The Likability Factor For better or worse, the sales process is not much more than a popularity contest. Do you have what it takes to win?

Do your potential clients like you? Do they perceive you as likable--and I mean really likable?

If they don't, none of the rest of your efforts to establish yourself as the answer to their problems will matter. When you get right down to it, life is a series of popularity contests. You may not want to admit it or believe it. In fact, you've probably been told it ain't so, but ultimately, if you're well liked, then you're more likely to be better in sales.

Mark McCormack, the late founder of International Management Group, a powerful sports management and marketing company based in Cleveland, once said, "All things being equal, people will do business with a friend; all things being unequal, people will still do business with a friend." If a potential client perceives you as the most credible and likable, you'll probably get the sale­--even if you aren't the candidate with the most experience or expertise.