How to Master Body Language: The Unspoken Sales Tool

Nonverbal communication is essential, especially since body language is 55 per cent of effective communication. Your eyes, voice, arms, hands, and full body positioning all play valuable roles in helping you build a connection with others. Furthermore, when you take note of another person’s body language, you can tailor the conversation—and salespeople can be more aware of how a potential customer is responding to a pitch.

When a prospect is making eye contact, smiling, nodding, and using open-handed gestures, they are actively engaged in the conversation and interested in what you have to say. Make sure you’re facing one another and slightly leaning in to show the conversation is important.

Even when communicating in a large group, such as during presentations, eye contact and physical acknowledgments of other people’s presence will help you connect with your audience. Or, alternatively, they’ll help you, as an audience member, have a more personal connection with the speaker.

Paying attention to body language helps everyone in business. Most importantly, it helps salespeople connect better with their contacts. More details about specific body language, and how it translates in a conversation, are in the infographic below.

How to Master Body Language: The Unspoken Sales Tool

• Up to 90% of communication is nonverbal
• The effectiveness of communication
• 7% Words
• 38% Tone
• 55% Body Language

• How people take in information
• 82% Eyes
• 11% Ears
• 7% Other senses

Improve your body language

• Eyes
  • Eye contact helps build a connection
  • Make eye contact at least half of the time
    • Too much eye contact may make others feel uncomfortable
    • Too little eye contact may make others find you insecure or lacking interest
• Voice
  • Match the speaking speed of others in the room
    • Speaking too fast may make others feel pressured
    • Speaking too slow may make others think you are talking down to them
  • Periodically nod when listening to someone speak
• Arms
  • Avoid crossing your arms—this may make you appear closed off or defensive
  • Keep your arms relaxed and at your sides
• Hands
  • Placement
    • Keep hands relaxed and in front of you or at your sides
    • Makes you seem calm, cool, and collected
  • Handshake
    • Mirror the other person’s handshake pressure
      • Too much pressure may come off as domineering
      • Too little pressure may make others think you have low self-confidence
• Stance
  • To appear more confident
    • Stand up straight
    • Lean slightly forward
    • Have shoulders back and relaxed
• “Playing high” vs. “Playing low”
  • Physical language of authority is called “playing high”
    • Use when you want to show you are in charge, like during a presentation
    • People who “play high” often exhibit these behaviors:
      • Hold head still
      • Speak in complete sentences
      • Hold eye contact while talking
      • Use great, sweeping gestures
      • Occupy maximum space
      • Lean back
      • Slow down when speaking
  • Body language of approachability is called “playing low”
    • Use when you want to make others feel good about themselves
    • People who “play low” often exhibit these behaviors:
      • Place hands near their face while speaking
      • Speak in incomplete sentences
      • Glance around or look away
      • Use jerky, fleeting movements
      • Take up as little space as possible
      • Lean forward
      • Sound breathless
• Voice
  • Use a tone that’s appropriate for the topic and emotions of the discussion at hand.
  • Change your tone and emphasize important words or phrases
  • Raise the pitch of your voice during the last few words
    • Most important content is almost always at the end of a sentence or query
  • Projecting your voice can improve the way people respond to you and can be achieved through:
    • Posture – Stand straight with chin slightly raised and hip bones moved forward, engaging your core muscles. This helps to push air up and out
    • Enunciation – Be precise with consonant sounds and move your lips
    • Confidence – Nervousness can cause the throat to tighten, constricting airflow. Approach any speaking situation with confidence

Reading the Body Language of Others

• Engagement and disengagement are the most important signals to monitor in your audience’s body language.
  • Engagement behaviours indicate
    • Interest
    • Receptivity
    • Agreement
  • Disengagement behaviours indicate
    • Boredom
    • Anger
    • Defensiveness
• Eyes
  • Eye Contact
    • Three seconds: The length of time most people are comfortable making eye contact
    • Engagement
      • Eyes are wide open
      • Amount of eye contact automatically increases
    • Disengagement
      • Eyes narrow slightly
      • Amount of eye contact decreases
      • When people feel bored or restless they may avoid eye contact by:
        • Gazing past you
        • Defocusing
        • Glancing around
• Mouth
  • Smiles are often used as a polite response and to cover up emotions
  • Engagement
    • Someone who agrees with you will smile and nod
    • Genuine smiles crinkle the corners of the eyes and light up the face
  • Disengagement
    • Someone who disagrees with you will have
      • Compressed or pursed lips
      • Clenched jaw muscles
    • Faked smiles involve only the mouth
• Gestures
  • Engagement
    • A person is more receptive when their arms flow naturally in expansive, welcoming gestures
    • Open-hand gestures are a positive signal
  • Disengagement
    • A person is defensive or angry when they
      • Fold their arms across their chest
      • Clench hands or fists
      • Tightly grip their arm or wrist
    • A person is bored when they
      • Drum their fingers on the table
      • Use a hand to support their head
• Shoulders and Torso
  • Engagement
    • Faces you directly
    • Mirrors your behaviour
  • Disengagement
    • Turns their shoulders and torso away from you
    • Shields their torso with a purse, briefcase, or laptop
• Legs
  • Engagement
    • Ankles gently crossed
    • Legs stretched forward
  • Disengagement
    • When a person is sitting with their feet
      • Pulled away from you
      • Wrapped in a tight ankle lock
      • Pointed at the exit
      • Wrapped around the legs of a chair
• Stance
  • Engagement
    • Leans toward you
    • Stands more closely before or beside you
  • Disengagement
    • Leans back
    • Creates more space between the two of you

Reading the Body Language of Others

• Discussing sensitive issues
  • Begin the conversation by listening, let them get their whole opinion out so you can respond
  • Avoid putting up a barrier, like a hand or bag, between you and the person
  • Nod when they speak to show you are calm and engaged
• Giving a presentation
  • Stand tall to project confidence
  • Make eye contact to connect with audience
  • Project energy by moving your body and using the space around you
    • Illustrate points with hands
    • Point at material or someone in the audience when they answer something
    • Avoid using podiums
  • Practice but don’t memorize speech to appear prepared but relaxed
• When you’ve made a mistake
  • Put your face forward, chin placement is important
    • Too high and you appear indignant
    • Too low and you appear weak
    • Straight on and squarely in the middle you appear confident and sympathetic
  • Lay out your plan to fix the mistake and illustrate it with your hands as you’re speaking
  • Raise your brow and hold it up to wait for approval

Conclusion

Positive body language is an essential part of being an effective communicator. Recognizing ways to improve your own body language, as well as being able to read others’ nonverbal cues, can make you a more well-rounded speaker and salesperson.