The Anatomy of a Successful Sales Presentation
A sales presentation is essential to your sales process. It’s often your company’s first impression to prospective clients and goes a long way in determining if you will land those clients or not. A sales presentation is your opportunity to demonstrate the quality of your product or services and show prospective clients the value in them. This is why knowing what goes into a successful sales presentation is crucial. So, what makes a successful sales presentation? Here are some critical elements of a successful sales presentation:
1. Grab your audience at the start
This is an essential part of a successful sales presentation. If you don’t get the attention of your audience at the beginning of your presentation, you might never get them. Once an audience has tuned you out, it’s hard to get them back. Hit them with something visually stunning, attractive and informative that reflects your company’s stance and industry. A PowerPoint slide probably won’t get anyone to sit up and lean in. Use images and video to elicit an emotional response in your audience. Pull the audience in right from the start, and you will have a much better chance of holding them until the end.
2. Make sure your audience sees the value in your presentation
Make sure your presentation is clear and explains what it is that you do and why your audience should buy your product or service. Have them see the value in what you’re proposing and how it will benefit them. Remember that they won’t see it if you don’t. Having confidence in your product or service is essential. You can’t fake it, or your audience will know.
3. Incorporate storytelling
It’s no secret that presentations that involve storytelling are more successful than those that don’t. This is because stories help you relate to an audience. They help the audience feel connected to who you are and what you’re selling. A good storyteller engages the audience, captivates them, tugs at their emotions and motivates them to act.
Part of your presentation should include the story behind your company and your product or service. You can generate a lot of interest with a good “how this came to be where it is today” story. Incorporate interesting characters, events, and places in your story. Add humor where it is appropriate.
4. Offer real solutions
A key piece in the anatomy of a successful sales presentation is to hone in on the potential client's problem, need or want and how your product or service is the ideal solution. People like to see how your product is going to change their business for the better or take them to where they want to go. Hit on key points and show the benefits to your audience for each one. Keep it simple and easy to understand. Don’t bog your audience down with too much information or detail. A good way to drive home the value of your solution is to give a simple demonstration of it.
5. Be able to back up your presentation
A few questions you’ll often hear in a presentation are, “How do I know this will work for me?” or, "Why is this right for me?" If you aren’t prepared to back up your claims, your audience won’t believe you. Give them hard evidence that supports your product or service. Use images, video, testimonials and other tools to highlight your credibility. Sharing research data, quoting verifiable findings and comparing your products to your competitors are good ways to demonstrate to your audience that your product or service is the one they want and need.
6. Connect with your audience
If you don’t connect with your audience, chances are good that your presentation won’t be successful. It is essential that you not only connect with them but also hold that connection throughout your presentation. Keep your energy high and your attention on your audience. Research your audience in advance, find out what might appeal to them, and use that to get their attention. Let them know that you are interested in them, not just interested in selling something to them.
7. Encourage questions and feedback.
As important as connecting with your audience is, engaging them to participate in your presentation is equally as important. Ask questions that elicit responses. After key points, ask them if they see the benefit in what your product can do for them. Don’t assume they already know from what you’ve said. When you ask for feedback, you keep the audience engaged and ensure that nothing you say is falling through the cracks.
Many presenters will tell the audience to hold all questions until the end. What this generally means is that you don’t want to be interrupted. You have your presentation planned out and nobody is going to get in the way of it. The problem with this approach is that an audience can sense that. It might be frustrating for someone with a question early in your presentation to have to wait until the end. They might even forget the question or not bother to ask because the question pertains to something you touched on 20 minutes ago. Let your audience know up front that it’s okay to ask questions at any time. Gage facial expressions and body language that might indicate that someone has a question. Stop where you are and give them an opportunity to express what’s on their mind. This not only helps them, but it puts you in a better light.
Find Success With Ingage
At Ingage, we hear from companies and salespeople all the time about what tools they need to enable them to become successful salespeople. The answer: we’ve developed an interactive presentation software that helps salespeople close at a 10% higher rate than without Ingage. Ready to make your sales team more successful? Contact us for a custom presentation today!