How Important Are First Impressions?
SCENARIO: You're meeting a new prospect face-to-face for the first time. From the moment he or she sees you, how long does it take for that prospect to decide whether buying from you is a possibility? Note that I'm not talking about the buying decision, but rather the decision about whether you are a potential business partner.
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The correct answer is 2 Seconds!
To help you understand why, I'll draw upon Malcolm Gladwell's bestselling book What The Dog Saw and Other Adventures. Gladwell cites scientific research showing that hiring decisions are made actually within the first two seconds of meeting the candidate.
In turns out that the decision to hire or not hire is based almost entirely upon the first impression. The interviewer knows within 2 seconds whether or not the candidate "feels right" for the job. (Note: this is a major reason for bad hires, since first impressions can be deceiving.)
Apparently what's happening is that the decision-making is taking place at a very basic "is this person a friend or an enemy" level, far below the level of rational thought. It's an immediate "gut reaction" not an intellectual process.
When you're selling to a prospect, you are essentially asking him to "hire" you to provide a product or service. So the decision-making process is similar.
Now you know why so many sales training programs and books emphasize the importance of a first impression. If you don't make a good first impression (i.e. which takes place in the 2 seconds), you're probably not going to be able to build a relationship. In which case, you won't make the sale, of course.
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