Have you ever been a regular at a restaurant? Was it all about the food? Your local diner might have an amazing BLT, but that’s probably not the only reason you keep going back. The atmosphere and customer service also play a huge role in your restaurant experience. When the waiter knows your name and occasionally sneaks you a free piece of pie, it makes you feel like you’re part of the community.
What if your ecommerce business could be as delightful as a neighborhood go-to? You might not offer free coffee refills, but you can strive to build relationships that make customers feel seen. Building rapport with customers helps ecommerce businesses create and maintain consumer satisfaction. Learn how to attract loyal customers by building rapport and discover why Erez Zukerman, the CEO of keyboard brand ErgoDox EZ, prioritizes personalized customer service.
Table of contents
What is customer rapport?
Customer rapport refers to the relationship between a business and its clients. Establishing good customer rapport is a critical component of sales and customer service strategies. Businessesbuild rapport each time they communicate with a customer. Developing a strong positive relationship with your user base helps promote customer loyalty.
The principles of customer rapport apply to all businesses, but relationships may be especially important for service-based companies that work with clients. Retailers and product-based ecommerce businesses often have fewer opportunities for direct customer communication, but they can provide a positive customer experience by engaging users on social media and providing good customer support.
For example, Erez takes the time to write personal responses to customer service inquiries instead of relying on automated apps. In his words, “Apps are fine. But really, they’re not a substitute for being authentic and for putting in emotional labor.”
Communication channels for building rapport
These are some of the common communication channels ecommerce businesses can use to build rapport with customers:
- Email. Crafting professional emails with a personal touch can help establish and maintain good relationships.
- In-person meetings. Sales meetings and other face-to-face interactions are opportunities to form positive impressions and forge deep emotional connections.
- Customer calls. Using a friendly tone on phone calls can contribute to strong relationships.
- Customer support chats. A live chat service that provides meaningful customer support and efficient communication can bolster customer satisfaction.
- Video meetings. Establish rapport during video calls by treating them like in-person meetings and demonstrating professional decorum.
- Social media channels. Businesses can provide customer support and engage in positive conversations by responding to customers’ comments, feedback, and inquiries on social media platforms.
Strategies for building customer rapport
- Provide meaningful support
- Listen to concerns
- Be punctual
- Remember names and pronouns
- Put your best foot forward
- Focus on authentic relationships
- Practice active listening
- Ask questions
- Be flexible
- Write personal follow-ups
Building rapport requires time and patience. These are some of the strategies businesses can use to create positive customer interactions and establish strong relationships:
Provide meaningful support
A good customer service strategy is essential for establishing rapport. Answering questions and working with clients to resolve issues provides true value and helps customers see the benefit of working with you and using your product. This principle applies to both established partnerships and one-off communications. Service-based companies can provide support by pairing clients with ongoing relationship managers. For retailers and product-based ecommerce businesses, support often comes from a combination of customer service teams, FAQ pages, and chatbots.
Accurate solutions and actionable advice will generate goodwill for all types of businesses, so strive to constantly improve your customer service operation by gathering feedback.
Listen to concerns
Make space for disappointed or angry customers. Even the best relationships have difficulties; if a client is frustrated with your service, try listening to their concerns before you offer a solution. Erez says, “What I find is that when there is an upset customer, nearly each and every time, they tell themselves a story in their mind, and in their story, they already know how this interaction is going to pan out. They know that they’re just about to get screwed by some terrible customer service experience. They are preemptively frustrated.”
Leading with empathy can diffuse the situation and counter a negative narrative. In addition to finding solutions to a problem, offering an understanding ear goes a long way toward establishing a trusting relationship in which customers feel comfortable coming to you with their needs. It also makes for top-notch customer service.
Be punctual
Show up on time for meetings and video calls and respond to emails as quickly as possible. Practicing punctuality shows customers that you respect their time. In the case of customer service complaints, timely communication can help resolve issues quickly and support overall consumer satisfaction. This establishes rapport by proving that you’re reliable and that customers can count on you to be there when they need you.
Remember names and pronouns
Learn clients’ names and pronouns so that you can address them properly. Pay attention to pronunciation, and if you’re unsure, ask customers to help you say it correctly. Greeting clients by name during meetings and at the beginning of emails is a subtle way to establish a personal connection and show that you’re paying attention to their individual needs.
Put your best foot forward
Make an effort to present yourself well during in-person meetings and on video calls. Practice basic business etiquette by wearing professional attire, smiling, and employing confident body language like eye contact and good posture. You might do your best creative work in your pajamas, but personal presentation can affect customer perception. The goal is to appear put together and competent so that customers feel confident in your abilities.
Focus on authentic relationships
Consider breaking the ice with short, personal conversations. Connecting over shared interests or hobbies can help form deeper relationships. There’s no need to misrepresent your interests to relate to a customer. Worst case, they might sense that you’re pandering and feel uncomfortable. Instead, practice polite, authentic communication, and steer clear of controversial topics like the nature of the afterlife or gene editing.
Erez practices this principle during email exchanges. “I reply to all emails myself,” he says. “And that’s why I have the confidence to send out this simple email and sign it with my own name—because I know that I’m not lying and I’m not pretending.”
Practice active listening
Engage deeply with clients during in-person meetings, phone conversations, and video calls. Active listening is a communication technique that involves using eye contact and body language. Try focusing on what the speaker is saying, and nodding to show you’re paying attention. Practice “mirroring” by matching the customer’s tone and repeating phrases back to the speaker—this can encourage them to elaborate. Actively listening helps build strong customer rapport by making clients feel understood.
Ask questions
Make an effort to learn about your client’s business and demonstrate genuine interest by asking questions. This can help you understand how they use your product. With this information, you might be able to make personalized suggestions that will improve their user experience. For example, if a client shares they’re mostly using your software tools to research blog content ideas, you could enhance their experience by telling them about a new SEO feature.
Be flexible
Pay attention to your client’s needs and their preferred communication style. In some cases, you may want to adjust your approach to accommodate their specific circumstances. Erez, for example, has learned that some customers don’t understand the technical nature of his product. In response, his team put together a webpage for buyers who need product education.
As he explains, “People would write in and ask, OK, so how do I buy this thing? … It’s such a complicated thing to buy if … you’re not a techie who’s super passionate about Cherry MX Red key switches. And so we enabled this option as well and you know [my team] put together a lovely page for it.”
Write personal follow-ups
Practice good communication by following up after meetings or customer support issues. Follow-up or post-purchase emails often include a brief summary of the initial conversation. You can use this space to elaborate on any talking points and reiterate the actions you will take moving forward. Include specific information you learned about the customer to personalize your messages.
For example, if a client expressed concern about your service’s analytics features during a meeting, you could tailor your follow-up email by including a detailed explanation of how to make the most of the tool and a timeline of plans to improve its functions.
Building rapport with customers FAQ
Why is it important to build rapport with clients?
Building rapport with customers helps create mutually beneficial relationships. Having a personal, trusting relationship helps clients surface their needs and boosts customer satisfaction. In turn, the business can serve its customers better and retain a loyal customer base.
How do you build rapport?
Businesses build rapport by cultivating and maintaining strong customer relationships. Building rapport involves actively listening to clients, providing reliable support, and establishing warm, personal communication patterns.
In what types of interactions can you build rapport with customers?
Every customer interaction is an opportunity. Businesses can build customer rapport during in-person or video meetings, on customer calls, and through customer support channels like email and chat.
Can building rapport with customers increase sales?
Yes. Strong consumer relationships support customer satisfaction and retention. Satisfied clients are more likely to become repeat customers and refer your company to others, which can increase sales over time.
