Quiz: What's the Best Icebreaker?

Scenario: You've just started an on-site sales call with a C-level customer executive. The handshake and greeting was cordial enough, but as you sit down, you sense a certain coldness. It's crucially important that you establish rapport with this decision-maker. Failure means you'll miss your quarterly quota. You need to break the ice, fast. Here are your options:

• Comment on a knickknack. Notice what's prominently displayed in his office -- a family photo, a souvenir -- and make a thoughtful, respectful remark about it.
• Ask him about his career. Most people like talking about themselves, so inquiring about something in the executive's past experience will definitely warm him up.
• Mention a shared cultural event. You know that he follows local the sports teams. Talking about the big win (or bemoaning the big loss) shows that you're on his team.
• Jump into the sales call. He's probably a cold fish who doesn't want you wasting his time. The best way to get him on your side is to get to the point as quickly as possible.

• Comment on a knickknack. While this is a common icebreaker in business environments, almost everybody who comes into that office for the first time has made that exact same remark. You just told the customer that you're unimaginative and boring.
• Mention a shared cultural event. This might build rapport, but the rapport you're building has nothing to do with the reason for your sales call. When you transition to "selling," there will a jarring disconnect that leaves the customer with the impression that you were only kissing up.
• Jump into the sales call. Risky. Very risky. In many parts of the country and the world, it's considered bad manners to jump into a business conversation at the beginning of a meeting. This might work in New York City, but it would fall flat in, say, Miami or Los Angeles.

• Ask him about his career. If you ask a perceptive question about a conference where he spoke or a company where he worked, you're showing that you've done your research and cared enough to learn something about the person you're meeting. What's more, you've started building rapport on a business basis, thereby creating a conversation that will more easily lead into a discussion of the problems and opportunities that your offering might address.

Related Post: "QUIZ: What's the Best Opening Remark?"