5 rules for sales pitches you should know

Start with something unexpected

This might be easier said than done, but us humans instantly become more curious and engaged by an unexpected introduction. Exactly how you choose to do this is up to you. But an easy trick can be to put yourself in the perspective of your surroundings. Are you significantly younger than your audience? Do you have a different accent?

Address it with a glint in your eye. Not only do you succeed in the challenge of capturing the audience’s attention, but you also create a more relaxed atmosphere. So dare to start with the unexpected!

Weave the customer into the sales pitch

It’s easy to talk alot and think you’re building a compelling case, without really having the customer on board. By using open questions and listening to the customer you’ll build a better base for your sales pitch. Instead of saying “Our tool will increase the number of leads to your company”, you can ask the customer how they currently work and then give an example based on their answer: “So last month you had 200 leads – with our help you could increase that to 300”. By weaving the customer into your sales pitch you’ll make it more convincing.

Sell with storytelling

How about an experiment? Try counting through a row of numbers; 18, 14, 5, 1, 43, 6, 7%, 5, 24, 109, 91, 3 and then try to remember which numbers you have just read. Probably not many are stuck in your memory. That’s why it’s difficult to get traction with numbers in your sales pitch. It’s the kind of information that registers in our logical part of our brain and doesn’t evoke any emotion in us, which is why we quickly forget it.

Something we find easier to remember on the other hand is stories, because they evoke emotions such as recognition, frustration, commitment, or joy. When you want to show the impact of your product or service, do it in a story.

Comment on your competitors

Let’s face it, very few services are unique. There are probably several competitors in the same segment as you with similar offers, and your potential customers usually know this too. So get straight to the point and feel free to comment generously on what your competitors are doing well, and then go on to explain how you differentiate yourself from them.

Take charge of the process

By now you’ve hopefully captured the interest of your audience and made them want to know more. While you may not expect to close the deal right after the sales pitch, it’s important that you take charge and lay out the next step with your prospects. We often appreciate having someone to hold our hand and a wise salesperson takes the opportunity to provide reassurance by suggesting a path forward for the next step.

Here’s a tip: If you need help along the way to remember what the next step is or when it’s time to follow up after a sales meeting, a CRM system can come in handy.

And there they are, five rules for sales pitches you should actually try to learn. Because you never know when the opportunity will arise to sales pitch your offer, far from all deals are made in well-planned, scheduled meetings.

How do you create those golden opportunities that put a real buzz on sales? What good is it to have the world’s best sales pitch, when you might be pitching to the wrong people, at the wrong time?

We’ve put together our top 10 tips for effective B2B sales in a poster you can download for free.