You can have the best content, the fanciest equipment, and the best team, but it will not matter if you do not build rapport with your target audience.

Despite advancing technology, people make purchase decisions based on who they like and trust. This makes building relationships ever more critical.

Take the time into understanding the needs of your potential customers. The next step is to build and nurture that relationship.

Building Rapport with Your Target Market

First, what is “rapport”? It is the “connection”, the “understanding”, the “camaraderie” between two people. It is what bonds us as human beings to one another.

Rapport is when two people feel that they have things in common and they feel comfortable with each other as if they have known each other for a long time.

Haven’t you ever met someone that you did not know before but within just a few minutes you found yourself liking them, and feeling like you have known them for a long time?

People like to do business with people they know, like, and trust – this is a well-known fact. In this digitally-dominate world we live in, where we are “friends” with people literally across the globe – thanks to technology – how do we develop that rapport over a computer screen?

How can you earn a visitor’s attention long enough to build rapport? Start with a clear, relevant message that tells people who you help and what problem you solve. Make the next step easy to find, and give visitors a useful reason to stay instead of relying on a fixed countdown.

Remember, Your Target is Thinking About Their Needs Not You

Rather than rely on a fixed three-second rule, make the first screen count. State who you help, name the need you address, and make the next step easy to find. Give visitors a clear, useful reason to stay.

Be different, be creative, be remembered. Once you GRAB their attention, then you can start building that relationship and building that “rapport”.

Business relationships are not that different than personal ones in the sense that if it is “all about YOU”, you will not have many friends or effective business relationships.

Relationships, in general, are a two-way street – or at least they should be. Business relationships are about “them”, not you. Most people do not care about you (until they get to know you) except in what you can do for them. Emotional intelligence can help build trust in business relationships by helping you understand and respond to what others need.

Gear Your Marketing to Answering These Two Most Important Questions

1) Who are you?

2) Why should I care?

Period! That is it. If you have the solution to a problem someone has, you will get their attention. If not, they are off to the next website, very possibly your competition.

How Do We Do This Online?

The process begins with:

• Capturing leads: grabbing attention with effective, compelling, valuable, and relevant information so that someone will give you their contact information
• Following-up via auto-responders: use the auto-responders to tell a little about yourself (so they will get to “know” you), tell a LOT about what your opt-in offer is about – in other words, deliver what you say you are going to provide. After all, that IS why someone opts-in.
• Follow up through the channel the person chose. If you plan to call, ask permission first, keep the message relevant, and make the next step easy to decline.
• Continue building that rapport and relationship.
• Even if the person is not ready at that time to make a purchase, they will remember you BECAUSE of your relationship with them, when the time comes that they ARE ready to make a purchase.

Building Rapport in an AI-Saturated World

AI can help a small business create and respond to content, but speed alone does not build rapport. In a 2026 survey of 1,006 U.S. consumers, Gartner found that 65% thought brands produced too much AI-generated marketing content, and 57% said it had made them less trusting of brand messages. A separate Cint and Advertising Week survey of about 1,000 U.S. consumers found that 74% believed brands and creators should disclose AI use in advertising, while 44% said undisclosed AI-generated advertising would lower their trust.

These surveys measure opinions, not what every customer will do. Still, they offer a useful reminder: be clear about your offer, use AI to support your work rather than replace your point of view, and have a person check important claims and customer replies. Personalize messages only when they are genuinely useful, and explain how people can get help or change their preferences. These are practical ethical persuasion principles that can help keep customer relationships honest and human.

Sources: Gartner, September 22, 2026; Cint and Advertising Week, October 20, 2026.

Final Thoughts: Build Rapport One Interaction at a Time

Building rapport starts before a conversation. Visitors want to know who you help, what problem you solve, and what they should do next. Clear messaging and useful content show that you understand their needs. Honest promises, thoughtful follow-up, and respect for people’s preferences help build trust over time.

Rapport grows through consistent actions, not automation alone. Listen to feedback, respond in a human way, and be open about how you use AI. Choose one customer touchpoint to improve this week, such as your homepage message, welcome email, or follow-up process. Ask yourself: Is this useful? Is the next step clear? Can the person choose freely?

When your marketing answers those questions and delivers what it promises, people have a stronger reason to trust and remember your business. Learn how to make it clear how your business can help customers, and explore these customer service tips for a better buyer journey to put that trust into practice.

About Julie

I’m Julie Weishaar, a New York-based visual and digital marketer who helps small businesses make their message clear and memorable. I bring together marketing strategy, audience insight, brand storytelling, custom visuals, and video to help businesses connect with the people they serve.

I create short AI-assisted videos from blog posts and brand ideas. I use AI tools to shape scripts, create visuals, and animate scenes, then edit the clips and add captions and music. I guide the story and review each video to make sure it fits the brand and offers something useful to viewers. Learn more about my visual AI services for brands.

I work with small businesses to turn ideas into visual and video stories their audiences can understand and remember.

Originally published June 12, 2020; Updated on October 25, 2026, to update content.