It’s challenging to get back on your feet after losing your touch. Failing to deliver is unacceptable when rejected sales pitches result in lost profits.
Humans are prone to mistakes and these happen with sales pitches, too. You might trip, lose your touch, and wonder how you even got there in the first place.
While there’s no set timetable for recovery or a rock-solid formula to regaining your edge, there are three factors to assess if you want to get back in the game:
What defined your style?
Over time, presenters develop their own personal brand. These define you as a presenter.
Remember which pitch skills worked for you. Review your old pitch deck sales presentations and identify what made them work.
Were your slide designs simplistic?
Did you share any relevant stories from personal experience? Did you connect to your audience with shared beliefs?
Find answers by looking at your past performances. Know your style, take notes on what you can improve on, and start practicing again.
How can you make yourself relevant?
Look at how successful brands sell their products through advertising.
According to Interbrand group chief executive, Chuck Brymer, effective branding techniques define what a business stands for.
Coke is a refreshing drink, Nike is for sporty go-getters, etc. They understand what their customers want and adjust their ads to stay relevant in the market.
As presenters, you also represent your company’s brand.
How you do your sales pitch reflects how your company does business with others, whether you speak professional or casually. You embody what your company stands for, so bank on those beliefs to re-establish a connection with your clients.
How can you rebuild credibility?
Successful companies stay that way is because they never compromise their core beliefs.
As cited in Jim Aitchison’s book, Cutting Edge Advertising, Avis consistently positioned its message as the number two brand for car rentals. This gave customers the impression of a hard-working company.
In order to stay relevant, companies continuously understand how their customers behave to pitch their products effectively. Take this same practice and apply them to your sales pitches. Remain consistent with what your company stands for and understand how these can relate with what your clients believe in. This builds up that relationship with promises and trust.
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Regaining your edge shouldn’t be limited to these three factors. Keep practicing and trying out new ways to make yourself unique.
Focus on how you want your listeners to see you and what they’d miss if you quit.
To get that edge, call a pitch deck partner to help you out. All it takes is fifteen minutes.
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Aitchison, J. (2004). Cutting Edge Advertising: How to Create the World’s Best Print For Brands in the 21st Century. Singapore: Prentice Hall.
Brymer, Chuck. “WHAT MAKES BRANDS GREAT?” Marketing Magazine. Accessed May 11, 2015.
“Sales Presentation Skills: Stay Relevant to Pitch Ideas.” pitchdeck.com, May 11, 2015. Accessed May 15, 2015.
