Mike Cooper
You might not be able to see a smile over the phone, but you can definitely hear it!
This advice has been around for years when it comes to selling over the phone, but it’s easy to forget in the midst of a busy and pressurised day.
According to research by scientists at the University of Portsmouth, listeners can even go as far to identify our type of smile based on sound alone – and it’s believed we have about 50 different smiles ranging from triumphant to bitterness…
“When we listen to people speaking we may be picking up on all sorts of cues, even unconsciously, which help us to interpret the speaker,” said lead author of the report at Portsmouth University, Amy Drahota. “A voice contains a variety of acoustical characteristics” said Drahota. “It’s possible that we interpret these ‘flavours’ in someone’s voice almost without noticing.”
This strengthens our argument that you don’t need to make a trip ‘in-person’ to have a personal connection with someone. It’s possible to build rapport and relationships over the phone too.
However, it’s important to note that when it comes to successful communication, what works best, is what your customer prefers.
We’ve found that Health Care Professionals respond positively to new technology, and we often get great feedback that taking a flexible approach to communication, which considers their time and preference, is refreshing. We can keep busy clinicians up to date with pharmaceutical developments without necessarily visiting in person, using a multi-channel approach.
Always put your customers’ preference at the heart of everything sales interaction – and they’ll be smiling too!
