Monday, September 30, 2013

Using poker skills in the business world



Reading clients' non-verbal clues

 
I play poker. I'm working on a novel that involves poker. I even watch poker on TV. Don’t judge me. 

One of the segments they showed during the World Series of Poker last year utilized a retired FBI agent named Joe Navarro to break down the clues he saw to determine whether or not the player was bluffing. 

In addition to his segment on reading hands, Navarro has been hired by some of the top poker players to help them with their game. Reading non-verbal clues is vital to their success.

He pointed out details of their body language, facial expression and even voice clues to analyze the strength of each hand. Amazingly, he had a very good read on each player.

I found it incredibly interesting because I realized that this is something that I can use in my professional life. I think back to those meetings where the client said they liked what we'd produced, but for some reason, we just couldn’t close the sale. 

How many times have you heard "We'll get back to you," only never to hear back. The reason is simple: People are basically nice and don’t want to hurt your feelings.

There are several pieces of non-verbal information you should look for when talking to clients to gauge if they’re interested in what you’re showing them.

Eye contact
Are they making good eye contact throughout the conversation? Or are they looking around to avoid your gaze? Even if they are telling you that they’re interested, if they’re not making eye contact, it’s probably not completely true. You might be better off taking another tack and bringing up another campaign idea if you have one, even if it's not polished.

Arm movement
Look at their arms. If they’re folded, they are probably not really interested. However, tucked behind their back indicates a significant level of interest. If their arms are moving a lot, they’re either very interested or very upset. That's a call you'll have to make.

Posture
Take a look at your client's posture. Are they slouched? That indicates boredom. If they're sitting bolt upright, it's a good indicator that they’re taking everything in.

Voice
Listen to their inflection. If their voice raises a bit and they speak quickly, chances are they’re interested and they like what they see. If their voice is even and quiet, it indicates they’d probably rather see something else.

Most people think poker is a card game played with people. Really successful players will tell you it’s a people game played with cards. If you get a chance, check out Joe Navarro’s books about poker tells to help you improve your ability to tune into non-verbal clues.