During an experiment carried out in a retail setting, sellers imitated or not verbal and nonverbal customers' behaviors. It was found that imitation was associated with higher sales rate, greater compliance with the seller's suggestion during the selling process and greater positive evaluations of the seller and the store. Mediation analyses revealed that the level of the seller's competence evaluation mediated the relation between imitation and buying behavior. The managerial interest for sales training and buyer/seller interaction was discussed.
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