There’s a lot that goes into being the ultimate salesperson, from having a thorough knowledge of
your client and what you’re selling to making sure you’re dressed for the part. Under all that is nonverbal impression you give your clients: body language. We all know the basics; smile, have a firm handshake, but what else can you do to put your best foot forward without even speaking? Jacquelyn Smith addresses some effective techniques that you may not have thought of in her article, “6 body language tricks that are hard to master but will pay off forever.”

Walking

Often, the first interaction that will occur between you and your client involves walking to each other to shake hands. Your confidence level is reflected in the way you carry yourself and walking with a purpose is an excellent way to show that you mean business.

Posture

You wouldn’t lounge back in your chair during a job interview, so why would you slouch during a meeting with a client? To avoid coming off as disinterested, which bad posture is notorious for communicating, sit up straight. Good posture is an effective way to continue radiating confidence as well as appearing more open and intelligent.

Posture Part 2

If you’re not used to sitting up straight, it can be difficult to resist the urge to fidget. While you may not even notice you’re doing this, the impression you’re giving your clients is one of dishonesty. Another problem is that the same negativity can be communicated by sitting too stiffly. You’ll want to work on this to find a happy medium. The more comfortable you appear, the more likely it is that you’ll encourage the same emotion in your client.

Eye Contact

In every movie, the guy with the shifty eyes and crossed arms is always hiding something. Don’t come off as that guy. Maintaining eye contact is another easy way to show your openness to your client. It’s the same with keeping your hands visible. Both of these behaviors are key to appearing comfortable and agreeable and, therefore, more trustworthy.

These traits are becoming surprisingly uncommon, so don’t feel bad if you need to practice these in order to get them down to an art. But, once you do, you’re that much closer to being an unstoppable salesperson.