5
Mirror Key Words
Face-to-face conversations provide you with countless clues about the person with whom you are talking. For example, a colleague’s tone of voice can let you know that his or her remarks were tongue-in-cheek and not to be taken seriously, or, a customer’s facial expression can make it crystal clear that, though he or she seems calm on the outside, the customer is boiling mad underneath. Being the sensitive individual you are, once you catch wind of the other person’s mood or attitude, you respond in a way that creates rapport—right?
Finding these clues with e-mail messages is like looking for a needle in a haystack, and creating rapport, a champion challenge. One way to do it is to pay close attention to the specific, key words the writer uses and lightly sprinkle them throughout your response. Seeing their key words come back at them in the response will help readers feel more rapport with and connection to the writer.
Imagine receiving this e-mail message from a new client:
From: April Showers
Subject: Broken Television
Date: March 5
To: Customer Service
Hello,
I purchased a flat-screen television made by your company three weeks ago, and am very upset by the fact that the picture has all of a sudden turned upside-down. The set was professionally installed and has been working perfectly until the flip-flop happened. I have to stand on my head to watch the late show! As you can visualize, this is only a short-term solution.
The set is still under warranty, and I would like one of your tech sharpshooters to come over and sort things out as soon as possible so that I can resume a normal siting position when viewing my shows.
Thank you,
April Showers
As you read through this e-mail message, see if you can pick out the key words and phrases the writer is using to convey her unique feelings, mood, attitude, and point of view. List them in the spaces following.
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
Answers
In this message the key words are:
• all of a sudden
• set
• late show
• visualize
• sharpshooters
To create rapport, when crafting your reply, be sure to mirror some or all of the key words you have identified. For example:
Subject: Broken Television
From: Customer Service
Date: March 6
To: April Showers
Dear Ms. Showers,
Thank you for your letter. I apologize for the problems you are having with the picture flip-flopping on your set. Unfortunately, we do not have technicians in the field; all our repair work is done by sharpshooters at our repair center.
Your set is under warranty, so I can arrange for it to be picked up for repair. Hopefully you will be watching the late show again within the week.
Please let me know a date when we can pick up the set.
Sincerely,
Reggie R.
Customer Service
Exercise
Read through the following message and underline the key words.
Subject: Insurance policy question
Date: Feb 9
To: Bob Roberts, Agent
Dear Bob:
I need to revise my homeowner’s policy that I carry with you. I want to append a new camera and some jewelry.
Could you shoot me the required forms so that I can get these articles on the policy ASAP? Thanks.
Art
Answers: carry, append, shoot, required articles.