Using Emotional Agility to Read Prospects Better

A guide to recognizing buyer behavior and adjusting communication styles to drive better sales conversations

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In today’s competitive sales environment, product knowledge alone isn’t enough. What separates the good from the great is how well a rep can read the room—or, more often, read the Zoom.

Emotional agility is the skill of adjusting your behavior and communication style in real time, based on emotional and behavioral signals from your prospects. As psychologist and author Dr. Susan David puts it, "Emotional agility is the ability to be with your emotions with curiosity, compassion, and especially the courage to take values-connected steps." In sales, it means listening between the lines—and choosing your words wisely.

The Four Types of Buyers and How to Communicate With Each

Most sales conversations follow patterns, and prospects often fall into one of four major communication styles:

These communication archetypes are drawn from personality research and modern sales coaching frameworks like those taught in LinkedIn Learning’s course on communication styles. The best salespeople know how to match their tone and pacing with the buyer’s default setting—without losing authenticity.

Why This Matters

According to Salesforce, 82% of buyers say that being understood and respected is a top factor in their purchasing decision. That’s not about the product—it’s about how the rep made them feel.

And research from Gartner reveals that only 17% of the buyer’s time is spent meeting with potential suppliers. That means every word and nonverbal signal counts during those limited moments of interaction.

Here’s how the wrong move can cost you: Imagine an expressive buyer being pitched with slide after slide of bullet-point data. Or a driver-type buyer being taken on a slow storytelling journey. The mismatch doesn’t just stall the sale—it shuts it down.

Listening for Clues

Your job isn’t just to present. It’s to listen—intently. Here’s how to identify buyer communication styles on the fly:

• Analytical prospects tend to speak slowly, ask for details, and need time to make decisions. They value logic and precision.

• Amiable prospects often emphasize relationships, team dynamics, and how others feel.

• Drivers are assertive and results-focused. They want outcomes and don’t like wasting time.

• Expressives talk about vision, use vivid language, and respond well to enthusiasm.

Listening for these cues—and adapting to them in real-time—is the heart of emotional agility in sales.

Roleplay Template: Switching Mid-Call

Let’s say you begin with an expressive approach (storytelling, emotion), but realize the buyer is asking highly technical questions. Time to pivot.

Example:

“You know what, let me give you the specific numbers you need. We ran this program for a firm similar to yours, and they saw a 23% drop in churn within 90 days. Would it help if I walked you through that case study step by step?”

That one shift in tone and substance can build credibility and trust instantly.

Training for Agility

This isn’t about scripts—it’s about responsiveness. Teams that train in emotional agility and active listening report better closing rates and deeper relationships. Harvard Business Review describes it as one of the key traits of effective leadership—and that applies to sales leaders, too.

Emotionally agile reps win not just because they speak well—but because they listen well, too.

As psychologist Carl Rogers once said, “The major barrier to mutual interpersonal communication is our very natural tendency to judge.” Sales is less about judgment and more about adjustment.

Just launched your new business and need resources to ace direct marketing at lower costs with higher ROI?

Check out Salesfully’s course, Mastering Sales Fundamentals for Long-Term Success, designed to help you attract new customers efficiently and affordably.

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