REVIEW: Larry Jacobson — Insta-Trust (BOOK)
“In this era, building a trustworthy persona requires a professional to master the virtual tools that are being used in a larger percentage of initial client interactions. Although skill building in terms of how to use virtual techniques such as video conferencing, email and telephone are beyond the scope of this book, a few observations are appropriate. First, virtual interactions lack visual cues such as body language and clear facial expressions. Second, voice tone is not nearly as clear in virtual interactions as in in-person interactions. Third, when communicating by text or email, individuals tend to be brief and to the point.
There tends to be little interpersonal interaction in written virtual communications,” writes Larry Jacobson, EdD, JD in his new book, Insta-Trust: The Proven Trust-Building Process to Create Instant Rapport & Long-Term Relationships. “Taking all of this into account, the trust-building professional needs to be very careful in terms of the language used in virtual interactions. Simple language is preferred and keeping questions and answers short is essential. Most importantly, be very, very careful about tone.
Given the lack of nuance, professionals need to understand that their language must be so precise that it leaves little doubt that any reasonable client can understand what the professional is trying to convey and the tone of the conversation. When in doubt, keep in mind that in an initial conversation, the potential client is likely either nervous or truly uncertain about the professional’s personality, collaborative approach and competence. Fancy language and a condescending attitude resonate even more negatively in a virtual setting. The mantra of truly not knowing the personality of the potential client and adjusting accordingly is even more necessary in virtual settings.”
AMAZON: https://www.amazon.com/Insta-Trust-Building-Process-Instant-Relationships/dp/1640954333
He adds, “…Credibility and Competence are keys to building immediate trust. Frankly, you need to be world-class or close to it in the competitive professional environment you practice in; clients can spot mediocrity, and the online world will disseminate bad performance in a heartbeat. Another sign of credibility and competence is self- confidence. If you are self-confident, meaning you convey a casual degree of high competence, but not in a bragging manner, this builds credibility with others. Almost as important, a competent professional has great communication skills, meaning they know what to say and what not to say and when to say it or not say it. Technical proficiency without communication proficiency will get you nowhere.”
By making things so straightforward, but never at the expense of doubting the reader’s informed intelligence, Jacobson achieves the impossible in my humble opinion. He succeeds. So many books of this nature are approached as necessary drudgery. The kind of verbose, intellectually exclusive tomes one sees as a means to an end. But this is not only a means to an end, it’s actually thoroughly compelling and enjoyable to boot. Jacobson is a skilled oral communicator, able to impart the lessons in the book with succinct wit and bell-clear, eloquent prose. “You would love to deal with clients that you can quickly ascertain are either knowledgeable about the subject matter at hand and/or are decisive in their decision making. It appears easy to build trust with those types of clients or patients because you can eliminate time needed to express competence and move more quickly to building a collaborative relationship and entering problem-solving mode.
That may or may not be true; some knowledgeable or decisive clients can be slow to warm up to you,” Jacobson writes. “Alas, you don’t get to choose all of your clients. Even so-called knowledgeable or decisive clients might be involved in a situation where they are less knowledgeable or sure of themselves than usual. Thus, you need to keep your antenna up in terms of how to build trust even if it appears on the surface that trust building can be accomplished quickly.”
Colin Jordan
