Emma is a media manager of a large auto company that recently issued an RFP for a Q4 campaign. Aimed at promoting a new flagship model, the campaign has a hefty budget attached to it, meaning her calendar was packed with sales meetings.
Halfway through the day, she couldn't help but notice she was feeling tired and under the weather, almost as if these meetings were sucking the life out of her body. As exciting as the proposals got, she felt like she was trapped between walls made up of the same sales materials, repeated phrases, and lackluster PowerPoint presentations of bland offers of the same product. After a deep sigh, she looked at her calendar and added an insignificant checkmark next to the last meeting.
Only one more to go. Jimmy from one of the mid-level publisher websites is coming to talk about how running a campaign with them will launch the new model into the stars. "Lovely", Emma said to herself right before her phone rang, letting her know that Jimmy was coming upstairs.
After exchanging a few sentences about the weather and the horrors of NYC traffic, it was time to get down to business. Dim the lights, draw the curtains, and let the show begin.
As the room transformed into a dimly lit stage and the curtains were drawn, Emma couldn't shake off the weariness that had settled in from a day filled with mundane sales materials and presentations. Little did she know, Jimmy was about to break the monotony and captivate her with a presentation strategy that would change the course of her decision-making process.
If you wonder why Jimmy was the standout star in that sales meeting - well, the answer lies in his crafty application of these game-changing tips.
In Your Sales Materials, Don't Present the Product, Tell the Story
Creating impactful sales materials is key. As shocking as it may sound, the people you're presenting to have already heard your pitch a million times. Your words can only do so much, and sometimes, they'll more likely remember the way you dressed rather than a single word you said. They're like big babies who like pretty pictures. Take them on a journey. Let your presentation tell a story, not just showcase the offer. Use metaphors to talk about the product without actually mentioning it. Full-screen images break the monotony and help engage with the story. Use videos and animations to spice things up. Your audience is desperate for something new and unusual to lighten up their day. The only limit is your creativity.
Every Pixel Matters
Sure, your ideas might be excellent, and your story might be spot on, but you might get a countereffect if your sales materials don't look sharp. Lackluster sales materials not only fail to tell a story, but also kill the pitch. The production quality directly represents the effort you put into the sales process. No one wants to spend their time and money with someone who doesn't care about winning them over. Explore the latest trends, scan the industry, and see what the competition is doing. What's working for them? Learn from their mistakes. Ensuring every pixel is in place is one of the ultimate presentation weapons in sales.
Don't Overcomplicate Your Sales Process
Your product is your baby, and you can talk about its lovely features day and night. It takes superhuman strength to avoid putting every single one on a sales sheet, but that’s precisely what you must do. Tease your audience, give them a tiny snippet of what you have to offer, just the essential things. Cut down on the words and focus on images, as they’re more memorable. Put out the bait, and if they bite, you’re free to go over the details with them. If they’re, for example, interested in your mobile targeting capabilities and ad formats, you can even have a separate two-sheet addressing only that. Avoid bombarding them with information straight away. Remember, less is more.
Customization is the Key, Use Your Sales Tools
Is there a better way to say I care for you than a custom mockup? Your sponsorship opportunities and targeting methods are tremendous, but showcasing them visually is a must. A custom-made sales sheet is a fantastic sales tool. Even changing a couple of images and mockups will do wonders. If you make sure they’re custom-made for the client, you’re saying, “I care so much about you that I went out of my way and made sure you know exactly how your beautiful ads will look on our site. If I care so much about this presentation, I’ll treat your campaign like my newborn baby. You should definitely work with us!” Or at least something along those lines.
Back Everything up with Research
There comes a time in every sales pitch when the “real talk” kicks in. Everything looks great and interesting, but does it actually work? Well, this is why all of your sales should have underlying research backing them up. “We offer exclusive mobile targeting, so think about all the possibilities you have with the 95.8% of global users that use the internet via mobile phones (Statista, 2023).” or, “You should know that 69% of consumers are more likely to look at an ad if it's relevant to the content they're reading (Double Verify, 2023), and our unparalleled expertise in content and contextual targeting ensures your brand resonates seamlessly with your audience, maximizing engagement and impact.” Doesn't it sound reassuring?
Something to Remember Me By: Expanding on Printed Sales Materials
You reviewed everything you wanted to cover, and it's time to wrap up the meeting. If you took care of all the previous steps, you can rest assured your pitch made an impact. However, a discreet reminder never hurts. Presentations can easily get lost in an ocean of emails, but a small piece of printed sales material will stay on their tables long after you leave, letting them know you care. A simple, easy-to-produce reminder that can make a world of difference when it comes to making the final decision.
Who Has Time for All of This?
Well, not you, of course. You're a full-time salesperson, not a madly super-creative Photoshop wizard with research tendencies and a knack for poetry all at once. The answer is simple – outsource it! The dedicated external support team will make sure you're armed with sophisticated, state-of-the-art materials while you're focusing on getting the meetings and doing the thing you do best – selling. Working with so many clients like yourself inevitably means they know all the blows and whistles, dos and don'ts, and tricks and hacks to make sure you have that extra edge. Give it a try. Details change everything, and these are the ones that truly matter.
As Jimmy left the room, he was confident he'd add “closed/won” to his sales tracking sheet later that week. His pitch was spot on, and his sales materials followed all the key guidelines, resulting in a memorable impact.
On the other side of the door, Emma was speechless. She definitely didn't expect this level of effort, and she even had fun watching the presentation. This was indeed something new and exciting. To make things even better, she just drastically narrowed down her options for the next year's campaign.
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