I will apologize in advance to any “seasoned” professional salespeople reading this as the article will be riddled with cliches. Cliches usually earn that title through an underlying truth.

Cliché #1: “People buy the salesperson before they buy the product.” 

How a salesperson delivers a presentation is as important as the presentation itself. The wording and process needs to feel natural to the salesperson. Discomfort and awkwardness in the presentation will be sensed by the prospect and attributed to dishonesty. A lack of trust manifests as a string of false objections or the dreaded “I will think about it”.

Cliché #2: “Everyone listens to radio station WIIFM, What’s In It For Me”

This applies in several ways. The one in this preamble is that a sales presentation needs to be adapted to the specific situation. A business buying a roll former for $150,000 will have different needs and wants than a retail customer buying a $2,000 shed. The presentations need to be different

Cliché #3: “ABC, Always Be Closing”

This can be taken in a negative manner but the people I do business with know I’m not a “used car salesman.” But throughout crafting a sales presentation remember the objective: To close the sale by helping the customer make a good buying decision. This assumes you are selling an accurately depicted product at a fair price.

Consider who is giving the presentation.

This is similar to Cliché #1, but the experience and expertise level of the presenter needs to be assessed as well. A less-seasoned salesperson will require more structure in their presentation. Often new salespeople require a presentation sheet outlining everything, with the qualifying questions, features/benefits and potential closes written out. 

A written Pitch Sheet can solve a lot of challenges. The sheet starts with a Know Your Client (KYC) section with name, contact information and date. Then there are spaces to write customer responses and notes throughout the presentation. 

This helps the salesperson go through the process step by step. It also helps with follow ups, by having complete notes, contact information and the date of the original presentation.

Creating the Actual presentation

Sales presentations contain three sections. 

Section 1: Qualification.

The “Qualification” section has three primary objectives. 

Put the customer at ease.

Learn about the customer.

Prepare to handle future objections.

In many situations prospective customers approach a sales situation as adversarial. They are concerned that “someone is going to sell them something.” I always find this amusing because they came in to buy something. An interesting corollary is often the more hostile customers are hostile because they are actually ready to buy. Admittedly, some people are just difficult to deal with.

The first step is always putting the customer at ease.

This section is all about the customer. The more the salesperson knows, the better they will be able to determine if the product meets the customer’s need. The art is in asking questions without making the customer feel like the subject of an interrogation.

Seasoned salespeople can navigate this conversationally. One advantage of a Presentation Sheet for new salespeople is it allows them to “play stupid.” Saying something like “I have an information sheet I am supposed to use because I am new at this” can work wonders. It explains why the “new” salesperson is asking questions. It also means the person is less of a threat because they are new. Human nature also has most people wanting to be helpful, so they may be more willing to answer questions for someone “new.”

I have had salespeople who were “new” for several years.

Here are some examples of potential questions to ask. The specific questions for your presentation will vary. They should have three objectives:

Can they transact and are they willing to transact? Determine if the customer has the financial capacity to buy the product and the authority to make the decision. Discover where they are in their decision-making process.

What problem does the product solve? This will tell you what to emphasize in the next section. (See Cliché #2)

What are their potential objections? The next section is about creating reasons to say yes. It helps to understand the reasons they might say no. These can include timing, budget or other people involved in the decision-making process.

Section 2: Feature Benefit Presentation

In Qualification, you discovered the problem the customer wants to solve. In the Feature Benefit Presentation, you show them how your product solves their problem.

The title of this section expands a bit to make it work with the addition of one word: Advantage.

A Feature-Advantage-Benefit (FAB) unit demonstrates solving a problem.

A Feature is a physical characteristic that cannot be disputed. (Example: The health club has childcare and a play area.)

An Advantage is what the Feature does. (Example: Your child can play with the other kids while you get your workout in.)

A Benefit is why it matters. (Example: Even a new parent needs some time for themselves. Our childcare will allow you to focus on yourself for a little while so you can be an even better parent.)

The purpose of this is for the salesperson to get to the Benefit. People buy on Benefits; they don’t buy on Features. This is one reason why Qualification is a critical step. Revisit Cliché #2 (WIIFM). The only FABs that matter are the ones that matter to the customer. Until you talk to them you have no idea what they are looking for. A potentially valuable Feature can become useless if not matched with the correct Benefit. In the example of the childcare, maybe the Benefit the lead is looking for isn’t adult time. Maybe it is an opportunity for the child to socialize with other kids. Until you ask, you don’t know. The idea of the Benefit is what will make them excited enough to make a decision. You need to know why the Benefit matters to them.

When the customer is excited, they will typically start asking buying questions. These can be related to price, size or delivery options. 

Section 3: Closing

Closing often has a bad reputation among non-salespeople. This should not be the case if you have a good product and have done your job during Qualification. If your product will not solve their problem, the presentation should stop before it reaches this step.

If you have a good product and it will really solve their problem, you are helping them by selling it to them.

How complicated this step is will vary greatly depending on the product or service. Regardless of that, there are a few actions in common. 

Present price.

Handle objections.

Ask for the sale.

In many instances the price may already be known. If you are buying a picnic table, it has a price tag on display. If the sale is a new construction project, there will be a proposal showing price.

When presenting price, it is critical to do a quick review of Section 2. The more a customer is focused on Benefits and solving the problem, the less potential negative reaction when price is presented. Everything is a cost/benefit analysis. Emphasizing the benefit minimizes the relative cost.

When closing, it always helps to have something to write on. Write out the FABs before writing down the price. People generally focus better on what they see than what they hear. After the FABs, write down the price. Then they cannot see the price without also looking at the FABs.

After presenting price, if the answer is yes, take yes for an answer and write it up. 

If the answer is no or “I will think about it,” determine if there is a legitimate objection, if there are any other objections and present a solution. Then ask for the sale again.

When handling objections, when possible, refer to their own words when they answered questions in Qualification. 

Example:

A customer objects to price. You determined in Qualification their budget is $20 and the product is $17. Restate what they said their budget was and ask why:

“When we were talking earlier you mentioned your budget was $20 and this widget is $17, so it is within your budget. Do you have another concern we haven’t discussed?”

They may retract the objection or if they don’t you have an opportunity to discover the other concern. Once they express the other concern, always ask, “Is there anything else?” Often customers hide information they do not want to share. Typically, whatever is mentioned last is the primary objection.

If you can answer the objections, ask for the sale again. If the objection is beyond your control close on the next action. “I completely understand you wanting to talk this over with your spouse. So they can see what you are getting, how about we meet here at 2:00 next Thursday for a walk through?” Get a commitment on the next step.

If you cannot close on a follow up, there is an unresolved objection or you did not show sufficient value in your FABs. 

After every sales presentation the salesperson should come out ahead. Ideally, both the salesperson and the customer both win. In no circumstance should the customer lose.

If the customer walks away, the salesperson wins because it is a learning experience. The salesperson should ask themself:

Why did the person walk away? 

Did I not go through the Qualification thoroughly or ask the wrong questions? 

Did I not select the appropriate FABs for this customer? 

Did I not discover the real reason the customer was hesitant to make a decision? 

Or did I simply forget to ask for the sale? 

The process of evaluation after every sales presentation is valuable and contributes to building a better salesperson and a better sales presentation.