their biggest concerns are. Then your
creating trust and commitment at every stage. convey and figure out how much to share, at job is easy. Create a solid link between the
This is true for his books, videos and web what pace and what tone you should take to hit information you have to share and the
material as well as face-to-face communication. the mark. customer’s concern. You can create links
A good coach can see the solution before the between just about any two ideas if you put
How to Hit the Mark with some thought into it, and you will hit the mark
A good coach can see the
the customer more accurately and more often. Have fun!
Most of us are pretty good at
solution before the client
verbal communications. Before
you set out to write anything - a
can, but they need to pace book, an article, a blog or even
and lead the conversation,
an email - get into the head of
the customer. In NLP terms, we
remaining sensitive to the
might call this association. But
how do we know what attributes
other person’s feelings
to associate with? You need to Mindy Gibbins-Klein the UK’s leading writing and
do an inventory of what you
publishing strategist, best known as The Book
client can, but they need to pace and lead the already know about the customer. Use all 5
Midwife and co-founder/director of Ecademy
conversation, remaining sensitive to the other senses. Go back to an experience with an ideal
Press business publishing. Her mission is to
person’s feelings. And the stronger the message, customer and ask yourself what they were like.
create thousands of real thought leaders who will
change business and society with their ideas.
the more care you need to take. At The Book Midwife, for example, we do
Many of us need to communicate strong a demographic and psychographic analysis,
An international speaker, trainer and consultant
messages at times, and it is essential to do followed by an in-depth needs analysis where
with 20 years in marketing, training and
so in rapport with the client. As I have we are obsessed with getting to the heart of the
coaching, and over 100 clients who have written
said in previous issues of this magazine, customer’s pain. What issues are they struggling
and published excellent books and articles
written communication can be even more with? It’s our belief that unless what you have quickly using the Book Midwife methodology,
challenging than verbal, since you do not to offer resolves key areas of pain for the Mindy writes and speaks to thousands of
get the immediate feedback and the ability customer, your solution will be seen as a ‘nice
executives, business leaders and entrepreneurs
to build rapport using multiple modalities. to have’ instead of a ‘must have’.
each year about how to become a thought leader
So, what tone should you take and how This is all basic marketing. It should be
and turning expertise into enhanced credibility
far can you go in order to inspire without common sense, but as we know, common sense
and more business.
breaking rapport? is not that common. If your messages are not
rapport - Summer 2009
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