Many people call the mechanics of the selling process many things—a presentation, a sales script, prepared notes or whatever—“A rose by any other name...” I like to refer to the fact that the process of selling requires sales people to make presentations. It is crucial to recognize that it takes multiple presentations for most sales people to achieve effective results. (Obviously, there are many exceptions to all sales situations but I'm referring to the average sales experience.) Every product or service requires its own specific number of presentations for a “happy ending.” How many presentations are required should be a function of what information is usually required to enable the “decider” to act and also, where you are in the selling process.
Let's revisit the basics. Almost all products and services require three major steps to enjoy a successful sales conclusion. First, you need to find someone interested in your product or service. Next, you need to convince them that you should be the one to provide them with the product or service. And lastly, the sales person should make sure the transaction closes and/or funds.
That's all there is to it. Again, find someone interested in your product or service, convince them you're the one to satisfy their need and make certain the transaction closes and/or funds. With this in mind, you can easily determine that you'll need at least three presentations (one for each of the three steps as listed above). I'll briefly break down the three component parts to illustrate the purpose of more than one presentation for each phase.
Find someone interested in your product or service. You will need a presentation for each possible opportunity and encounter with a prospect. There's a separate presentation on how to effectively ask for referrals. Calling on a referral requires a unique presentation to maximize your effectiveness with the first contact. Who gave you the referral? Why they suggested this new prospect might be interested and many other considerations.
What's your presentation when you're in a networking situation (e.g., an “elevator speech”)? Cold calling has its own special challenges and will require a specific presentation to maximize the effectiveness of this contact.
If all of this wasn't complicated enough, there are basically two types of prospects—a prospect that has a need for your product or service, and a prospect where you have to create the need for your product or service. More situations require their own special presentations.
Now that you've found someone interested in your product or service (the first part of the sales process), you need to convince the prospect that you're the perfect person to accomplish his or her needs. You might need a presentation to enumerate your credentials (or your company's credentials) to establish credibility. It's advisable to make a brief presentation recognizing your competitors and what attributes differentiate your product or service from anyone else. Let's not forget the presentation that clearly discusses the benefits of your product or service (it's usually a good practice to make a separate presentation if features of your product or service require discussion). I'll stop the list for this part of the sales process but you can see that there will probably be more presentations necessary to maximize an effective outcome.
The last group of presentations will address closing the transaction and any funding involved. During closing discussions, a separate presentation might be required to address individual or group objections. Yes, handling objections should be considered a presentation. A presentation for various closing opportunities should be specific to where you are in that process. Oftentimes, it takes a presentation to ascertain who has the real authority to effectuate the closing.
Closing this phase of the selling process could be the precursor to gaining access to another step in the sales process. Many sales people find themselves in the awkward position of realizing, much to their chagrin, that the “decider” is not in attendance and this was just part of the screening process to see if it warrants further discussions. The funding of a transaction might be an integral part of a successful closing. Funding might require another effective presentation.
Without belaboring the point, it should be apparent that the need for multiple presentations is key to effective sales results. Selling is a discipline that requires significant thought and planning. Take the time to identify your specific selling process and what presentations will be required. An interesting definition of a sale is when preparation meets opportunity. Prepare every presentation you might conceivably need and when the opportunity presents itself your effectiveness will be greatly enhanced.
