THE SALES PRESENTATION … THE BOTTOM LINE IS SELLING

The following is by G. A . “Andy” Marken, President of Marken Communications Inc. He has kindly given us permission to republish his thought-provoking commentary. As with everything that we publish at AlienBabelTech, the opinions expressed are solely those of the individual writer and do not necessarily reflect the views and the opinions of the rest of the ABT staff. –Mark Poppin ABT Editor-in-Chief

Selling is hard work, even in the virtual world of the Internet.  It requires strong motivation, personal pride, perseverance, flexibility, energy, discipline, and focus.  Above all, it requires communicating and being able to read/understand the prospects’ attitudes and needs…real or perceived.

A successful selling situation–especially when selling to a decision team in a company–is based on the salesperson’s ability to communicate.  However, few salespeople are successful at selling “off-the-cuff.”

Your best salespeople prepare, rehearse, analyze, prepare and rehearse.  The more “tools” that you provide them, the better job they can do in selling systems, products, programs and services.

While you will rarely use a complete company/product presentation in a specific sales situation, it is wise to have one.  This presentation discusses all of the features and benefits, as well as the salient selling points.

And, it should ask for the order.

It sounds simple, but these facts are often left at the office when there’s selling to be done.  One of the major problems is that most professional sales training still stresses one-on-one selling.  But in today’s selling environment, for systems as well as solutions sales, a team presentation to a group of decision-makers is required.

This is not to say that one-on-one selling does not take place today.  But for organizations to be successful in specific market segments, they have to sell to more than just the buyer who calls or sends an email and places small orders.  There’s more at stake in high-volume organizational sales, and more people participate in the decision making process.

The only way to ensure that your presentation is successful is to prepare.  Define and address your prospect’s wants and needs.  Organize your presentation, use effective visual aids, and have a prepared presentation team.

Before the Presentation

Even before you consider the form and substance of your presentation, decide precisely what you want your audience to do when you are through.  What action do you want them to take?  By knowing this, you can be more convincing.

*  Write down your objectives in a clear, concise

manner.

*  Keep the objectives in front of you as you

prepare the information and materials to be used in

the presentation.

*  Determine exactly who the decision maker is in the group

Analyze his or her needs, goals, objectives and interests.

Tailor your presentation to the decision maker.

Preparing Your People

When you’re making a presentation, it is not necessary to overwhelm them with people.  Keep the presentation team to a minimum.  If specialists are needed, have them prepared to come in and answer specific questions.  Don’t bring them in “just in case.”

Keep your statements brief and to the point.

Don’t go off on a tangent.

When you’re not in the spotlight, don’t interrupt.

Not everyone in your organization has the same presentation capabilities.  Perhaps he or she was hired for other talents or abilities.  If a person isn’t the best for the presentation, then don’t use them.  After all, you’re out to win a sale, not a popularity contest within your own organization.

Know your audience. Find out as much as you can about the individuals’ likes, dislikes and attitudes.  Monitor your presentation and its acceptance with your audience.  If you are putting them to sleep, change your game plan and strategy.

Keep the presentation upbeat and moving briskly.

In preparing your presentation, you are often up against a deadline, get the wheels moving as quickly as possible.  Develop a presentation schedule and list the materials you’ll need to ensure that all of the items come together–before the deadline.

Presentation Hints

When you’re making a presentation before any sized group, it’s only natural to be a little nervous.  Be assured, your confidence will increase as the presentation goes along.

Follow the basic rules of good public speaking.

*  Stand erect, speak clearly and loudly enough to be heard

in all areas of the room.

*  Introduce yourself and the members of your

presentation team at the outset.

*  Shift positions during your presentation, but don’t rock

or pace.

*  Use visual words and physical descriptions as well as

your visuals during the presentation.

*  Speak directly to your audience, shifting your eyes

every five or ten seconds.  Continually make eye

contact.

*  Use your hands and arms only slightly, and then only for

emphasis.  Concentrate most of your energy into your

facial and vocal expressions.

*  Concentrate on your audience’s body language and make

certain you keep them interested.  If people seem

restless or you see you are losing their

attention, change your pace or skip to a more

interesting portion of the presentation.

*  Don’t worry about mistakes.  They will happen no matter

how many times you have made the presentation.  Just

don’t amplify the mistakes to your audience.  Often they

will go unnoticed.

Rehearse

The best way to give a successful presentation is to have a full rehearsal with all of your participants.  When you schedule your rehearsal, make certain that you have enough time prior to the presentation to correct any problems or shortcomings that arise during the rehearsal.

This is your chance to spot and correct flaws. Treat the presentation as the show itself.  Without this important step, problems and shortcomings will often go unnoticed and the minor flaws may keep you from winning.

During the rehearsal, check your timing.  Lean toward presenting your information at a quick pace.  People will seldom have the nerve to ask you to speed up because you’re dull, but they will ask you to slow down because they find you and your information interesting.

Make certain that all of your slides, charts, video segments, and other audio-visual materials agree with the verbal information that is being presented.

Be as visual as possible.  Use only key words and allow the visuals to provide your audience with an outline of the message.

People learn 11 percent through what they hear and 83 percent through what they see.  They retain 20 percent of what they hear, 30 percent of what they see, and 50 percent of what they see and hear.

The final checkout is simply an extension of your rehearsal.  Do this an hour or so before your actual presentation.  Make certain the room is set up and the equipment is working properly.

When you make a presentation, your audience wants to see what is being discussed.  Good, creative presentations can help accomplish this.  And at the same time, they can help curb your rising management, marketing and sales costs when you take into consideration the time, people and equipment involved.

All of these are important to firms in today’s global market, especially when multiple buying influences involved.

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