Personality Development

The first encounter will set you up for success or failure of an order. During your encounter with the customer the first impression establishes the future sale prospects are established. This is where personality plays an important role in winning over a customer. In the long run as you focus on developing your personality, how important it will be in contributing to growth of your career.

Some of the points that should be taken into consideration in order to enhance your personality are stated under,

• Make sure that you read books, articles etc
• Ensure a good and pleasant body language
• Try to develop PR skills by building a good rapport with the customer

There are five aspects of a complete and well-integrated personality are stated as under

• Physical personality
• Energy and zeal
• Intellect self
• Mental stability
• Enjoyable personality

Greeting Properly

Greetings are customary ways of acknowledging people i.e., how you address men vis-à-vis a women, how you address seniors or people you are working with you or how you address a person you are meeting for the first time.

The points that are required to be kept in mind when greeting someone are as under,

• In a formal setting when you meet someone of the same stature for the first time, prefix his surname with ‘Mister’/ ’Miss’. In case he/she addresses you by first your first name, then you should also address him by (his/her) first name to communicate on a peer to peer basis
• When you meet a person of a higher rank or age or a dignitary, prefix his/her surname with ‘Mister’/ ’Miss’ or address him/her as ‘Sir’/ ‘Madam’
• You must avoid greeting in a sing-song manner like Helooooo
• Never address anyone in an abusive/offensive manner
• Greet a person whole-heartedly by maintaining eye contact with a person, this will show respect and attention
• Depending on the time of the day, appropriate form of greeting should be used

The most important component of good communication is how well you greet your customers. Make sure that you are friendly and polite. Be sincere in delivering services to the customer. Today’s customers are very intelligent and can see through the fake smiles. Once a good impression is created, try building a good rapport with the customer. This is done through asking questions as well as observing your customer’s responses. Stay focused and try to use positive statements into normal conversations such as different offers, new introductions etc.

Effective Communication

The most important component of an effective conversation is ‘Humility’. For an effective conversation following points need to be taken into consideration.

• Be courteous and polite to everyone
• Be very polite when you speak. Do not make fun of anyone either on their face or behind their back
• Ensure that every action of yours is respectful towards others
• Avoid names dropping
• Do not make fun of anybodies appearance, handicaps or speech difficulties
• Do not use electronic gadgets (such as phone, computer etc) when attending the customer
• Unless specifically asked do not give your opinion
• Never ask personal questions
• Give advice only when asked
• Think before you speak as you cannot retrieve your words
• Be sure of the facts before voicing them
• In case you make a mistake apologize immediately and thereafter stand corrected with confidence and humility
• It is crucial that you take pauses while talking to the customer as this makes you look more confident and self-assured. Also it gives the customer the space and encouragement to open up
• It is very important for you to be an effective listener as constant interruptions may turn-off the customer

Effective Speech

• Never be in a haste to speak
• Pronounce each word distinctly
• Listen attentively when the customers speak
• Do not prompt or try to help the speaker when he pauses or hesitates in his speech
• Do not interrupt when the customer is speaking and speak only when he has finished talking
• Do not snoop or overhear on other people’s conversation
• Never intrude in when the customer is having a conversation
• Do not speak loudly
• Do not mock or make fun of anything important
• Always stay pleasant
• Avoid laughing needlessly, as a habit, in between sentences or words
• Do not whisper when in a group

Practices and behaviour

• Ensure that while speaking, you do not turn your back on others, always face the person(s) you are talking to
• Do not pick your nose in public, in case you need to use a tissue paper in private
• If you cough, sneeze, sigh or yawn, do it quietly and follow it with an ‘excuse me’
• Do not speak while yawning, instead cover your mouth with your hand and turn aside
• Do not chew your nail
• Avoid excessive use of hand gestures as it can cause stress to others
• When you are serving or taking the order, do not sing to yourself; do not drum your finger or feet and do not shake your legs
• Do not make faces in public, like puffing cheeks, showing your tongue, rubbing hands or stroking or playing with your lips, biting or tighten them

Civil sense in offices and public places

• Do not touch the glass door with the palms of your hands as they stain the glass surface, always use the door handle
• Do not lean against the wall or dirty the wall with your shoes
• Do not dirty the lid of the bin while using it
• While in office or an official gathering, do not take off your shoes
• Before leaving office make sure your electronics are switched off and duly covered
• De-clutter your office on regular basis

Personal Hygiene

• Be careful while washing your face and hands. Do not splash water outside the sink or on the mirror
• When you rinse your mouth after eating, do not leave the remnants of food in the sink
• Wipe your hands after washing up
• Men should keep their hair short and women should keep their hair neat and in place
• Keep your hair, hair at the ears or the back of the nape well-trimmed
• Rinse your mouth after meals so that you breath smells fresh
• Make washing your hand a habit
• Nails should be cut and clean
• Ensure you wear clean and well ironed clothes