Whether you are pitching to a team or individual, presenting a proposal preparation is key to winning the deal. The success of B2B sales will reflect on your approach. Starting out a situation the wrong way has no return. Being confident, creating the best powerpoint presentation, and having your sales strategy locked away will have you leaving a good impression.
Check out these 7 ways to improve your sales strategy:
1. Focus on What’s Important
Going into meeting, it is important to be considerate of others involved, the time they are dedicating, and what they have given up to be there. Sure, you may think that anything you say in this meeting will be important, but will your prospect? Obviously they are interested in something by being at the meeting. Giving them the answers they came for right away is not only courteous but will give the members in your meeting the confidence that they are not wasting their time.
Other meeting etiquette will still apply such as arriving early, not going over the allocated time, focusing on the members in the group – rather than a laptop or cell phone, prepping the projector, or wasting time on introductions. Your clients are busy and have other meetings to attend, phone calls, and emails to respond to. Be grateful for the time they have set aside from their busy schedule.
2. Ask Questions
Once in a while, make it a point to stop and ask your client a question. Listening for long periods of time can be tiresome and with the attention span most people have today, most words will be going in one ear and out the other. Some example questions to use in a sales presentation are:
How do you define success?
Have you used this approach in the past?
Is this a major challenge for your company?
Have I prioritized your goals correctly?
Not only are they here learn from you, but you are also there to learn from them. Try to get the most information from them as you can. The more you understand their vision, pain points, and objectives, the more opportunities you will have to work with. Make sure that you have done your homework and ask prompting questions rather than obvious questions like that the company does. Open-ended questions can be helpful to reveal some things you may not have realized that you could capitalize on.
3. Keep Teamwork in Mind
If your sales presentation revolves around yourself, your company, or your product ONLY, then that may be the last one you get. It is fair to say that your client most likely has other vendors or agencies that they have considered. Focus on how you can come alongside them to assist in their vision. Show them how you will bring out new customers, retain new customers, increase profit margins, and beat their competition.
To give yourself more credibility, show them how you will do all these things by teaching them. Instead of orange is the new black, teaching is the new pitching. Instead of demanding your client to increase their budget, teach them how they can do business better. Not only are you going to stay in the thoughts of your B2B prospects but you are also building a loyal and natural relationship that they feel added value.
4. Data Time Vs. Story Time
While data is important to clients, it won’t be the tell all. By starting out with a story to show the ways you can/have helped your clients succeed will have your clients following along. Once you introduce the story back it up with data. Your client will be much more interested in what their competitors are doing or what their customers are saying versus the latest research study.
5. PowerPoint as a Tool
If you do choose to use PowerPoint, make sure that you are following some key rules:
- Limit the text
- Use a simple design
- Be sure that all images/slides are related
Using PowerPoint can be a great way to add interest to your presentation. Showing visuals, charts, photos, and graphs can make it more attractive. As long as PowerPoint is used as an aid rather than a script this tool can be very helpful.
6. Keep It Short and Sweet
Although there are probably many things that you could discuss about your company, be sure that your presentations are staying around 15-20 minutes. Be sure that those 15-20 minutes are focused on the main points. Making sure that your clients remember the discussion will be easier when they only have 20 minutes to focus on versus hours. The more time you spend cramming information in, the less your client will remember.
7. Have an Agenda with a Purpose
To keep your presentation on track, create an agenda that hits each point that your client is coming to hear about. Following this progression will give your presentation the structure it needs:
Pain Point/Challenge/Opportunity – be sure that all parties are on the same page with what you are discussing. Ask questions to confirm that they see this as a problem or growth opportunity. Making sure that they are in agreement will allow the presentation to run smoother.
Benefits – talk about the benefits your client will see if they choose to adopt your strategy. Giving examples through case studies is a great way to show that it works.
Plan – present the plan to your client to show how you would resolve the client’s challenge/opportunity.
Company – speak very briefly about your company. Include enough information so that your client is assured. Talk about the similar companies you have worked for and their success stories.
Recommend – close the meeting with your recommendation and ask them if they are interested in moving forward. This will give you both an idea of where to go from there.
Use these few tips on how to create a compelling presentation and incorporate them into your B2B sales strategy. Efficiently presenting your proposal to your clients will be your key to success.