The Problem with Powerpoint

Microsoft Powerpoint is a powerful presentation tool. It comes loaded with tools to wow any audience. Look under the menus and you’ll find a variety of animation methods, unlimited tools to apply styles to text, and countless resources to create a creative masterpiece.  So, why do so many Powerpoint presentations fail?

Most of the presentations I review start with a company background, move to corporate capabilities, and may even focus on features and benefits of their products and services. Remember that customers buy for their reasons and not our reasons. So, we need to focus our message on the needs of our client, and not on us.  In simple terms, we need to illustrate what is in it for them.

First:  Identify the Issue, Impact, and Importance associated with their needs.

Second: Focus the presentation on their top priorities, and demonstrate your differentiation on how you can solve their challenges.

Third: Remember that slides are not a replacement for a document or the presenter.

Finally: The presentation and presenter should tell a story.  The slides should provide graphical support to the message

If you follow these simple steps, your presentations will achieve greater success… and then you can use all of those wonderfully distracting tools in Powerpoint.

Don’t Push – Don’t Pull… Unlock

In a recent discussion with a new client, the team did a great job of helping their customer identify the Issue, Impact, and Importance associated with a current challenge.  The team walked the client through the conversation about how they might solve their problem, and got agreement on price and next steps. I was proud of the job they did helping the customer realize their problem, and how our team could uniquely meet their needs.  I asked “so what did you do next?”

The head of sales proudly said “so if it’s costing you this much money, would you agree that it would be crazy to not sign the contract today?”  He observed that the tone of the meeting changed abruptly, and they are not returning calls, now. He asked “What happened?”

The client saw through a rather pedestrian sales technique, felt direct pressure, and questioned the team’s desire to help them solve their challenges. You cannot expect long-term success by pulling or pushing clients to the closing table. Simply asking “So, what would you like to do next” likely would have resulted in the customer sharing the steps to finalize the deal.

We and our prospects both carry NORTH ends of a magnet. If we try to pull them to a close, they go the other direction. If we gently stand neutral, we’ll reach the outcome together. Like a locked door, we can’t open it by pushing or pulling. We have to wait for the owner to unlock the door and let us in.

Do you have any similar stories where you tried to pull an unlocked door, so to speak?

When is the best time to learn the truth?

A new client was telling me a story about an opportunity they were chasing a year ago. They were on the road to closing a large sale, and at the last minute the prospect raised an objection that could not be overcome.

Old sales systems taught sales people to overcome objections that customers present, and never EVER raise objections for the prospect. It seems to make sense.  After all, why would you want to raise something that might prevent your prospect from buying what you are selling?

We know that of the prospects we encounter, we are more likely to NOT do business than TO do business with the majority of them.

The flaw is that most objections come up at some point in the sales process. People buy for their own reasons, and they buy from people they trust. If we take the steps to raise potential objections with our prospects, would that raise or lower our trust?  In short, raising potential objections helps our prospects realize that we are looking out for their best interest.

Best of all, raising potential objections early allows us to identify potential objections before we invest countless hours and valuable resources pursuing opportunities that we cannot overcome. So, would you rather know the truth early in the process, or have false hope and a wishful pipeline?

In this economy, it’s all about price

Anyone reading magazine covers and newspaper headlines has a pretty good idea that we are in unique economic times. At a recent talk, I posed the question “so in these economic times, what’s the most important factor for a decision?”  ”Price” was the resounding answer from most of the 70+ CEOs in attendance.

If you have a business that is trying to conserve its resources, is price the real issue?  Would you want to save 10% if you were confident that the higher priced solution had a greater chance of success? Would you hire the “low bidder” as a consultant instead of hiring the one most likely to overcome your challenges and help you meet your goals? Let’s hope not.

Price matters when sales teams and management feel that price matters. And, if your offering lacks differentiation, then price can certainly matter to the customer. But, if your team has the confidence that your solution delivers better results, then that confidence can translate to higher margins. That confidence is important, but your client needs to realize the impact of their current problems.

If you invest the time to understand the clients issue, the relative impact of that issue on their business, and the ultimate importance of solving the problem, then you might help them realize an underlying value that goes beyond price.

It takes some effort, and requires discipline.  But, if you can realize an additional 10% to 30% of margin, would you be willing to put in the time to deliver value that goes beyond price?

Don’t Jump the Gun

Recently, I was on a call with one of my clients, Chris, who was speaking with one of their prospects.  Chris was hoping that they would consider a $50k prototype.  Right at the beginning of the call, the prospect said “I reviewed your website and whitepaper, and we’re ready to get started with you.”

The natural inclination would be to push for the sale, right?  I quickly pressed mute and reminded Chris, “Don’t get pulled off track.  We still need to know why they need to do this project, how it impacts their organization, and how high of priority it is for the individual.”

So, instead of jumping the gun (and jumping up and down), Chris calmly asked great questions, avoided the temptation to tell the client what we would do for them, and ultimately learned of the multi-million dollar impact of their current situation, and the how this project was key to the decision maker earning a promotion.

What started as a potential $50k prototype, quickly became a $250k pilot that the prospect wanted to start as soon as possible. More importantly, the prospect was very excited by how much Chris cared about their business justification and their underlying needs.  Patience and process prevailed.

Can you think of other situations where you have to avoid jumping the gun?

What’s in it for you?

Customers buy from vendors who best understand their needs and goals, and can deliver solutions that meet those needs.

I was reviewing a client’s presentation they were preparing to deliver to their prospect. The presentation, provided by the marketing department, included corporate background, capabilities, awards, and technical approach. The marketing folks even animated the customer’s logo. I quickly realized, in the words of NASA, “Houston, we have a problem.” The presentation talked about “us – the vendor” and not “you – the customer.”

In every presentation, we need to constantly remind ourselves to think “what’s in it for YOU (the customer).” Prospects want to know that you understand their goals and want to see how your approach solves THEIR needs.  We changed the presentation.  It started with our understanding of their needs, including the relative impact. When we discussed our capabilities, awards, etc., it was in the context of how those elements would help the customer meet their needs.

After the presentation, the prospect said “you were the only vendor that clearly understands our situation.  And, I feel confident that you can help us be successful.”

By focusing on “YOU – the customer,” the prospect could tell that we understood their needs, and would deliver results.

Do your presentations include “what’s in it for you – the customer?” If so, you might just earn some business.  Please share your ideas.

You’ve Got Trouble

In the American classic, The Music Man, Professor Harold Hill is a traveling salesman selling musical instruments, uniforms, and instructional manuals. (Click for the link to a video of it).  For the purpose of this lesson, we’ll overlook that his intention was to swindle the town.

Notice that Harold Hill seeks for pain that creates a need for what he is selling. Prof. Harold Hill does not pitch the features/benefits of his instruments and uniforms.  Rather, the town becomes convinced that the presence of a pool table will lead to delinquent youth.  So, they need a solution to avert that disaster.

People buy to either solve an immediate or anticipated problem, or to help them reach a goal.  If you are pitching features and benefits, you might be missing a huge opportunity. Focus on the needs or “trouble” that your client is having, and you might just sell some instruments and uniforms (or more likely your products and services) right here in River City (or your market).

What stories do you have where focus on needs helped you attain success?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s60hOgqLFGg

Lessons from the FIFA World Cup

As the world tunes in to watch the FIFA World Cup, you can’t help but instantly hear the droning sound that one might mistake for a huge swarm of bees. Actually, the sound comes from a plastic horn called the vuvuzela.  An interesting thing happens, though.  As much as we notice the sound when we first turn on the game, eventually your mind ignores the noise and it fades to the background.

In sales, when you do not follow a process and manage expectations, you might end up placing multiple calls and sending many emails asking about the status of the deal. In so doing, you shift from a trusted advisor to a household pest.  And like the vuvuzela, your client might initially find your “noise” annoying, but they eventually learn to ignore it.

Remember to focus on the issue, impact, and importance for your clients. Dates have little meaning unless accompanied by “why” a date is important. If you are calling to find out how your client might meet their important deadline instead of meeting your quota, you might rise above the noise.

What ideas do you have to ensure you don’t blend into the background?

Hearts and Minds

Chris, a salesperson, was struggling. Each time Chris had a meeting with the CEO, Chris would say “we need to lower our price. Nobody will spend that much money for what we are selling.”

The salesperson was correct.  But, not for the reasons you might suspect.  In fact, the CEO, Board members, and other reps were beating their numbers and growing revenue. Chris, however,  could not get an order.

A psychologist at UCLA, Albert Mehrabian, wrote definitive works illustrating that when our words, tone, and body language conflict, the listener will rely on body language at 55%, tone at 38%, and the words at only 7%.  So, if you don’t believe in your product, it will come through in your unspoken communication.

The message is that everyone involved with your clients must believe in your product or service and its value.  If you believe it in your heart that you provide good value, then your client might be inclined to agree.

What steps can you take to ensure your team believes in your products?

Want an answer? Ask the question.

A client of mine recently asked me to review three vendors for professional services they needed. As I met with each one, they all started by asking why the organization was seeking their services – good question. I gave each sales team the same answer, and clearly conveyed the issue we faced, the impact to the organization, and the importance of finding a solution quickly. Given what I do for a living, you might suspect that I spent most of the time evaluating what they did and did NOT ask.

There are key questions none of them asked:

• What is the most important factor for your decision?
• Who are the other vendors, and which one might you be leaning toward?
• What format would you like for the proposal?
• What concerns do you have?

Each one offered discounts without being asked. And, despite starting with a consultative approach, they told me their belief about what was important rather than asking me about what I thought might matter most.

In the end, each firm left with much less information than I was willing to share.  And, I got the sense that only one of them did their homework prior to the visit.

It was an interesting experience since I have not spent time on the buyer’s side of the desk in the past year. I was reminded about the great need for improved selling skills.

Think about the most important information you can obtain going into a meeting.  If you are trying to figure out how to get that information, consider simply asking the question.