Sales Presentation Best Practices: What are your 3 tips for giving a successful sales presentation?

Limiting this to 3 tips is tough; as Kevin said, there are many more. However, here are my top three:

1. Start your presentation by summarizing your understanding of your prospect or customer’s situation. This not only captures your prospect’s attention, it also demonstrates that you have a good understanding of their specific situation, challenges, concerns, issues, etc. Focus on the prospect's company, their goals, concerns, and objectives.

2. NEVER open with boring information about your company, products, awards, etc. Leave that info until the end of the presentation and limit it to no more than a few minutes max. Contrary to popular belief your prospects don’t care about you; all they want to know is how you can help them solve a particular problem. Talking about your company does not achieve this goal.

3. When you’re planning your presentation, consider what information is essential and must be included. This includes critical data about the customer’s situation, their goals & objectives, and how your offering will address these issues. These become your key talking points and the focus of your presentation. Include "nice-to-have" information as back-up and present it ONLY if you have time.

Cheers!
Kelley

1. Start with your homework - know who will be in the room, how they will make their decisions, what are they meeting for, what you think they expect - in advance.
Have an internal coach - if this is a large group, meet with your internal champion ahead of time to learn what you can't find out on your own - about the internal issues, politics, and initiatives already happening inside the organization that you are not privvy to. Now you can tailor a presentation - just be sure that your coach is well respected within the organization.
[Backfire: Once I was briefed by a charming regional guy who was bringing me into an annual international meeting that was held at my regional guy's location. As soon as I walked into the room, I realized there was something terrible going on - my contact did not tell me how dire their situation was, and nothing dazzling I could do would make them invest in a new program. Within months, that regional office closed. I survived the meeting, and vowed to never take someones "word" for how things are without asking them enough questions to really have a sense of the current situation.]

2. Get their attention. Begin with a very compelling question or statement of fact in an upbeat and respectful tone. I sometimes might say to a room of salespeople who have not embraced social media: "Are YOU leaving money on the table? Think about it - ARE you?" Don't start your presentation with the same old, tired stuff. You've got to wake people up to the present moment. Props can work well for this.

3. Keep words to a minimum: This is the time where less is often more - depending on the type of presentation. Generally speaking, use PowerPoint only as a backdrop - the best presentations just show pictures or a handful of words. You should be the focus, not PPT. Guy Kawasaki wrote a famous rant about PowerPoint and I've always enjoyed the basic premise of the 10/20/30 rule: http://bit.ly/hhwQhy
He more recently wrote about Japanese design principles here http://bit.ly/hFtVZ4.

This includes what you say - typically sellers (myself included) are wordy. Make a conscious attempt in advance to find more powerful words and phrases to say less with more. Then rehearse in advance, just like sports teams do.

This is a great question, Craig. Some seasoned veterans may see these suggestions as “Sales 101.” But I’ve seen, as a seller and a buyer, salespeople of all seniority levels mismanage presentations. Presentation skills are hard to teach, and to master. And yet most of the mistakes we make look, in hindsight, like common sense.

Also, as Kevin noted in the first response, context counts for a lot. The following 3 tips (plus 1 bonus tip) are most geared to in-person or video conference presentations, but are also generally applicable to phone meetings.

1. Manage your schedule. Half of the battle is determining whether a presentation is even warranted by the situation. During WWII, American citizens used to conserve everything in order to be sure our troops and allies were adequately equipped for military operations. A famous government poster asked people who owned cars, “Is this trip really necessary?” Your most precious, scarce resource -- aside from your talent as a sales professional -- is the TIME you give to prospects. Make every meeting count by qualifying and researching your prospect thoroughly. Don’t buy into the fear-based thinking that says buyers are soooo busy that we should be grateful for any chance to meet with them. Buyers need to see that you are busy, so they respect your time. If we don’t respect our own time, we train our clients that they can do likewise. And we can’t achieve our goals if we attract prospects who waste our time.

2. Manage the game clock. At the start of the meeting, confirm how much time you have, and then -- very important! – confirm with the decision maker (or the decision maker’s proxy) that they have that same amount of time. If you think you have 45 minutes, but the most important person leaves after 20 minutes, you’ve probably missed an opportunity to make your case. And worse, you make take it as a reflection on your presentation skills when it’s just a function of that person’s schedule. Confirm how much time you have with the key people. Then be ready to shorten your prepared presentation, or abandon it altogether in favor of a focused discussion.

3. Manage the room. If you don’t already know the players, make a visual map of the room using a notepad or by arranging the business cards you’ve collected in the position of your audience. Sure, someone may observe you doing this and think you’re a bit uptight. But that might serve you later on when they want a concession on deal terms. They will know you’re taking everything seriously, so they’ll be more likely to “come correct.” Another critical aspect of managing the room is to authentically be courteous and respectful to each person, even if you perceive him/her not to be the final decision maker or a strong influencer. This is a true skill, especially if your prospect has a flat organizational culture that encourages everyone to participate. It’s essential to stay focused on the key influencers, but if the junior people in the room perceive you to be dismissive of their questions, you may create unnecessary headwinds for yourself.

4. Manage to have fun. (Bonus tip!) The extra preparation and attention to detail that it takes to give a great sales presentation can be exhausting. If these aren’t already habits of yours, it will take a while to make them habits. But as you’re making it part of your routine, be sure to remember that it’s all a game. Yes it’s a high stakes game where your future income is sitting on the conference table. But it is still a game, and a game should be fun. If it isn’t, we shouldn’t play. Your clients may or may not think your product is the best. But if they don’t see you as an authentically inspired professional who enjoys what he/she does, they will be less likely to buy from you.

Don't just try to differentiate your product. Differentiate yourself, as a sales person. Frequently, when setting up a sales meeting, I will be asked if I will need a projector. There is an instant assumption that the meeting will be yet another sales person standing in front of a room, giving a presentation, trying to convince a prospect that his product is the best choice. On a first meeting, I rarely use slides. Often I don't even take my laptop out of my bag. I may use a whiteboard with emphasis on learning about the prospect. Conducting research has been mentioned already. IDC reports that the top performing 16% in a sales organization are "extremely well prepared" and the bottom, soon to be fired 31% are "not at all prepared". No coincidence. Some may think, if I am so well prepared, why should I dedicate the first meeting to asking more questions? The preparation allows you to hold an intelligent discussion with the prospect. It allows you to share comments on trends, technology, industry knowledge and the prospect's competitors. This will start to establish you as someone who has a genuine interest in the prospect's business; you are not just there to sell a product and move on. I cannot recall how many high value deals I have won when that first meeting has been slide-free.

Matt raises a great point about expectations. This does not have to come in the form of an agenda slide. Often, I will set a meeting agenda on the spot, using that whiteboard. After brief introductions, I take control of the meeting and determine the (typically) three topics to be discussed. Confidence is important here. You need to be able to guide the content of the conversation to meet your needs as well as satisfying the prospect that you are really there for them. Too many times I have seen sales people get taken down a rat hole, and they either do not realize, or they do not have the confidence to stop the conversation, back-out, and continue along a more constructive path. If you see that you are spending too much time on one topic, say so. If there is a point to be made, make it, and move on. On the other hand, if you have stopped on what seems to be an appropriate and important topic, give the audience a choice: "..we are spending quite a bit more time on this topic than our meeting schedule allows for. I have time to extend our meeting schedule, if that helps. Alternatively, we can reconvene for the other topic we need to discuss [nice excuse to get another meeting], and focus on this one for now. Which would you prefer?" None of this is difficult - it just needs a sales person to feel comfortable leading a meeting.

Listen. Again, a point already made. But listening, and active listening, are two quite different things. How many of us have seen an interviewer ask a question and, while the subject is answering the question, the interviewer is not even listening? Annoying, isn't it? Or how about those times when an answer is given that begs a follow-up question, and yet the interviewer totally blows that off and moves on to the next question on his list? Potentially a huge waste of a valuable learning opportunity. When going in to a sales meeting, I tend to limit my outgoing questions to 5, and often I will not get past 3. Why? Because I drill down on every answer. I ask follow-up questions, mostly based on the research and preparation I completed before the meeting. This allows me not only to develop a far better understanding for the pain that my prospect may be experiencing, but it also reconfirms that I am very interested in what the prospect has to say, and frequently uncovers buying motivations that would have otherwise been completely missed.

That's three. What do I do after that first meeting? I confirm time and attendance for the follow-up, prepare a presentation that is completely tailored to the content of the first meeting, while aligning to the product or service I am offering, and make fast progress through the sales cycle.

Some great answers already. Here's my take on this:

1. Arrive prepared. Do your research in advance. Don't use the occasion to ask questions about things you could have discovered elsewhere - it's disrespectful and, even worse, boring for your audience. Start by summarising your understanding of their situation, and what they are trying to achieve. Use your questions to explore the consequences.

2. If you're using PowerPoint (why?), at least do them the courtesy of using images or short and simple text, and not line after line of bullet points. Try using a whiteboard or a flip-chart, rather than a pre-prepared deck of slide that you've just gotta get through. And never, ever, start with a sequence of turgid slides about who your company is and why you are so great - trust me, it will grate...

3. Think of the occasion as a conversation, not a broadcast. Structure your presentation to encourage questions and dialogue. If, at the end of the day, unless you are delivering a presentation at a conference, you will have failed miserably if you've done more talking than your audience. Your presentation will only be a success if all parties leave feeling that they have learned something valuable.

If you follow these three simple principles, you will dramatically out-perform most of the presentations your audience are subjected to before or afterwards. And you'll get remembered. In a good way, and not as yet another corporate bore.

1. Establish & confirm expectations with the prospect. There's nothing worse than a sales rep diving into a presentation without setting the stage, and ensuring the prospect is there for the same reason. Make sure you're both clear on what you want to discuss, and what you want out of the presentation.

2. Get them talking early. Don't talk for 90 percent of the time and give them a couple minutes at the end to ask questions. Get them talking early - about their objectives, their needs, their current pain. Get them engaged in the presentation early, and it'll make them feel a part of discovering the solution.

3. Show, don't tell. Don't just describe what you can do it. Show it! Give examples of success stories from other clients, demonstrate the path from solution to outcome. Help your prospect visualize success.

1. Do your homework. First and foremost, know your audience and what is important to them, so you can keep the audience interested in the material to be covered. Make your presentation interactive and informative, and keep the participants engaged throughout.
2. Stay on topic. Be brief, focused and summarize the key points of emphasis to ensure the participants are clear on the material being covered and the take-aways. Pose great questions during the presentation to maintain the group's attention and a high level of understanding.
3. Have fun and be engaging. Avoid a one-way information dump. Sprinkle in some "fun facts" to keep your presentation flowing and the energy levels high, both yours and the group participants.

Great question and great discussion!
My top three tips for a great sales presentations are:
1. Make it all about them - operate from the premise that people are far more interested in themselves than they are in you. That goes for companies and organizations too. Design and deliver the presentation from their point of view. Doing this makes it easy for them to connect and easy for them to emotionally engage.

2. Tell a great story - graphs, numbers and statistics are all important, but if you want to give a great sales presentation you need to know how to tell a terrific story. Back up your presentation with real examples and true stories of where, when and how what you offer made a difference.

3. Introduce yourself to everyone, look them in the eye and smile. This may sound simple, but I see more sales presentations where people come into the room introduce themselves to the group and get started. Sales is about connection, it is about emotion. Quality products, effective services are the ticket to entry.. you need to build trust to close the deal. If you can - get there early and be there to greet people as they come to the meeting... If not, then as you are handing out your presentation, introduce yourself, make eye contact and smile..

1. Job One is offer some value in the presentation itself. And don't make it advertising, about yourself, or cheap platitudes. Take a point of view, do some research, and offer up something really of value to the prospect. If you can do that, you are doing samples selling, and you are proving by action that you are customer-focused and playing for the long haul.

2. As soon as you can, turn the presentation back to issues surrounding the customer. Ask genuinely curious open-ended questions, and allow the conversation to go where the prospect takes it. Resist the temptation to ask closed questions, and to ask questions that can only be answered by 'yes.'

3. Give direct, crisp and responsive answers to direct questions. Even if it isn't the question you want to ask, then first answer it anyway. That's the only way you'll earn the right to offer up your own perspectives on the issues confronting the prospect.

1. What’s the Purpose?
The first and most critical step in planning your speech is understanding the “what?” and “why?” of your presentation – its purpose. Surprisingly, many people overlook this step and end up lost. And if you, the speaker, don’t know where you want to go, how can the audience possibly follow you? Here are three questions you can ask yourself to clarify your purpose:
• Why am I giving this talk?
• What do I want the audience to know or do at the end?
• How do I want the audience to feel?

2. Who is Your Audience?
Will they be open or hostile to what you have to say?
To which of their needs should you pay most attention?
What background and knowledge do they have about your topic?
What negatives have they heard about this topic?
Do they have the authority to make decisions about your proposal?
What’s in it for them if they listen to you?
Are you speaking in the morning, when people’s attention level is high?
Or after dinner, when it’s going to be tougher to hold their interest?

3. Get and Hold the Audience’s Attention
There’s an old saying among speakers: “Have a powerful, captivating opening and a strong, memorable close – and put them as close together as possible.” Sad to say, many beginning speakers lose their audience right off the bat. Instead, grab your listeners with something vitally interesting to them.
In one of my frequent talks about improving relationships, for example, I start off by asking for a show of hands from those who’ve ever had a personality conflict. Naturally, almost everybody raises his or her hand – so right away I’ve got nearly everyone’s attention because they realize they’re about to learn something helpful.
Give them an exciting, interesting story or example that leads into your focus. Try to draw them into the subject by using a strong quotation or a startling statistic. Be succinct, and use simple, graphic language.

First of all I'm assuming that your presentation is really your recommendation otherwise you'd be "spilling you candy in the lobby". No one buys because of features and benefits.
1) Make sure that the decision makers are in the room.
2) Re-engage their pain. They need to remember why you are there.
3) Get the "Elephant" in the room out as fast as possible. Don't be afraid to talk about the money!
4) Get a commitment! They don't have to say "yes" today, but there needs to be follow up to the "I need to think about it" statement. You don't want to be chasing the invisible man. We all have our calanders on our hip, schedule the follow up while in the room.
5) Have fun. Sales is not cancer. There is nothing to fear. You don't have their business so you have nothing to loose.

Craig,

There are some superb responses here, from a lot of people who I know and respect immensely

I am going to take the easy option, and offer you, and other readers of this thread a free Ebook that I recently published - "Professional Presentations - How To Plan & Deliver A Compelling Presentation"

It's based on my own experiences - around 10.000 presentations - and all the hard lessons learned along the way!

http://www.jonathanfarrington.com/downloads/ebooks/JFC_PTW_EBook_6.pdf

I hope you enjoy it.

Best

Jonathan

Limiting it to 3 is tough but here are mine.
1. Don't make it a sales presentation, make it a discussion. The more you can make the meeting be a discussion the greater your chance of success because you will be engaged with the customer and allowing them to share with you what their needs are. The trick is you have to no your material better than if you were going to present in a formal state this is because you have to be able to go with the flow of the discussion yet still have the ability to get your points across.
2. Let the customer talk. Too many salespeople talk way too much, they do this by rarely asking a question and when they do they go ahead and answer it for the customer. Key is to never talk for more than 20 seconds without asking the customer a question and then take whatever it is they share with you and ask a follow-up question.
3. Allowing the presentation to become all about price. Absolutely essential to keep the discussion focused on what the customer's needs are, and low price should never be the reason a customer buys from you. Your first objective in the presentation is to uncover at least two needs you can then build on by getting the customer to explain even more about the needs than they would normally and then building from there an uncovering still more. When the customer is expressing in detail the needs they have then you have much greater opportunity to close the sale without getting into any type of a price discount game.

George Lewis
Title: Major Account Executive Ikon Office Solutions

Three tips on a successful presentation…
I have been in the industry for thirty years and enjoy the variety of businesses and organizations I see on a daily basis discussing office technology and information workflow. I will pull from yesterday’s meeting with the President of a home healthcare provider as my subject .
1. Prepare and grab mentors: Yes, Google, Hoovers and First Research played into my preparation, but emailing a sales rep , the analyst involved, and copying in my manager on an account from an internal monthly recognition meeting the week before gave me the first hand information I needed for the potential pain points of this industry and how Ikon addressed them. I n a conference call the analyst was able to go beyond that one account and discuss three different accounts each with different pain points, he also volunteered to be on call for the meeting …I had my mentors and references for this type of account.
2. Show genuine curiosity, it creates a bond : I met with the highest person I could in the organization in my first meeting, in this case it was the President. I presented usage information as to how his organization currently uses our products. But I quickly diverged into his interests and industry concerns and what my information might mean to him, because frankly I did not know specifically and I am in simple terms a very curious person. I reviewed how we helped other customers exploring for pain points Ikon could address. In this meeting none hit home or he had an objection as to why it would not have a sufficient ROI.

3. Listen as you are walking out the door: Often the client gives you the information you need to proceed at the end of the meeting, after you wrap up. They reveal their pain point. My client did just that. He contradicted his earlier conversation when his guard was up and gave me the information I needed to proceed in adding extra value to the relationship and selling more of our services. In the BBC series, Dr Finley, someone imparts the wisdom, “the patient really tells what is ailing them once their hand is on the doorknob to leave” . It is often the same- in reverse- in sales.

There are lots of great ideas here. I'm going to add one that we don't see discussed very often, and that's the Q&A session. Invariably I see sales people practice presentations - many of which come off pretty close to perfection. But then they fail with the Q&A. Sales people don't take the time to anticipate the questions that will be asked - and with thought, many can be anticipated - and then craft their response. In my mind, setting aside to prep for the Q&A portion is critical - too many presentations actually are won or lost here!

1. Be prepared in advance with the right facts and answers to possible objections, or address objections with solutions during the presentation.
2. Have all the right decision makers at the meeting
3. Summerize the benfits and what they can expect as a return from the benefits.
4. Obtain next step commitments for closing the deal.

I don't think that there is one answer to this because it depends on the context.

For example, is it a sales presentation to a new potential customer or to an existing customer?
Do you have a relationship already built with the customer?
Who is joining the meeting from the customer side, what level in the organisation, will the economic buyer be there, will it be to the operations team only?
What are you selling? Do they need it, want it or is it a nice to have?
Are you competing against an incumbent or is it a new product/service for them?
What is the realistic desired outcome of the meeting? Is it to get another meeting or to close the deal?

There are many questions that impact the type of sales presentation that you need to make.

My top tip for the meeting, irrespective of the context, is to listen to the customer.

Aidan

All these are great suggestions! Here are my additions:

1. Remember all attendees are just people. They have varying personalities and emotions(Elephants) and different agendas. Make sure you know the folks that champion your product or service and the ones that would prefer not to make change.

2. Be inclusive: Know who will be in attendance and make sure to cover each of their areas for a few seconds. This can change the direction of a staff member that may be resiting change. People want to feel important and in small business many employees have close relationships with key players that may not be disclosed.

3. Use a parking lot: Questions will come up and sometimes you won't know the answer. When it happens, use the parking lot. Answer them:" That's a great question, let's put it here on the parking lot (a white board in the room or if you don't have a white board a clean sheet of paper you have on the table) I will get back to you with that answer by tomorrow." That will often move your forward if someone resisting the change is trying to stop the flow of the presentation. You can move on and keep your rhythm. Make sure you close the meeting, with the promise of an email with the answers. Copy the decision maker with the answers. This shows you have follow up ability and are fully committed to the project.

And here are another three things to remember with all presentations.

1 Be Authentic! Really understand who you are and your personal brand benefits.

2 Understand Your Body Language - The Future of Body Language has some good tips - since you do not want to influence in the wrong way its important you understand what message you are conveying and where not appropriate change it so it is.

3 Everyone is different, e.g. I am more visual than auditory, so it is reasonable to give a presentation that utilises all the senses, and much more likely to appeal to all the audience.

forgive me, auspicious colleagues, i haven't read your comments but wanted to suggest a couple of ideas that have held me in good stead.
1. Know your audience
- their expectations
- their objectives, issues, and concerns with you, within their own group, etc
2. Make sure you are answering, addressing, solving the issue, question, or problem that they have devoted their time to hearing about, without going off in an unsuspected direction.
- try to solve their individual, respective concerns in your solution
3. Get them involved in crafting your message, both in anticipation of the presentation itself and during the very meeting.

Charles Craig hit the nail on the head above. The absolute critical thing is in knowing that there needs to be an exchange of value. Small words, big issue.

Such a posture ensures, or should ensure, a valuable architecture to the entire transaction process.

1. Slow down. Be deliberate in what you do. Don't talk too fast, move the mouse or pointer too fast (if you're using a computer presentation), and don't rush to get to the end.

2. Have a plan for managing the presentation. In other words, know beforehand how you will handle questions, concerns, and comments. Don't try to wing it. This is a way to plan for the unexpected and expected both. You need to "manage the classroom".

3. Follow Up, Follow Up, Follow Up. Don't forget questions or concerns that you know about. Don't let things go unanswered. If you've pushed questions to the end, make sure you note them and actually address them. If you can't answer the questions during the presentation, make sure you follow up afterword and get them answered within a promised time frame. Acknowledge the need for an answer, promise a delivery for the answers, and then deliver them on-time.

1. Be culturally respectful without coming off as patronizing ("your people" sounds like a Martian has just landed).
2. Talk at their intellectual level and be aware of their socio-economic status (don't give a UN address to 15 yr olds).
3. Less is more.

Here I thought I was going to get to deliver the clever, “provocative,” answer but several others stole that thunder. I agree that the whole notion that you’re showing up to deliver a one way regurgitation of stuff in the form of a presentation is the wrong way to approach things to start with (for all but some very rare sales situations). And I agree that taking a different approach is challenging because most prospects expect a presentation. But RESIST! My three, if a bit late, would be:

1. Homework: already well described here. I would just characterize this as making sure you don’t ask stupid questions (answers you could easily already have) when you’re in the meeting, because you want to focus on learning. Establish learning objectives.

2. Learn: I truly believe this is the number one talent/skill that differentiates good from great in complex sales. Much more important than “presentation skills.” Exercise curiosity. Done well, a focus on learning will build credibility. It will give oxygen to the discussion. It will help get you and the prospect on the same page. It will differentiate you as a salesperson. Admittedly, a focus on learning vs presenting is not always such an easy thing to pull off.

3. Align: If you can establish alignment, early on, between those things the customer is focused on (Key initiatives, pain points, goals, problems, etc) and your unique value, you’ve established an extremely powerful “platform” for all future discussions. You’ve moved away from features, functions, and prices and towards value. At this stage you may very well be talking about your solution – I recommend doing it in the form of anecdotes first vs features, functions, and demos.

Before I start my presentation, I'm keenly aware of the old addage, "People do business with people they know, like, and trust". Thus, I'm not doing business with a "company" but rather a person. Additionally, what I've learned along the way is that sometimes, even though you've researched the company or person and/or been given informtion about your prospect from an insider, you may not know exactly what his/her need/problem is until you're face-to-face. Thus, my 3 presentation tips, and there are so many more than 3, are:
1. Connect with your audience/prospect. Introduce yourself, say something conversational as an ice breaker and then Get to know him/her/them and what their need/problem is. Be authentic and go into the presentation with the idea that you are building a relationship for the long term, not just for the sale.
2. Tell a story relevent to solving the problem.
3. Be aware of your prospects body language and be ready to adjust your presentation accordingly and quickly if need be and then ask for the business and/or "next steps" so you can follow up. In rare occassions, I have experienced that the prospect didn't need or couldn't afford what I was trying to sell. In that situation, build the relationship by helping them solve their problem. Remember Santa Clause in the movie, "Miracle On 34th Street". If they can't buy from you, help them find out who best to buy from and at some point, they will either buy from you or will recommend you to a buyer.

1- Do your homework before showing up, but don't assume you have all the answers.

2- Listen intensely while taking notes to discover how you can best serve the client as a resource.

3- Follow up and deliver everything you promise.

All three of these points are based on the best sales advice I ever received: "Don't worry about the money. Worry about the client's best interest and the money will come." This was true when I first heard it in 1988 and it's true now.