Ilike you; here’s my money!”

It’s not quite that easy, but those six words describe a condition and a result that often go together in sales. This principle is called the liking-agreement heuristic or balance theory (Stec and Bernstein, 1999), and it’s as dependable as cold weather and pure, drinkable water at the Canadian Rockies’ Athabasca Glacier.

Research shows that if a prospect likes you, your chances of inking the deal are far better than they would be if he or she felt neutral or outright disliked you. Although this makes perfect sense, when we understand exactly why it is so, we can use the principle to our advantage.

When a prospect has ...

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