Cross-Cultural Communication 30-Day Challenge – Build Trust
In order to build trust in others, you need to first be trustworthy. For businesses with international clients there are two parallel lines to walk:
- On the one hand business is made between people. There is a personal aspect. The relationships salespeople have with their clients can be extremely important for international sales.
- On the other hand, many cultures will see your business as a whole. The vision of the company can also be critical.
Have Quiet Self Confidence
Today we are going to look at how to make sure we do not lose trust by how we project the image of the business we represent, and what international clients perceive of this business entity as a whole.
Even if a salesperson has a “good” meeting with an international client and he connects well on a personal level, he could jeopardize the trust his international cllient has in the business he represents.
In cross-cultural communication we look at cultural behavioral scales. Some cultures have high scores of “individualism” and other cultures have high scores of “collectivism”. Some cultures are cultures with “high context” communication and others have “low context” communication”. This means that we have different levels of appreciating comments about our company and colleagues.
Trust In Cross-Cultural Communication Challenge – Tip 9
Show confidence in your company and those you work with
There are a few reasons why this is important to building trust in cross-cultural communication.
Project A Coherent Image
The vision people have of your company needs to be coherent. When a sales person is concentrating on building his personal relationship, he must not forget that he also represents a business.
This coherence of the image the international client sees of your business can be critical.
Do No Show A Lack Of Confidence In Your Company
You must always remember who you represent when you meet international clients. The quiet self-confidence you have must also include your confidence in your company and your colleagues.
- This does not mean that you need to sing praises.
- It does mean that you probably should never say anything bad about your company and your colleagues.
Many cultures will pay attention to how you speak of your company, your colleagues and the people you associate with.
This may sound obvious for the older generations of some cultures, but I often feel this is something younger generations need to be reminded of when it comes to international business.
Balancing Your Cross-Cultural Communication
There is a skill in finding the right way of communicating that your company is the best one for your international clients to be associated with. It is not only in what the salesperson says, it is also:
- What the other players in your company say
- What is done
- How it is done
- And how all of this is perceived by the other culture
Your international clients need to find coherency in what you communicate and what they perceive from your company.
Even though different cultures will pay attention to your company in different ways, this coherency is an essential foundation to build trust.
Get All Cross-Cultural Communication Tips:
- Read more about all of the 2009 Cross-Cultural Communication Challenges
- Cross Cultural Communication Challenge 1 – Expand Your Mindset
- Cross Cultural Communication Challenge 2 – Get Extreme With Clarity
- Cross Cultural Communication Challenge 3 – Build Trust
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