55% of the impact of face to face contact is facial expressions Before we can begin to enhance the standard of personal engagement with prospects and customers, we need to understand the factors that influence it. Before training staff to better engage with customers or engage more effectively, we need to identify the skills that […]

55% of the impact of face to face contact is facial expressions Before we can begin to enhance the standard of personal engagement with prospects and customers, we need to understand the factors that influence it. Before training staff to better engage with customers or engage more effectively, we need to identify the skills that are required.   Research suggests that critical factors and their importance are as follows: Words – what we say – 7% Inflection/voice/tone – how we say it – 38%Facial expressions/body language – non-verbal – 55% These findings suggest that: Non-verbal skills are more important than verbal skills What we say is less important than how we say it Engagement is more multi-faceted than many think Despite the importance of non-verbal skills, research suggests that businesses are not investing as much as they might in ensuring staff understand non-verbal information. This is especially concerning given research suggesting that the impression…