There are many different types of sales presentations, but the effective ones have a few things in common. They:
1. Introduce a Big Idea that captures the audience’s attention
2. Provide credible support for the Big Idea
3. Appeal to people’s emotions and personal payoffs
4. Eliminate ambiguity and misunderstanding
5. Build trust
6. End with a decision to either move forward in the sales process or part ways
The wrong way to present
Let’s start by looking at the wrong way to develop and deliver a sales presentation:
• Open your computer
• Find an existing presentation, one that’s been given before and may or may not have been successful
• Change the names, dates, and titles so the prospect thinks you’ve developed it for them
• “Rehearse” by reading the new and improved slides once or twice
• Deliver the presentation in a clinical monotone (because that’s how we think technical information should be delivered)
• Hope the prospect finds something interesting in it
• Thank them for their time, pack up and leave
Presentations like this tend to be ineffective for three common reasons: They’re boring, confusing, and misleading.
Boring
We don’t pay attention to boring things.
Research from John Medina, a molecular biologist and associate professor of Bioengineering at the University of Washington School of Medicine, shows that our attention increases during the first 10 minutes of a lecture or talk, and then starts to decrease. At the 15-minute mark, people have usually checked out.
To make matters worse, our attention spans are getting shorter. If you don’t believe this, read The Shallows by Nicholas Carr or Deep Work by Cal Newport. Both books describe how our brains are changing due to life’s constant deluge of dings, pings and rings. It’s getting harder for us to concentrate.
Confusing
When we try to cover too many subjects or present cluttered slides like “eye charts,” our audience doesn’t know what to pay attention to because there’s just too much going on.
We add to the confusion when we arrange ideas and slides randomly, making them (and the case we’re trying to build) impossible to follow.
We confuse people even more when we fail to give them a clear call to action or next step. Ask yourself how many times you’ve ended a sales presentation by thanking the audience for their time, when you should have been helping them make a buying decision.
Misleading
Sometimes we cherry-pick data to make our performance or results look better than they really are, make claims we can’t support, or profess to be all things to all people.
Prospects see right through this nonsense and become more skeptical of everything we say from that point on.
The right way to deliver a sales presentation
The entire reason for giving the presentation in the first place is to answer the question: “Should we move forward in the sales process, or should we part ways?”
Here’s a delivery method that has worked well for me and many others since Richard C. Borden first introduced it in 1935:
1. Start a fire with a Big Idea
A great presentation starts with a Big Idea; something new and unexpected.
The best way to do this is to introduce your Big Idea in a way they’re not expecting.
Here are some real examples:
• Our Factory Automation Software can increase your yield by 1% or more within 12 months.
• Slow capacitor tuning speeds cost semiconductor manufacturers more than $100M per year in yield losses.
• One lawsuit over a defective tire cost this manufacturer $100M.
2. Build a bridge
Once you’ve introduced your Big Idea, you need to build a bridge that links the Big Idea to your audience in a compelling and direct way.
To keep their attention, relate your Big Idea to them and to their situation. Why should they care? Get them emotionally involved.
3. Tell a story
Now is the time to provide evidence and concrete examples that support your Big Idea by telling a story that highlights the benefits of adopting it:
1. Describe a person or company.
2. Describe something unfortunate that happens to them or a significant problem they have.
3. Tell them how the person or company turns things around (with your help, of course).
4. Describe the current situation (the happy ending!).
This is the sales version of the classic narrative arc known as “The Hero’s Journey”—you introduce your hero, detail a problem or pitfall he/she has, and illustrate how he/she defeats the bad guy to achieve ultimate triumph.
Start with the most important points and add in any supporting information later. No matter how great your story and delivery are, your audience has a finite amount of time and attention, so lead with your key points.
4. Call to action
This is your big “so what?” moment—what do you want your audience to do as a result of what you’ve shared with them?
Do you want them to buy something, decide on something, pay you, try something? Spell out exactly what you want them to do.
Instead of finishing your presentation with a slide that reads “thank you,” plan for a half hour or so of conversation with the customer to answer any questions they might have, and to ask the questions you need answers to.
This part of the presentation is very much a two-way street; you and your prospect both need information to decide whether this business relationship would be a good fit and sharing information back and forth builds trust and knowledge.
You don’t want to walk away with the customer saying something like “we’ll think about it and get back to you,” because they probably won’t. Get an answer one way or the other before you walk out the door.