Interesting article, but I feel that building rapport needs to be a little more personal and not just based on what value your product brings to the company. As you said, you are selling to the individual human being, so "likeability" of the salesperson does matter. Smiles do count. As does finding a commonality or something to break the ice and make you appear human as well - why not try a little humor, or just talk about the weather for a few minutes (everyone like a sunny day).

Great points on how important the personal touch is. The buyer is eventually going to need some sort of customer support after a purchase, so having a genuine, human relationship with seller should stick out in their mind as a reason to buy. Likeability of a salesperson goes a long way!