Are you unintentionally frustrating your customers?

When your phone rings, and you see who is calling, do you think: Ugh, please, not now? I don’t want to deal with you. Maybe you check your email and think UGH. Perhaps you have a face-to-face or virtual meeting and need to gear up for what you know will be a tiring experience. I bet all of us can answer yes! Have you ever wondered what that person thought of dealing with you?

The problem is that the feeling may be mutual. Are you annoying to that person as well? If this person is a prospect, customer, coworker, or manager, these feelings can cause irreparable damage to the relationship or account. If this person has a choice and finds it uncomfortable to work with you, they will work with someone else. Have you thought about how they communicate vs. how you communicate?

For decades, people have been using an easy and interactive method to improve collaboration and communication to make encounters more successful – social styles. All you have to do to use social styles is to consider two dimensions of human behavior. The pace at which one does things and one’s priority. Are you more task-oriented or people-oriented? Determining this about your prospect and adapting to their style is essential to establishing a positive connection.

Consider these two dimensions of behavior when communicating, and be flexible when interacting with others. The objective is not to treat everyone the same way. Adapt to their behavior. You don’t need to change who you are. Adjust how you do things to form a connection with others and not be the one they dread dealing with. You may be missing opportunities with people with a different style than you have.