Every sales expert will tell you how important building rapport with your prospects is. They’ll also offer various techniques and strategies to teach you how to do it.
I say, screw that.
You don’t need rapport. You need to close deals. And sometimes, to close deals, you need to break rapport and be real.
Here’s an example of this.
A couple of months ago, Kevin, leading our sales team, was on a call with a prospect. A few minutes into the call, we heard the guy shouting through Kevin’s headset. The prospect was upset about some non-issue and was probably just having a bad day.
Most sales reps become apologetic and try to appease a prospect in such a situation.
Not Kevin.
Kevin started shouting back. He wasn’t angry, emotionally involved, hurt, or upset. He just stood his ground.
Everyone in the office was now listening to Kevin and the prospect's shouting match. After the call ended, Kevin grinned: “I don’t know if they will become a customer, but I think the chances are pretty good.”
Guess what happened next?
We all went on with our work, but two hours later, our HipChat integration notified us that the prospect Kevin had yelled at had just entered their credit card information and become a paying customer.
Don’t Be Scared to Rattle the Cage
Too many sales reps optimize for likability. They’re too timid to break out of their fake politeness. Their modus operandi is automatic amiability.
They carry through the conversation with a forced smile, always staying in a safe zone where they don’t offend anyone.
A Well-Behaved & Worthless Cold Call
Let’s call this sales rep Affable Alfred. He cold-calls a prospect and introduces himself and his offer. The prospect isn’t interested and is just looking for a convenient way out of the conversation.
(The sales rep clings on to that distant glimmer of hope even though he knows that, realistically, the chances that this prospect will ever turn into a customer are about as good as the chances of winning the lottery. But he is just glad not to be rejected even though a non-decision is the worst result you can create.)
Nothing will come of this. It’s just cluttering up Alfred’s pipeline.
The No-BS Approach
It's the same scenario, but this time, it’s our Kevin who’s on the call.
Is the prospect upset? Yeah! But at least he’s now emotionally engaged in the conversation. Now you have their attention, and you’ve created a memorable moment. Is it ideal? No, of course not—it’s still negative. But it’s a lot better than zero engagement and attention.
Bottom Line: Don’t Be Liked, Be Respected
Granted, this may or may not work, but the chances of it working are much better than those you’ll have after fulfilling a feigned request for more information.
You’ve transformed the conversation from a hollow spiel to an authentic interaction. It’s like opening the door: now you can take the next step.
Stop politely wasting your own and other people’s time. Create results even if that requires you to step outside your comfort zone and piss people off. Sometimes, that friction is just what it takes to light a fire.
