A sales or sales presentation should do one thing above all: sell. Presenting your own portfolio, i.e. your company’s products or services, in such a way that the customer is convinced and buys is the clear goal here. Without sales, there are no revenues and thus no business success. That’s why you shouldn’t take sales presentations lightly. We give you some tips for a good PowerPoint presentation in sales.
Today, a company can basically no longer afford mediocre presentations. The quality level of presentations has been significantly increased in recent years. Very many companies invest in presentation agencies that professionally design their PowerPoint presentations and prepare the speakers for their task in the best possible way through presentation training. Therefore, you should already invest some energy in creating your own sales presentation. When you hire a presentation agency, you are on the safe side in terms of the final result. If you would like to work on your presentation with only your own resources, you should definitely consider a few points.
The sales presentation should completely convince your customers. Reservations and doubts should be resolved. For this, your counterpart must be convinced that he is getting the absolutely right offer for his needs from you. For this, you need to spend some extra time and effort and prepare properly for the PowerPoint presentation. However, successful completion will also compensate you for the extra effort. Here are some tips for you on what to look out for.
1. ALIGN THE GOAL OF THE SALES PRESENTATION WITH THE NEEDS OF THE CUSTOMER
A sales presentation prepared with the goal of giving the company an advantage runs the risk of missing the mark. Buyers are not stupid. They don’t want to talk to you about your advertising messages, but about their own wants, needs and problems. It’s about what the customer needs; not what you want to sell. So if you want to gain the attention and trust of your customers, you should not act as a salesman, but as a competent consultant.
In your preparation, you should therefore do precise research on your customer. Gathering information about customers is the norm for sales. Nevertheless, before your presentation, you should once again take a close look at your customer’s current situation.
What problems, worries or wishes does he currently have? How can you use this information for sales presentation? What specifically could you offer that might be particularly helpful in the current situation? What current challenges does it have to overcome? What are its goals? To do this, you can even contact your future business partner directly. Because he is very keen to receive a tailor-made offer and not an 08/15 presentation.
2. INCLUDE CASE STUDIES AND TESTIMONIALS IN YOUR POWERPOINT PRESENTATION
Thanks to technological progress and the Internet, customers are generally more empowered and better informed. This increases the challenges for sales experts. Pure advertising claims are rarely accepted. Your counterpart wants proof. You can mitigate the problem by inserting case studies at the right stage of your sales presentation. In this way, you create trust, because you show how you have successfully solved problems for other customers. Case studies, use cases and success stories create greater credibility and give the potential customer a good feeling that you have a lot of experience to show.
3. INFOTAINMENT HELPS YOU SELL
A mixture of hard facts and impressive visual style elements creates the necessary attention with the customer in your sales presentation. Do not overload your slides with unnecessary technical details that, in case of doubt, no one can remember. What does the customer really need to know? Which details are important and what can be dispensed with? Instead of filling countless slides with graphics and text, focus on the most important information. Think about how you can make your messages even more vivid. For example, if you make motors, you might consider including movie clips or video animations in your presentations that show exactly how they are built and how they work. If you are an architect and want to attract an investor for a major construction project, how about a computer animated walk through of the completed building? Maybe you can show a clip with your modern production line, or a video about the resistance in all positions of the safety shoes you produce. A potential customer usually wants to be inspired.
HEBEN SIE IHRE PRÄSENTATION AUFS NÄCHSTE LEVEL!
4. MAKE THE CONCRETE BENEFIT OF YOUR OFFER CLEAR IN YOUR PRESENTATION
I have seen it time and time again that all features of a product were explained during sales presentations. Whole data sheets were reeled off. The method of production, the place of production, the materials used and their processing. Every aspect was reported on. Nevertheless, sales success was only moderate after that. This was simply due to the fact that the speaker did not specifically explain why the customer should buy from them of all people. “What’s in it for me?” is the question every customer asks. Do not believe that your data and facts speak for themselves and that the customer will already derive his conclusions from them. Be clear and vocal about what good you can do for your customer. Explain what your product or service can do for him and the positive changes he will get from it. For example, if you offer accounting software, you declare that it will speed up the workflow for users by 25%. If you want to sell a machine, say specifically what advantages it has over competing products. Make the customer benefit tangible.
5. PRESENT LIKE A PRO
Just as important as the content and design of a presentation, is the performance of the speaker. The perfect set of slides is of little use if the presenter makes an insecure impression. It is definitely not enough to silently go through each slide once the day before the sales presentation. You need to practice the presentation in depth. Preferably out loud and in front of an audience. Ask your colleagues if they can act as a test audience. The stakes are high, so be as prepared as you can be. It would be even better if you could work on your performance with a presentation expert. This will cost your company some money, but the quality of the final result will be significantly better again. You will also learn the correct posture, gestures, how to best get started with the presentation, etc.
6. BE PREPARED FOR POSSIBLE QUESTIONS AFTER THE PRESENTATION
I wouldn’t mention it if I hadn’t experienced more than once that a good presentation failed because of a single question that wasn’t answered or was answered incorrectly. Work out a list of questions together with your colleagues. What questions might come after the presentation? Think carefully about the answers that go with it.
Keep sufficiently large time windows free for preparation
Most of the time, creating a presentation is not the main task of the speaker. He usually has a full-time job that keeps him fully occupied. Creating a presentation is usually a task that has to be squeezed somewhere in between. Unfortunately, this is usually the case, but I still advise you to create additional time for this project. You need either external help in the form of presentation professionals, or a sufficiently long preparation of your own. The sales presentation is about getting the order. For this you have to give everything.
7. MAKE YOUR SALES PRESENTATION A VISUAL AND EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE
No two sales presentations are alike. It differs from company to company, from product to product, and from customer to customer. However, they all have one thing in common: they must be well structured, professionally designed, convincing and informative. Professional look and perfect content play an important role in the success of your sales presentation. Therefore, score points with superbly researched content, stunning animations, high-resolution graphics and professional designs.
Make sure that your presentation also appeals to your customers emotionally. At the end of the day, buying a product or service is a very emotional matter. For example, you can create emotions through impressive images. Storytelling is particularly effective. Connect your performance with an appropriate story to tell your customer. The story should be about your offer. For example, it could be about the experience of a buyer who has significantly improved his own situation by buying your offer.
What kind of emotions do you want to evoke with your story?
Examples:
– Fear of missing out if you don’t have your product,
– Anticipation of the positive effects that your offer triggers
– The relief of being able to solve a big problem, with your offer
– The feeling of security of working with the absolute top professionals
– Serious business partners at last
8. PREPARE VERY CAREFULLY FOR QUESTIONS
As mentioned above, the focus of a good sales presentation is the customer, not your company and your offerings. Therefore, don’t just reel off your prepared slides, but try to engage your interviewer. Don’t make him a silent listener, but try to actively involve him.
To achieve this, make your presentation entertaining and invite them to ask questions. Check with the people you are talking to to make sure everything is understandable or if there are any additional questions about a topic. By handling the questions efficiently while maintaining the momentum of the presentation, you can convert customer interest into sales orders. Questions are also great feedback to help you improve your next presentations.
AUF EINER SKALA VON 1-10: WIE GUT SIND IHRE PRÄSENTATIONEN?
9. INCLUDE A CALL-TO-ACTION IN YOUR SALES PRESENTATION.
You have invested your energy and spent valuable time preparing your presentation. Then you should also make a specific call to action to your customers. At the end of your sales presentation, summarize the key points again. Add a call-to-action to initiate the next step. This can be a visit to the plant, a meeting with the managing director or the preparation of the sales contracts. The important thing is the call to take the next step now.
10. Link facts with emotions: The benefits of storytelling
So if you can embed your facts in a great story, you’ll amplify the impact of your sales pitch. There is a difference if you tell, for example, that you sell good tools with all kinds of certificates, or if you also explain why the highest quality has such an outstanding value especially in your company. The father of the head of the company had a fatal accident at work because someone had put defective tools on him. This has motivated the boss so much that today he manufactures the world’s safest movement trains. The listener understands the motivation and is more inclined to believe that exceptionally good tools are made in this company. Of course, the story should not be made up, but should stand up to scrutiny in case of doubt.
11. have a sales presentation created or become a presentation expert yourself
Simply setting up an excellent presentation on the side is an illusion. Either take the time yourself that a top presentation requires, or hire a presentation agency. In any case, you should keep the following in mind: Not only the slides are important in their presentation. The way you present your slides will determine whether your customers buy into your messages, or become skeptical. Take a few hours and go over your own presentation with a presentation professional. Even this short training with an experienced professional, will significantly improve your performance. Large presentation agencies offer a corresponding full service.
12. prepare well for possible customer questions after the sales presentation
Preparing for customer questions is part of the little basics of sales presentations. Nevertheless, there are always failures here. One question not answered or answered incorrectly can ruin the entire success of the presentation. Together with your colleagues, try to collect all possible questions and formulate answers. Should explanatory slides be provided for specific questions? You better not owe an answer
CONCLUSION
A good conversation with the prospect before the sales presentation and a good follow-up are critical to closing the deal and converting prospects into customers. Preparation takes some time, but the extra effort will pay off. When it comes to planning, choosing the right media and designing the PowerPoint slides in the best possible way, you can request the assistance of a presentation agency. This reduces your own effort and gives you exactly the right slides you need for your successful sales presentation.
