Glenn Ross’s impassioned 7-minute speech is the holy grail of sales teams. His mantra, A-B-C: Always Be Closing, is the battle cry of many sales representatives. In between curses, insults, and nuggets of advice, Ross failed to mention two crucial things: How to do the actual sales presentation and how to do it successfully.
Let’s try a different acronym, shall we?
Different people have different needs. If you prepare the same pitch deck, distribute the same materials, and deliver the same spiel to every lead:
- You will lose their attention.
- You will lose their trust.
- You will lose their business.
Every prospect has one question in mind... “What’s in it for me?”
Salespeople must answer this question by customizing every presentation to the lead’s requirements. How?
1) Understand
Do your research before the presentation. What are the company's goals? What are the current steps the company is taking to achieve them? What are the challenges they face? Who are the key decision-makers? Where are the bottlenecks? These pieces of information will help you tailor fit a presentation for individual leads.
Never underestimate the power of listening.
2) Empathize
Don’t just nod at the right moments. Identify with your lead’s pain. For example, your lead is a marketing manager frustrated with the lack of data. Let them know that you understand the source of their frustration. Share your experiences so you can find common ground. Probe deeper to gain insights why there’s a lack of data or how this issue is affecting her role and the company’s productivity.
3) Storytelling
We’ve said it time and again: It’s about them, not about you. Most sales reps make the mistake of presenting a list of their product’s benefits and features. This seller-centric approach turns leads off.
Customize your presentation based on their story, then explain how your product fits into the narrative. Always, let the client be the focus of your presentation.
- Get straight to the point. Grab their attention by giving them what they want.
- Create a presentation from the lead’s point-of-view.
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Write short headlines that your prospects can relate to:
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“Taking your business to the next level”
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“What keeps you up at night?”
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4) Demonstrate
Instead of creating your menu of services, customize your presentation by offering concrete solutions to your lead’s problem. Create a compelling roadmap that details how you and your brand can help.
- Do they need to increase their sales?
- Do they have problems with customer retention?
- Describe what you can do to improve their customer relationship?
Demonstrate your value and create a presentation that sells even without you. Write your pitch compellingly and creatively to influence decision makers that are not present during your presentation.
Convert your lead to consumers by letting them experience what you have to offer. The more personal the experience, the better the results.
