Are you presenting a product or service to a potential client or an audience of potential clients? The main point of the presentation is to make the sale, but the focus of the presentation is the audience. How can you accomplish both in one shot? We are going to give you a few hints in that area.
Sell, Sell, Sell!
When salesmen have quotas, the customer can become lost in the sauce. Remember door-to-door salesmen? They didn’t have PowerPoint presentations or big event halls with a stage to speak to their prospective clients. They honed a few basic skills that made the sale for them. As a business owner or a manager for a company, knowing the importance of new business as well as the importance of client needs can translate into sales with the right formula.
Being prepared for anything (even big fat Nos) actually makes your job a lot smoother and simpler. Sometimes it isn’t what you know but how you convey what you know to your target audience.
Building Your Presentation around Your Sales Pitch
If you want to make the sale, you need to catch the attention and emotion of the customer from the first word, picture or slide.
* Do your homework – The key to engaging a customer is to know who they are. What do they need that your product can provide? What are their immediate needs? Who else has the potential to meet those needs? It is not inappropriate to ask a potential client or customer some questions that would help you prepare for them. But, you will have to do some digging on your own as well to get what you need.
* Know your product – What aspects of your product’s capabilities speak to the needs of the client or customer? This is how you tailor a presentation to the specific need of the audience. Choose one feature that can solve the issue they are currently having and use that as the topic of your presentation.
* Make the presentation about the customer – When you begin by discussing your company or product, the talk focuses on you. Instead, use words and imagery to show the benefits of the product to customers. It’s all about meeting their needs, not your revenue.
* Tell a story – It goes without saying that it needs to be a relevant story. Relay a time when your product was used by a past customer, and the positive outcomes. Choose a story whose outcomes are also the desires of the current audience. Show empathy towards your audience.
* Listen to the customer – Ask questions and wait for the response. Show that you are listening. Move your presentation in a direction that highlights the need expressed in their responses.
* Don’t forget the call to action – The deal is not sealed until you tell the audience what you want them to do. Some will say yes right away and others will need time. Create a follow-up strategy to keep them interested until they say yes.
On the part of the customer, a good sales pitch will instill confidence in your ability to meet their needs.
