If you agree with me that people connect with each other--and, therefore, do business with each other--based more on emotional than on empirical grounds, then you'd want to master the art of storytelling. The National Storytelling Network (http://www.storynet.org/) and the International Storytelling Center (http://www.storytellingcenter.net/) exist for such a purpose.
To get started with a book on the subject, read The Story Factor: Secrets of Influence from the Art of Storytelling, second edition by Annette Simmons (Basic Books, 2006). If you're new to storytelling, which is an indispensable skill for managers of anyone and salespeople of anything, you'll like the simple theory and examples clearly described in this book by a master storyteller. Simmons identifies six stories to learn and techniques to employ them: Who I Am, Why I Am Here, The Vision, Teaching, Values in Action, and I Know What You Are Thinking. The book makes for entertaining and educational reading.
