definition of sales presentation

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Sales presentation

Last updated: 11 November, 2023

What is a sales presentation?

What makes a good sales presentation, how to make a sales presentation, checkout our sales pipeline templates freebies.

Did you know people process visuals nearly 60,000 times faster than text? Our eyes are a predominant perceptual system for information coming from the outside world to the brain. Nearly 90% of the data we receive comes from observing, and images are stored in our memory for a very long time. 

It’s no coincidence that any advertisement, be it a video or a banner, includes both a verbal message and a visual aid. Marketers and sales reps exploit this quality of human memory to boost communication and close more deals. 

In particular — by creating effective sales presentations .

A sales presentation is a short presentation of your solution to prospects or existing customers that aims to persuade them to make a purchase.

The answer is simple. A winning sales presentation:

• Helps convince the client of the brilliance of your solution.
• Doesn’t simply describe a product or service but draws attention to the features that can solve the customer’s problems.
• Is not overloaded with facts and statistics.
• Doesn’t make your potential clients want to doze off (a boring sales presentation is a sales killer).
• Persuades the prospect that no one else on the market can satisfy their needs as well as your company can.

But what exactly should it include to get your prospects’ attention, establish good relationships with them, and accelerate the sales process?

We wish there were a recipe for a sales presentation, but there’s no one-size-fits-all recommendation about its ingredients: wording, style, format, or length. 

Still, there are some tips to help your presentation end in a sale: 

1. It’s all about the balanced layout

If you use PowerPoint or other presentation software, it’s better not to put multiple graphs, images, text, and statistics onto one slide. Your audience needs time to focus and concentrate. It hurts when you try processing the slide below, doesn’t it? 

Find the right balance between statistics and visual components. Charts, tables, and bulleted points are great, but if your presentation consists of grouped facts only, it won’t win the heart of your listener.

3 elements are just enough. If there’s more, break the slide into multiple slides instead!

Besides, as a speaker, make sure you don’t seem offhand or uninformed. Clients, especially in the B2B market , appreciate precision and professionalism. For them, the presentation packed with Google images just won’t do.

All the material presented should be of high quality and serve a point.

2. Make it short and sweet

Like any meeting, a sales presentation follows a clear agenda. Nothing will distract a client from the deal more than a prolonged conference that makes them want to escape the room. 

Here’s what works best for us: arranging 20 minutes for the speech plus 10-15 minutes for the Q&A section. This way, a sales presentation won’t take more than 30-35 minutes . It can be even shorter than that. After all, there’s a reason TED talks are 18-minute long.

If you think this time isn’t enough, schedule follow-ups, subsequent sales pitches , or agree to continue via email or phone. 

3. Work on the slide deck

Avoid adding meaningless slides; use an interactive presentation maker instead, to keep your audience engaged.

There are three conventional ones: a title, table of contents, and a “Thank you” slide. Apart from these, it’s up to you how many to include in the sales presentation. Typically, it takes from 1.5 to 3 per single key point. If we consider a 30-minute duration, that’ll sum up into 10-20 slides .

4. Start a sales presentation with a self-introduction and small talk

This is an act of courtesy to introduce oneself and briefly tell who you are. In particular, when you meet new people. Unfortunately, due to the stress, some speakers forget about it.

No less important is to catch the audience’s attention from the very beginning. A story from one’s life, a joke, a surprising fact — whichever magnet you choose, make sure it corresponds to the time and place. By the way, if you want to get inspired, check out these best TED talks ever .

5. End your speech by wrapping up and outlining further steps

Although a sales presentation may not result in a closed deal or a revenue boost (it can but on rare occasions), this is a business process. So, apart from having a good pastime with clients, a sales rep has to mildly yet distinctly drop a hint about how it’s better to proceed with the deal.

Define the purpose

Your speaking style will depend on what you’re trying to accomplish. Remember outstanding demonstrations of Apple’s new launches held by Steve Jobs? Each of these is an example of a winning sales presentation. 

The speaker aimed to persuade buyers that the product was so one of a kind, that it was a matter of life-and-death to purchase it. A speech was corresponding: the majority of time was devoted to demonstrating new UI / UX features, and less attention was paid to the technical side.

To succeed with the presentation, ask yourself what exactly you need to convey:

• Explain unique selling points
• Focus on money benefits
• Position your brand to competitors
• Create urgency around the deal, etc.

Adjust your sales presentation based on the audience

Does your audience consist of decision-makers , stakeholders, ordinary employees, or all three at once? What industry do your clients operate in? How old are these people? Is the audience multilingual? Any details are important because they will determine:

• The language and wording you choose
• Jokes you can or can’t tell
• Images you should and shouldn’t use, etc.

Consider means available

Your presentation may be doomed to fail if you don’t consider technical issues. Imagine, you expected to display a growth graph on the big white screen but were provided with a TV screen instead. Your audience won’t be able to see anything, and half of the speech will be lost.

Prepare key points & season them with data

It’s important to have a good understanding of what you are about to present. Let the numbers speak for themselves: prepare a few metrics or statistics and mention these during storytelling. However, don’t turn a presentation into a report — 2 or 3 graphs, tables, or diagrams will be more than enough.

If you plan to share the presentation among participants, you can include links to resources. This way, people interested in more details can retrieve the data.

Design the sales presentation structure

Use a “10-20-30” formula: 

• No more than 10 slides
• 20 minutes to speak
• No font smaller than 30 pt.

A good idea is to google some pre-designed sales presentation templates. This will save time on formatting plus give you useful ideas about the overall structure. Below are websites that might be helpful:

• Freecreatives

If you are in doubt, break your speech down into minute detail and align it with the sales presentation. Also, prepare cheat sheets — the latest price list, full specifications, etc. This way, you will be able to fend off any questions from the public.

Wrapping up

A good sales presentation fits the audience. Put yourself in the client’s shoes and wonder, what would YOU want to listen about? What facts might comfort you, and what questions might arise? With the customer in mind and with thorough preparation, your presentation will be a sure hit.

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What Is a Sales Presentation? Definition, Tips, and Follow-Up Tasks

Sales presentations let you communicate with customers in a highly memorable and persuasive way. But exactly what is a sales presentation? 

A sales presentation involves more than just a simple pitch; it’s a more complex method of explaining your product or service to a customer and demonstrating its value. 

In this article, we will explain how presentations fit into the sales process, discuss ways to make them more effective, and cover crucial follow-up tasks.

Key Takeaways

• A sales presentation is a pitch or demonstration given by a salesperson to potential customers to persuade them to buy a product or service.
• Sales presentations demonstrate the value your product offers the customer through in-depth information, data, customer reviews, visual aids, videos, statistics, demonstrations, and more.
• Key sales presentation tips include researching customer needs, tailoring the presentation to each customer, and pitching a compelling story.
• After a presentation, you should thank the attendees, follow up with additional information that addresses any objections or questions, schedule a follow-up phone call or meeting, and keep in touch to help solidify the sale.

What Does a Sales Presentation Mean?

How do sales presentations fit into the sales process, sales presentations vs. sales pitch, start by researching, craft a strong introduction, tailor your presentation to the customer journey, highlight key points backed by data, bring your product or a visual aid, use a template, what to do immediately after a sales presentation.

A sales presentation is a pitch or demonstration given by a salesperson to potential customers in order to persuade them to buy a product or service. But a sales presentation is more than just a sales pitch. It takes your customer on an experience that aids them in understanding how you can meet their needs and requirements.

Presentations also offer the opportunity to explore and build customer relationships by providing tangible success stories or positive customer reviews that can help boost your credibility. However, presenting this information to customers effectively and captivatingly is crucial for your success.

Sales presentations are typically used when introducing products or services to prospective clients to facilitate better business deals. This could involve giving further background about your company’s offerings and showcasing awards your company’s work or product range has received. A well-crafted sales presentation will let your potential buyers know why they need what you’re offering.

Sales presentations are part of the larger sales process that typically happens toward the end of the sales cycle . The sales process begins with a sales rep researching a potential customer’s needs and preferences, preparing your product or service to meet their needs, and building a relationship with your customer over time.

In the early stages of the sales process, you might communicate with your customer over email or through website visits. Later on, you might have meetings or other more direct communications.

As you near the end of the sales cycle, the time for delivering a sales presentation approaches. This is when your customer has already established that you have something of value to offer, and they’re ready to learn more.

Your presentation should provide a detailed overview of how your products can meet their current needs while enabling them to easily view features and benefits in one place.

It’s common for people to think that a sales pitch and a sales presentation are the same thing. However, while they may seem similar, these two approaches have significant differences.

Sales pitches are often standardized, are not tailored to the unique needs of a specific customer, and don’t require any research into the customer’s pain points. For example, a sales pitch is usually characterized by one-way communication. During a sales pitch, you are focused solely on selling your product or service to the customer without any exploration of their needs or interests.

A sales presentation, on the other hand, encourages a more interactive dialogue with customers. It allows them to ask questions and provides more in-depth information about why your product would benefit them specifically. It’s not as much about “selling” as about introducing products based on customer insights to establish value in their eyes.

How to Create an Effective Sales Presentation

When creating an effective sales presentation, there are several factors to consider. A successful sales presentation should be tailored specifically for each customer and allow them to experience meaningful engagement with your product.

It should build on your customer’s needs and interests to showcase how you can meet them without focusing too much on selling points. Additionally, research plays a key role in any sales process, and having data about industry trends or statistics that support your claims can add credibility to your proposal. Here are some tips on the best way to develop a winning sales presentation.

Researching before you start is essential for a good sales presentation. While the information in your presentation will vary depending on the client and situation, it’s important to include enough data and industry stats relevant to the customer’s needs. This data should be targeted towards the specific aspects of your product that can address your customer’s problem areas.

Also, digging further into case studies or positive reviews from existing customers is great for transforming a one-off sale into an ongoing business relationship. You should back up everything you say with credible sources during your sales pitch for a greater impact on viewers’ buying decision process. Newspaper articles, past client testimonials, or information from trusted online sources can all be good places to find data that backs up the claims in your presentation.

Starting a sales presentation with an introduction and some small talk is important for building rapport and trust. This also allows you to warm up the room while giving your customers a chance to get comfortable with you as well. Ensure the conversation’s tone matches your presentation’s purpose, too. Keep it upbeat yet professional, and aim to get out of any awkward silences quickly.

Develop your sales presentation with the customer journey in mind. This means considering your customer’s objectives and using them as a guideline for crafting your story. By paying attention to what your target audience needs, you not only increase the potential of closing a deal but also make customers feel understood.

But don’t take too long to get into specific details about your product. Oftentimes, getting directly to the point of how your product can solve their problem is much more effective and persuasive than offering generic explanations about what you do.

Remember the Power of Storytelling

Storytelling can be incredibly effective when it comes to sales presentations. Focus on telling stories that convey how your company or products have successfully helped other customers meet their needs. This can help your customer understand why they need what you’re offering.

Talking about your product’s challenges and solutions in simple yet compelling language is also important. Remember that a sales presentation isn’t just reciting facts and data points — illustrate the solutions you offer in a memorable way.

Focus Your Presentation on the Customer’s Problem

When creating a sales presentation, keeping the customer’s problem in your mind is important. You should provide solutions that address their pain points and benefit their specific situation.

A good sales presentation will spotlight the features of your product that provide quick and simple problem-solving for the customer. By doing this, you can position your offering as something your customer needs rather than something that’s merely nice to have.

Ways to Improve Your Sales Presentations

Besides doing the required research beforehand, there are some sales presentation techniques you can use to ensure everything runs smoothly and effectively. Here are a few ideas.

As mentioned before, having data that backs up the key points you make in your presentation is critical. These points should include quick summaries or facts about product insights, as well as any relevant customer feedback to give viewers a clear idea of how your offering can meet their needs.

Having your product there for customers to see during your sales presentation can be very persuasive. If it’s too difficult or impossible to bring your product to the presentation, you should still bring visual aids.

For example, you can provide a link with interesting animations of your product’s features, display quotes from previous customers, showcase awards you’ve won, or show videos of your previous work and how it benefitted the customer.

Create a sales presentation template that can be used across different customer sessions to speed up the process. Start by making a sales presentation outline that applies to all customers, and then tailor it to each customer as needed.

Having a consistent format and look to all your presentations will save time and reduce the effort needed to develop new slides so you can focus on crafting content specifically for each customer. An effective template will also ensure brand consistency and professionalism linked with your company’s name.

Assess Your Body Language

When delivering a presentation, body language is just as important as words. Having good posture shows confidence in your presentation and can help keep your customers engaged. Avoid crossing your arms or moving around too much, as this can cause viewers to be distracted. It’s a good idea to record yourself practicing your presentation in advance to see how you appear to others.

Ask for Input

Feedback is essential for sharpening your skills as a presenter and gaining confidence in your sales presentations. Asking your customers or sales team members for feedback on your sales deck and presentation is a great way to get honest and productive input. They may suggest changes that could bring greater clarity to your presentation or help you develop a more effective sales deck in the future.

Highlight Value Before Going Into Pricing

A professional sales presentation should focus heavily on value. Highlight how customers stand to benefit from your product, as this is crucial for getting them to purchase with confidence. You will be much more successful if you demonstrate how valuable your product is before you tell the customer how much it will cost them. 

If you’re selling something expensive, packaging additional services or features in one bundle at no extra cost can be useful for reassuring your customer that the price is worth it. This could include offers such as introducing discounts for first-time buyers or offering free maintenance contracts over a set period.

Outline Next Steps

To give your customer a clear idea of where you want things to go, always remember to end your presentation with a quick overview. This can include summarizing your value proposition and the advantages that customers can gain from using your product. Clearly outline any details about follow-up steps to set client expectations up correctly.

Increase Audience Engagement

Tricks such as incorporating polls and games during your presentation can help people remember the key points you want to present. It’s another way for sales reps to make a memorable impression on viewers and engage them with your product even after the meeting has ended.

Also, remember that the most effective sales presentations use an impactful sales deck that allows you to paint a memorable story for the customer. Build opportunities for interaction into your presentation itself.

After a successful sales presentation, it is important for a salesperson to follow-up with their client. This follow-up should be swift and thorough to ensure that the customer remembers their experience and continues to do business with the salesperson. The follow-up can include sending an email or letter summarizing the conversation and outlining any next steps, such as setting up another meeting or contract signing. Be sure to address any specific questions or concerns the prospect expressed during the presentation as well.

Additionally, it is important for the salesperson to keep in touch with their customer after the initial sale. This can be done by sending periodic updates on new products or services, providing tips on how best to use purchased products, and offering other relevant insights that could help strengthen the customer relationship.

Finally, regular check-ins will help cement loyalty while helping to identify opportunities for future sales. When executed correctly, these follow-up tasks can contribute heavily to long-term success in sales.

Sales presentations are an important element of the sales journey and require thoughtful preparation. Now that we’ve answered the question of what is a sales presentation, you can use these tips to improve your interactions with customers. Through data-backed storytelling and consideration of the customer’s journey, you stand a great chance of successfully selling your product.

Always remember that these sales presentation techniques should help make the sale come alive for viewers so they can better envision value in what you have to offer. By following our sales presentation tips, you’ll be well on your way to delivering a successful sales presentation every time!

Jane Mitchell is a sales expert with over 17 years in the industry, extending her knowledge to diverse sectors and providing optimal business growth solutions. Her knack for crafting unique sales strategies is unmatched. Jane fuels her wanderlust by traveling the world, having reached the prestigious Million Miler status with Delta Airlines.

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Sales Presentation: The Definitive Guide (2023)

This is the ultimate guide to making KILLER sales presentations.

So if you want more sales, you’re going to love the actionable tips, strategies and examples in this infographic and guide. Use them to prepare, structure and deliver solid sales presentations that bring you more business, step-by-step.

Let’s dive right in…

The Definitive Guide to Killer Sales Presentations

Here are the different sections that will be covered in the article:

😈  Part 0. The #1 Thing You Must Remember . If there’s one thing you should takeaway from this article, it’s this one. This is the mindset behind selling. Start here, it’ll only take you 20 seconds to read (Yes, I counted).

🤟  Part 1. The Anatomy of a Perfect Sales Presentation . In this infographic, you’ll learn the 7 ingredients you need to plan and structure the perfect sales presentation, from start to finish..

🤩  Part 2. How to Design High Impact Presentations . When you have no time, no budget and no special design talent.

🧐  Part 3. In-Deep Strategies . These are meeting-room tested techniques, action steps and (real world) examples you can swipe in your own presentations. I recommend you to start with the infographic, and then move on to this part.

🤔  Part 4. Q&A . How long should your sales deck be? How do you structure/prepare/design/end a presentation? Here are the most common questions business professionals are asking themselves, answered.

The #1 Thing You Must Remember

Hear me out:

This is the best sales advice you’ll hear today.

Nobody cares about you.

Your prospects don’t care about you.

They care about themselves. And they care about what you can do for them in order to solve their problems.

So here’s your takeaway:

A sales presentation is a persuasive demonstration to prospective buyers in order to make a sale.

And the key to making persuasive sales presentations is to demonstrate that your offering, either a product or a service, will help your prospects get more of what they want.

(I’ll have powerful techniques showing you how to do exactly that later in this post…)

PART 1 The Anatomy of A Perfect Sales Presentation

This infographic will walk you through the 7 components of successful sales presentations. I advise you to read the infographic first, and then move on to the detailed strategies later in this guide.

PART 2 How to Design Stunning Sales Presentations When You Have No Time, No Budget (And No Design Talent) 👏

Easy-to-edit, designer-made templates allow non-designers to create beautiful, professional-looking presentations.

Top performers know that presentations can have a huge impact on their business. Because the truth is, when you start deliver top-tier business materials, you’re able to:

• Present clean slides that grab – and keep – people’s attention (adios text-heavy, 90’s clipart slides that put everyone to sleep).
• Confidently expressing ideas, concepts and messages with visual elements. Because, yes, you know that those who use visual aids are 43% more persuasive than those who don’t.
• Wow your prospects, get them to walk away knowing you’re the pros and eliminating other options.

Introducing PPTPACK, a premium presentation template pack that works in the real world

Maybe you’re a business professional, a sales rep, or an early-stage founder… And the truth is, you probably don’t have the time to improve your presentation design skills.

And who could blame you…

You’ve got 99 other things to do:

• Preparing for your next webinar
• Crafting business proposals
• Executing your annual strategy
• Planning for your next fundraising roundHiring a team

But here’s the kicker:

If you’re reading this, you already know something many people don’t:

Memorables presentations can unlock opportunities.

Whether that’s winning new clients, convincing investors, or persuading your boss to approve your strategic plan.

Yes, beautiful, clean, and clear slides can help you get your message across and make an amazing impression.

I know it, because I’ve done it.

And that’s why I’ve created PPTPACK, a premium slide template that includes fully editable slides, graphics, and illustrations you can customize to build gorgeous presentations. In a fraction of the time it takes others.

My name is Clemence Lepers. I’ve been making presentations for over 10 years. I’ve done presentations at every scale, and know exactly what you can focus on to get the best results possible with your limited amount of time.

And that knowledge is all wrapped up in this presentation template.

Introducing Pre-Built Presentation Templates…

With pre-built templates , you get your hands on a massive stash of fully editable resources – slides, icons, graphics, timelines, maps and so on – to build result-getting presentations. At a fraction of the time it takes to others.

And the good news is, these PowerPoint templates cost as little as the price of a movie ticket.

So if you’ve been looking to create winning sales presentations (because you know that’s what will set you apart from everyone else), then check out my two favorite templates below, and start saving time so you can focus on things that really matter to you.

Marketofy Template

Marketofy presentation template is especially useful for:

Corporate presentations – for prospects, investors or stakeholders Business proposals or briefs Customer/data reports

Key Features

• Lots of unique slides (390 for  PowerPoint , 200 for  Keynote  and  Google slides ). Includes slides to present business objectives, company services, marketing strategy, product launch, process, maps, devices, apps, and much more
• 24 ready-made color themes (6 for the Keynote version)
• Dark & light versions (light background slides or dark background slides)
• Drag-and-drop photo placeholders (drag any visual from your folder, and it will take the exact shape of the placeholder)
• Dozen of graphs and charts (to concisely present data-rich information)
• 2,500 icons

See Marketofy PowerPoint Template

Massive X Template

With countless design options, practical slides and a recent bundle update, Massive X toke the business of presentation templates to a whole new level of professionalism and creativity.

Here’s a quick video that’ll give you an overview of their latest bundle:

Now, what I love about Massive X  (beyond the  hundreds  of beautiful, professional slides they’re offering) is their 100% editable illustrations:

Massive X’s illustrations are made out of multiple, individual elements that are then put together.

And you can edit the color, size and shape of every single one.

These are the exact graphics I’ve used to illustrate the different sections of this guide.

• 290 unique PowerPoint slides
• Animated slides
• 12,000 icons
• 15 color variations

See Massive X Template For PowerPoint

PART 3 In-Depth Strategies, Tips & Examples to Prepare the Perfect Sales Presentation

In this chapter, I’ll break down in small chunks the 7 components of successful sales decks.

This section includes concrete steps, practical strategies, techniques, scripts and examples to help you prepare and structure your sales decks for maximum impact.

Click a section below to be taken to one of the strategies:

1. A stellar cover slide 2. Your value proposition [what do you do] 3. A powerful story [who are you and what makes you special] 4.  Identify customer problems [do you understand me] 5. Provide them solutions [what do you offer that solves my problems] 6. Proofs [how do I believe you?] 7. Call-to-action [What happens next]

This editable illustration can be found in here

1. Use These 2 Steps to Design a Great Cover Slide For Your Sales Deck

Think of your  cover slide as the packaging of a product.

The title slide is the first thing your prospects will see. If it sucks, you’re sending a bad signal before having even started to talk. But, wait, don’t take my word for it:

Studies  suggested that the packaging design elements have an influence on choosing, getting attracted, like, purchase the product and considering packaging as a brand promotion vehicle.

Cover Slide Examples

Action steps, 👉 pick your background visual.

To pick the perfect picture, answer this 2-step question:

First, what product/service do my company offer? Then, what tangible element can I associate my offering to?

Here are a few examples:

SEO services -> computer (or web traffic, web page, macbook) Furniture design -> sofa (or armchair, cabinet, chair, home design) Management consulting -> office building (or business people, meeting, investors)

Now, head over to Pexels or another awesome free stock photo website . Select a few pictures that closely relate to the identified keyword. If you can’t chose between your options, ask 2-3 colleagues which one they prefer, and go for the most popular option. Done.

👉 Embed Your Headline

You want to make it crystal clear for your prospect what your sales deck is all about. There is not one right way to write that headline, but to simplify the process for you, I recommend using the following structure:

[ Helping + Specific Target Audience + Outcome ]

For instance:

Helping Plastic Surgeons Get More Patients With SEO. Helping F&B Businesses Getting More Customers With Social Media. Amazing Events People Will Remember !

Real-world business taglines:

Video solutions for every type of business. Wista. Get, keep and grow more customers. Kissmetrics.

⚡ Bottom line : Great cover slides make it crystal clear what it’s all about. It’s a no brainer.

2. Apply The “VP Formula” To Craft The Perfect Value Proposition

So… what is your company doing?

A value proposition defines the kind of value you will create for your customers ( source ). It’s basically the primary reason a prospect should buy from you .  In a nutshell , your value proposition is a clear statement that:

• Explains how your product solves customers’ problems or improves their situation
• Delivers specific benefits (quantified value),
• Tells the ideal customer why they should buy from you and not from the competition (unique differentiation)”.

On  pitch decks :

1) Identify Who Your Business is Targeting  

First, check out # 2 tip of that article  to learn how to do just that. Then,  list the exact benefits and results your products/services provide to customers ( Check out # 5 tip of this post )

2) Put Everything Together Using the “VP” Formula

Get six pack abs in 3 months, even if you’ve never worked out before. Flood your inbox with job offers, even if you have zero network. Build landing pages fast, get more conversions. Unbounce .

3) Include a Slide That Clearly States Your Value Proposition

⚡ Tweet This Sales Presentation Building Tip ! 

3. Use These Proven Techniques To Develop The Outline Sales Presentation

Stories create “sticky” memories by attaching emotions to things that happen. As a result, effective stories capture and hold our attention. They also help us learn and connect us with strangers .

To craft a good story ,  for talking about your company or your products, you need three basic elements:

🤬 Conflict . Conflict is basically our expectation vs. the cold reality. The conflict is here to let your audience know why they should care about the characters in your story.  In the case of a sales presentation, characters could be clients you’ve worked with, and the conflict could be between what your clients couldn’t do before using your product… and what they can do now.

🕺 Climax . In order to present a good narrative, you should develop the problem and the characters who are bound up in it.  What are your target customers struggling with?  You must understand their exact hopes and pains.

😘 Resolution . The character solves the main problem/conflict or someone (aka you, the company) solves it for him or her.

Technique #1: Use These Frames To Sell Stories 

P roblem : current situation faced by your audience. Do you suffer from/Sick of being… R elief : how it can change . It doesn’t have to be that way/there’s a solution… D ream : your solution. Imagine if you could…how your life would be if you could…

P rotagonist : climate change / tiny farmers providing food to restaurants C onflict : how climate change affects the growing season” R esolution :  policies that should be in place + how people in other areas are mitigating the effects of climate change on local resources.  Source .

If you take a close look at Airbnb’s first pitch deck  , there’s clearly a conflict between what the market is offering (standard hotels that leave you disconnected from the local culture) and what people are willing to do (book a room through a local host, become one, find cheaper, authentic accommodations).

The “cold reality” (what the market was offering BEFORE Airbnb came in):

The “expectations” (what happens AFTER Airbnb arrives in the market):

Technique #2: Apply The IBC Framework

Introduction : what is it all about and why should your audience care Body : it distills your message and supportive points Conclusion : focus on the outcomes of the presentation, include a specific call-to-action

Let’s take a look at an example of a deck pitching SaaS project management services:

Introduction : the problem behind getting all teams on the same page today Body : how ABC company project management solutions will help you solve that problem Conclusion : different options on the market, why our works best, how can we start working together

Technique #3: Use the Liking Principle

According to psychology professor Robert Cialdini,  we prefer to say yes to those we know and like .

It’s the liking principle:

We like those who are similar to us, give us complements, and cooperate with us toward common goals.  So how do you apply that when it comes to talking about YOU….

Well, you need to get personal. And of course, help your customers feel connected to you.

To do that, appear vulnerable. Emphasize on the stories of your team members. Talk about what they like, what they don’t. You can even mention their hobbies or favorite foods for instance (yes, really) in order to appear human .

Recommended reading:

• Health, Chip and Dan. 2010. Made to Stick . A solid book that teaches you how to better communicate ideas, on the basic of the S.U.C.C.E.S. framework:  in order to make an idea sticky, it has to be simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional, and tell a story.
• Freytag’s pyramid .  German novelist saw common patterns in the plots of stories and novels and developed a diagram to analyze them. See  this quick example of Freytag’s principles applied to the movie TAKEN .
• Joe Gebbia – Airbnb Story (Video)
• University of Berkeley. Robert Cialdini’s Principles of Persuasion.

List What Makes Your Company & Co-Workers Special (and Worth to Work With)

How do I like to present my company to people who don’t know us?

What do our paying customers love about us? (service, team, process, turnaround, product…and why exactly?)

✅ Why do you want to help your target customers? ✅ How did you get involved in this industry/project? ✅ How did you come up with your product/service? ✅ What problem are you trying to solve? ✅ What questions do customers get to ask you all the time? ✅ Why are you passionate about your work?

🤟 Tweet This Technique 

4. PinPoint Your Prospect’s Pains, Challenges & Dreams

Don’t kick off your pitch talking about anything that’s related to yourself. Instead, start with giving context.

Technique #1: Show Them What They Can be

Your products and services are nothing more than a tool that enables your prospects to achieve their dreams. So here’s the thing: your goal here is to HELP them visualize what it would feel like if he could fulfill all his dreams.

For instance, name a trend that’s going on in your prospect’s industry.   To quote Andy Raskin…

“When you highlight a shift in the world, you get prospects to open up about how that shift affects them, how it scares them, and where they see opportunities. Most importantly, you grab their attention”.

Here are two real-world examples:

Technique #2: Hit Them Where it Hurts, Highlight The Problem

95% of our purchase decision making takes place in the subconscious mind. If you want to have emotional resonance with your prospect, you must show him you understand with pains and problems.

If you recall Airbnb’s first pitch deck example, you understand that the start up had deeply identified the pain points of its market before offering solutions that made sense.

To Identify the Pain Points of Your Clients, Answer the Following Questions:

✅ What are their pain points? What do they struggle with?  (i.e. flat sales, low online visibility, etc). ✅ What are your customer’s top 3 priorities and how do they measure success? (i.e. increase sales by x%…) ✅ How does the “Promised land” looks like for them?

To find out trends or key figures related to your prospect’s industry, use these search strings on Google:

“Industry” + report + inurl:[name of a famous consulting company] (Bain, BCG, McKinsey) Example: “Retail industry” + report + inurl:accenture

5. Tie Your Offer To Specific Benefits They’re Looking For

Now, you’re going to demonstrate how your solution will help the prospect get rid of his problems and fulfill his dreams.  Your single focus here will be to give out information that benefits to them .

You see, customers buy because they want benefits (and the results that come with them). For that reason, they don’t give a crap about your features unless it helps them understand how it gets them results they care about.

I’ll give you a few examples:

Features = Things (that Porsche 911 GT2 RS) Benefits = Results that come from doing these things (get girls)

Features = A 20-slide persuasive sales presentation Benefits = Impress prospects, get your message across, close more sales

Features = a detailed web analytics audit and health checkup Benefits = we help you identify where your website is leaking money, create optimized treatments and run optimization tests in order to help you increase your revenue.

Here’s how you should approach this when crafting your presentation:

[Company] helps you with [product name, feature, deliverable] so you can [benefit].

See how Facebook is tying a product’s feature with core benefits their clients care about:

Feature: target reach Benefit: reach all the people who matter to you

1) List the Exact Features of Your Product/Service (= What it Does)

A 20-slide persuasive deck A 16-week one-on-one coaching program A 3-month SEO package

2) List the Tangible Benefits Your Customers Get From Using Your Product/Service

For instance, you could help them…

✅ Look sexier –> fashion, muscle building ✅ Become richer –>wealth consultants ✅ More popular –> weight loss programs ✅ Be the first –> SEO services ✅ Make their life comfortable –> interior design ✅ Have more freedom –> project software ✅ Save money –> insurance company etc…

3) Connect 1 + 2 Using Linking Words (So You Can / Will Help You / Will Give You)

Let’s take a look at a concrete example below.

1) Features . Do-it-at-home bodyweight exercises 2) Benefits . Build muscle to speed up weight loss without spending money on a gym 3) Linking it . We provide you 12 step-by-step videos that will show you do-it-at-home bodyweight exercises [ so you can ] build muscle without spending money on an expensive gym membership.

🤟 Tweet This Sales Presentation Technique 

6. Here’s How To Make Them Believe You…

Of course, every sales rep under the sun says their company offers amazing products.

But for most prospects, you’re just another sleazy sales dude trying to push products or services that won’t provide any value to them.

Your goal as a presenter is to help them overcome their objections: your sales deck must demonstrate that you are able to get your customers the results you claim .

The best way to do it?

Educate your customers (instead of “selling” them).

In other words, convey information that benefits to them.

Here are four practical ways to do it:

Incorporate Expert, Research-Backed Data

Here are pieces of evidence (aka facts, not opinions) you can include in your sales deck:

✅ Expert quotes : what your industry key influencers have to say about <your industry>, <trends>, <products>, <you>.

✅ Research data : check out .edu websites, magazines and research journals that release data, insights angled toward the market you are serving. Use the following search strings on Google: site: .edu + <keyword> or intitle: research journal + <keyword>.

✅ Competitor analysis : in which specific aspect of your business are you better than your competition? Process, service, quality, price, support, results? Find data that makes your product/service better than your competitor.  You could make a table listing yours vs. your competitor’s key features and benefits in order to show how you are better than them.

Show Case Studies (Before & After)

Case studies are a unique angle you can use to educate your prospects  and show them what they can be, thanks to your product/service.

Look, case studies are  everywhere :

Here, another example extracted from the deck Facebook For Business: Video On Facebook

Check out Facebook’s note below:

“OBJECTIVE:

Wanted to boost brand loyalty and drive viewership of its Ramadan Holiday video

Launched a combined TV and FB campaign 4 videos showcasing banks reverence of traditional Saudi values Two Reach Blocks guaranteed that the ads reached the entire Saudi Facebook audience that logged in that day.

Strong uplift in brand awareness generated by Facebook campaign as found through Bank Albilad’s own internal study. “Facebook increased our brand loyalty given the valued interaction between our audience and us. This platform, Facebook, was one of the main channels for such a campaign and it will remain a crucial platform for future campaigns.” Mohammed R. Abaalkheil, Head of Marcom Division, Bank Albilad”.

Specifically Address Their Objections 

There are 5 major categories of objections : need / price / product / source / time.

Consequently, your job is to address the typical fears that are driving it. To succeed doing that, you have to provide concrete answers these questions:

He doesn’t get me It worked for others but won’t work for me How can I be a 100% sure this works I don’t like/trust/believe him We can find the same thing for free/cheaper elsewhere I can buy later It’s too expensive What happens after I accept their offer

Ask For Customer Testimonials (The Right Way)

According to Nielsen , testimonials & word of mouth are the driving force behind 20 to 50% of all purchasing decisions.

In order to get awesome customer testimonials, you need to ask the right  questions.  Here’s a solid set of questions you should ask every client:

What hesitations did you have about working with me? Which changes have you noticed since working with me? What specifically did you like the best about working together? How have you benefited from hiring our company? Would you recommend my company o a colleague or a friend? If so, why?

⚡ Bottom line : educate your customers, don’t sell them.

Get them to say “Wow! I didn’t know that”.

Incorporable rock-solid customer testimonials, research-backed data in order to teach them something they may not have known. That’ll get them to believe it for themselves, and create trust.

🤟 Tweet This Smart Technique 

7. Integrate a Strong Call-to-Action

A call to action is a simple command that directs customers to take some sort of action (buy, sign up, or start a free trial). Here are a few specific examples:

Be Laser-Focused On Your Audience

You can’t reasonably want to “close a $150,000 deal in the meeting room today if it’s the first time you’re discussing with the prospect.

In other words, make sure you call-to-action is aligned with the situation. If it’s the first time you’re meeting the prospect, you could target to agree to set up the date for the 2nd meeting. If you’re negotiating a contract, you could get the prospect to agree getting back to you with their feedback within 2 weeks.

PART 4 Q&A. Your Most Frequent Questions, Answered.

Here are the most common questions business people ask themselves when it comes to making better sales presentations.

⚡ What Are the Objectives of a Sales Presentation?

What is your  (realistic) goal for this sales presentation?

You can either be looking to inform, educate or persuade your prospects and clients. And the answer will depend on the level of relationship you’ve established with them (If it’s the first time you meet, “closing the sale” might not be the appropriate answer).

Here are a few examples of objectives you could come up with (the more specific, the better):

I’m doing this sales pitch to…

Understand X, Y and Z aspects of the prospect’s business in order to draft a proposal that’s relevant to his expectations. Introduce a new growth opportunity we’ve identified for [company] and get their feedback on it. Build a relationship with a new prospect (so two years from now he wants to purchase from us).

⚡  How Should I Prepare My Pitch Presentation?

Let’s face it:

Prospects want to know whether you can help them get more of what they want.

Do research on those 5 aspects:

Who are your target customers, specifically? What are their hopes, fears and dreams? How much do they know about the solution what you’re trying to sell them? Is their market share growing, steady or declining? Which channels do they use to use to reach, acquire and retain their customers?

Plus, here are important question marks you should be able to answer:

⚡ What is the Best Slide Deck Structure?

The basic structure of any sales presentation includes 4 key points: 1) the problem faced by your prospect 2) the dream solution (the results they’re after), 3) how your company helps them get what they want  (the benefits and results you offer) and 4) reasons why the prospect should chose you over your competitors.

⚡ How Can I Improve My Sales Presentation Design?

If you’re starting from sub-zero  (or want to educate yourself better than 80% of the people out there),  check out this post . It breaks down 100+ simple, practical presentation tips to help you plan, design and deliver unforgettable presentations.

If you’re looking for practical design tips , head over to this guide  where I list 21 simple slide design tips to help you make better decks fast.

Want to craft a more creative deck ? Check out this post . It includes actionable techniques to help you design creative presentations within minutes (with free templates, lessons and resources).

⚡ Where Can I Grab Business Images For My Presentation?

Right here (free)

⚡ How Should I Open/Start My Presentation?

Most audiences will give you only 30-60 seconds to convince them they want to listen to you.

As a result, your introduction is the most important part of your presentation because it will directly affect whether they want to hear more about what you have to say (or not). To that end, your presentation opening needs to accomplish four things:

1. Get the audience interested in the presentation 2. Build rapport 3. Establish credibility 4. Tell the audience what the presentation is going to provide them

Use the GTS (give them something) formula to get your audience’s excited about what they’ll be able to do or know by the end of your pitch:

Today, I’m going to show you [ statement that benefits your audience ]. By the end of this presentation, you will [ result they’re interested in ].

Today, I’m going to show you how you can use conversion optimization to triple your sales in less than 6 months.

⚡ What Questions Should I Ask the Prospect?

Can you help you understand how you measure success in regards with [topic]? What do you want to achieve, specifically? This year? Mid-term, long-term?) Tell us about your business in one sentence? What makes you different? What are your client’s biggest problems and aspirations? (Visualize what matters to them) What delights your customers about your product? Does our offering make sense for your world? Could you see this applying to you? Can we agree on [proposed next steps after the meeting]?

⚡ How to End/Close a Sales Deck?

If you’re sending the file through email, include a slide with a call-to-action enticing them to contact you, and give them your contact info.

If you’re having a meeting, summarize orally your understanding of customer’s goals and needs, and how you can help them achieve those goals. Also make sure to propose, and agree on the next steps. For instance:

“Would that work with you if we send you a recap of this meeting, the additional elements we talked about, and follow up within a week of time?”

⚡ How Long Should My Presentation Last?

After having conducted an experiment , Dr. Maureen Murphy at the University of North Texas (UNT) said that:

“If a presentation that had 20 minute segments with short breaks in between, the people enjoyed the 20-minute chunked presentations more than a 60 minute presentation, learned more information immediately after, and retained more information a month later”.

She concluded:

“See if you can build in some kind of change every 20 minutes. For maximum learning you want a break every 20 minutes, as opposed to just a change of topic….Instead of taking one long break, take several short ones”.

Here’s my take on this study:

Break down your sales meeting in 20-minute chunks. For instance:

Chunk 1) Understand your prospect’s business. Ask him questions. Get insights. Chunk 2) Introduce your product/service offerings. Which is long enough for your prospects to understand clearly how your product/service can help them.

⚡ Can You Show Me Some Solid Sales Presentation Examples?

Check out this post where you’ll get 20+ real-world sales deck examples.

⚡ How Can I Improve My Current Sales Deck?

Then, equip yourself a professional, ready-to-use presentation template that’ll help you put together a great sales deck fast (and at the fraction of what a designer would cost you).

See, you’re smart enough to know you could spend that time on more strategic, higher level activities that actually move the needle (like tweaking your value proposition, challenging your business strategy or fine tuning your pitch).

And the truth is, you don’t have to spend a huge amount of time on designing, editing and arranging those slides for your high-stake, upcoming sales presentation:

Most templates include everything you need, from gorgeous, easy-to-edit slides and icons to charts and ready-made color themes.

For instance, I’ve used the fully editable graphics of Massive X , one of my favorite templates, to illustrate this presentation guide.

The Massive X PowerPoint Template

Here’s a quick intro video of their latest bundle:

Now, what I love about this bundle  (beyond the hundreds of beautiful, professional slides they’re offering) is their 100% editable illustrations:

And the great news is, Massive X comes with a  ton  of editable illustrations you can use for multiple purposes:

Use them to illustrate your sales presentation slides and get your point across more effectively.

Now, let’s take a look into the details of the bundle…

😍 Key Features

Not sure about what templates can do for you?

No worries, maybe you’d like to see my  detailed review of the best presentation templates available on the market  below.

Recommended For You

Here’s How To Align Objects in PowerPoint

How to Make a Stunning PowerPoint Title Slide (in 5 Minutes)

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7 Amazing Sales Presentation Examples (And How to Make Them Your Own)

7 Types of Slides to Include In Your Sales Presentation

Inside the mind of your prospect: change is hard, before-after-bridge: the only formula you need to create a persuasive sales presentation, facebook — how smiles and simplicity make you more memorable, contently — how to build a strong bridge, brick by brick, yesware — how to go above and beyond with your benefits, uber — how to cater your content for readers quick to scan, dealtap — how to use leading questions to your advantage, zuora — how to win over your prospects by feeding them dots, linkedin sales navigator — how to create excitement with color, how to make a sales pitch in 4 straightforward steps, 7 embarrassing pitfalls to avoid in your presentation, over to you.

A brilliant sales presentation has a number of things going for it.

Being product-centered isn’t one of them. Or simply focusing on your sales pitch won’t do the trick.

So what can you do to make your offer compelling?

From different types of slides to persuasive techniques and visuals, we’ve got you covered.

Below, we look at data-backed strategies, examples, and easy steps to build your own sales presentations in minutes.

• Title slide: Company name, topic, tagline
• The “Before” picture: No more than three slides with relevant statistics and graphics.
• The “After” picture: How life looks with your product. Use happy faces.
• Company introduction: Who you are and what you do (as it applies to them).
• The “Bridge” slide: Short outcome statements with icons in circles.
• Social proof slides: Customer logos with the mission statement on one slide. Pull quote on another.
• “We’re here for you” slide: Include a call-to-action and contact information.

Many sales presentations fall flat because they ignore this universal psychological bias: People overvalue the benefits of what they have over what they’re missing.

Harvard Business School professor John T. Gourville calls this the “ 9x Effect .” Left unchecked, it can be disastrous for your business.

According to Gourville, “It’s not enough for a new product simply to be better. Unless the gains far outweigh the losses, customers will not adopt it.”

The good news: You can influence how prospects perceive these gains and losses. One of the best ways to prove value is to contrast life before and after your product.

Luckily, there’s a three-step formula for that.

• Before → Here’s your world…
• After → Imagine what it would be like if…
• Bridge → Here’s how to get there.

Start with a vivid description of the pain, present an enviable world where that problem doesn’t exist, then explain how to get there using your tool.

It’s super simple, and it works for cold emails , drip campaigns , and sales discovery decks. Basically anywhere you need to get people excited about what you have to say.

In fact, a lot of companies are already using this formula to great success. The methods used in the sales presentation examples below will help you do the same.

We’re all drawn to happiness. A study at Harvard tells us that emotion is contagious .

You’ll notice that the “Before” (pre-Digital Age) pictures in Facebook’s slides all display neutral faces. But the cover slide that introduces Facebook and the “After” slides have smiling faces on them.

This is important. The placement of those graphics is an intentional persuasion technique.

Studies by psychologists show that we register smiles faster than any other expression. All it takes is 500 milliseconds (1/20th of a second). And when participants in a study were asked to recall expressions, they consistently remembered happy faces over neutral ones.

What to do about it : Add a happy stock photo to your intro and “After” slides, and keep people in “Before” slides to neutral expressions.

Here are some further techniques used during the sales presentation:

Tactic #1: Use Simple Graphics

Use simple graphics to convey meaning without text.

Example: Slide 2 is a picture of a consumer’s hand holding an iPhone — something we can all relate to.

Why It Works: Pictures are more effective than words — it’s called  Picture Superiority . In presentations, pictures help you create connections with your audience. Instead of spoon-feeding them everything word for word, you let them interpret. This builds trust.

Tactic #2: Use Icons

Use icons to show statistics you’re comparing instead of listing them out.

Example: Slide 18 uses people icons to emphasize how small 38 out of 100 people is compared to 89 out of 100.

Why It Works:  We process visuals 60,000 times faster than text.

Tactic #3: Include Statistics

Include statistics that tie real success to the benefits you mention.

Example: “71% lift driving visits to retailer title pages” (Slide 26).

Why It Works:  Precise details prove that you are telling the truth.

Just like how you can’t drive from Marin County to San Francisco without the Golden Gate, you can’t connect a “Before” to an “After” without a bridge.

Add the mission statement of your company — something Contently does from Slide 1 of their deck. Having a logo-filled Customers slide isn’t unusual for sales presentations, but Contently goes one step further by showing you exactly what they do for these companies.

They then drive home the Before-After-Bridge Formula further with case studies:

Before : Customer’s needs when they came on

After: What your company accomplished for them

Bridge : How they got there (specific actions and outcomes)

Here are some other tactics we pulled from the sales presentation:

Tactic #1: Use Graphics/Diagrams

Use graphics, Venn diagrams, and/or equations to drive home your “Before” picture.

Why It Works:  According to a Cornell study , graphs and equations have persuasive power. They “signal a scientific basis for claims, which grants them greater credibility.”

Tactic #2: Keep Slides That Have Bullets to a Minimum

Keep slides that have bullets to a minimum. No more than one in every five slides.

Why It Works:  According to an experiment by the International Journal of Business Communication , “Subjects exposed to a graphic representation paid significantly more attention to , agreed more with, and better recalled the strategy than did subjects who saw a (textually identical) bulleted list.”

Tactic #3: Use Visual Examples

Follow up your descriptions with visual examples.

Example: After stating “15000+ vetted, ready to work journalists searchable by location, topical experience, and social media influence” on Slide 8, Contently shows what this looks like firsthand on slides 9 and 10.

Why It Works:  The same reason why prospects clamor for demos and car buyers ask for test drives. You’re never truly convinced until you see something for yourself.

Which is more effective for you?

This statement — “On average, Yesware customers save ten hours per week” — or this image:

The graphic shows you what that 10 hours looks like for prospects vs. customers. It also calls out a pain that the product removes: data entry.

Visuals are more effective every time. They fuel retention of a presentation from 10% to 65% .

But it’s not as easy as just including a graphic. You need to keep the design clean.

Can you feel it?

Clutter provokes anxiety and stress because it bombards our minds with excessive visual stimuli, causing our senses to work overtime on stimuli that aren’t important.

Here’s a tip from Yesware’s Graphic Designer, Ginelle DeAntonis:

“Customer logos won’t all necessarily have the same dimensions, but keep them the same size visually so that they all have the same importance. You should also disperse colors throughout, so that you don’t for example end up with a bunch of blue logos next to each other. Organize them in a way that’s easy for the eye, because in the end it’s a lot of information at once.”

Here are more tactics to inspire sales presentation ideas:

Tactic #1: Personalize Your Final Slide

Personalize your final slide with your contact information and a headline that drives emotion.

Example: Our Mid-Market Team Lead Kyle includes his phone number and email address with “We’re Here For You”

Why It Works: These small details show your audience that:

• This is about giving them the end picture, not making a sale
• The end of the presentation doesn’t mean the end of the conversation
• Questions are welcomed

Tactic #2: Pair Outcome Statements With Icons in Circles

Example: Slide 4 does this with seven different “After” outcomes.

Why It Works:  We already know why pictures work, but circles have power , too. They imply completeness, infiniteness, and harmony.

Tactic #3: Include Specific Success Metrics

Don’t just list who you work with; include specific success metrics that hit home what you’ve done for them.

Example: 35% New Business Growth for Boomtrain; 30% Higher Reply Rates for Dyn.

Why It Works:  Social proof drives action. It’s why we wait in lines at restaurants and put ourselves on waitlists for sold-out items.

People can only focus for eight seconds at a time. (Sadly, goldfish have one second on us.)

This means you need to cut to the chase fast.

Uber’s headlines in Slides 2-9 tailor the “After” picture to specific pain points. As a result, there’s no need to explicitly state a “Before.”

Slides 11-13 then continue touching on “Before” problems tangentially with customer quotes:

So instead of self-touting benefits, the brand steps aside to let consumers hear from their peers — something that sways 92% of consumers .

Leading questions may be banned from the courtroom, but they aren’t in the boardroom.

DealTap’s slides ask viewers to choose between two scenarios over and over. Each has an obvious winner:

Ever heard of the Focusing Effect?

It’s part of what makes us tick as humans and what makes this design move effective. We focus on one thing and then ignore the rest. Here, DealTap puts the magnifying glass on paperwork vs. automated transactions.

Easy choice.

Sure, DealTap’s platform might have complexities that rival paperwork, but we don’t think about that. We’re looking at the pile of work one the left and the simpler, single interface on the right.

Here are some other tactics to use in your own sales presentation:

Tactic #1: Tell a Story

Tell a story that flows from one slide to the next.

Example: Here’s the story DealTap tells from slides 4 to 8: “Transactions are complicated” → “Expectations on all sides” → “Too many disconnected tools” → “Slow and error prone process” → “However, there’s an opportunity.

Why It Works:   Storytelling in sales with a clear beginning and end (or in this case, a “Before” and “After”) trigger a trust hormone called Oxytocin.

Tactic #2: This vs. That

If it’s hard to separate out one “Before” and “After” vision with your product or service because you offer many dissimilar benefits, consider a “This vs. That” theme for each.

Why It Works:  It breaks up your points into simple decisions and sets you up to win emotional reactions from your audience with stock photos.

Remember how satisfying it was to play connect the dots? Forming a bigger picture out of disconnected circles.

That’s what you need to make your audience do.

Zuora tells a story by:

• Laying out the reality (the “Before” part of the Before-After-Bridge formula).
• Asking you a question that you want to answer (the “After”)
• Giving you hints to help you connect the dots
• Showing you the common thread (the “Bridge”)

You can achieve this by founding your sales presentation on your audience’s intuitions. Set them up with the closely-set “dots,” then let them make the connection.

Here are more tactical sales presentation ideas to steal for your own use:

Tactic #1: Use Logos and Testimonials

Use logos and  testimonial pull-quotes for your highest-profile customers to strengthen your sales presentation.

Example: Slides 21 to 23 include customer quotes from Schneider Electric, Financial Times, and Box.

Why It Works: It’s called  social proof . Prospects value other people’s opinions and trust reputable sources more than you.

Tactic #2: Include White Space

Pad your images with white space.

Example: Slide 17 includes two simple graphics on a white background to drive home an important concept.

Why It Works:  White space creates separation, balance, and attracts the audience’s eyes to the main focus: your image.

Tactic #3: Incorporate Hard Data

Incorporate hard data with a memorable background to make your data stand out.

Example: Slide 5 includes statistics with a backdrop that stands out. The number and exciting title (‘A Global Phenomenon’) are the main focuses of the slide.

Why It Works:  Vivid backdrops are proven to be memorable and help your audience take away important numbers or data.

Psychology tells us that seeing colors can set our mood .

The color red is proven to increase the pulse and heart rate. Beyond that, it’s associated with being active, aggressive, and outspoken. LinkedIn Sales Navigator uses red on slides to draw attention to main points:

You can use hues in your own slides to guide your audience’s emotions. Green gives peace; grey adds a sense of calm; blue breeds trust. See more here .

Tip: You can grab free photos from Creative Commons and then set them to black & white and add a colored filter on top using a (also free) tool like Canva . Here’s the sizing for your image:

Caveat: Check with your marketing team first to see if you have a specific color palette or brand guidelines to follow.

Here are some other takeaways from LinkedIn’s sales presentation:

Tactic #1: Include a CTA on Final Slide

Include one clear call-to-action on your final slide.

Example: Slide 9 has a “Learn More” CTA button.

Why It Works:  According to the Paradox of Choice , the more options you give, the less likely they are to act.

Step One : Ask marketing for your company’s style guide (color, logo, and font style).

Step Two: Answer these questions to outline the “Before → After → Bridge” formula for your sales pitch :

• What are your ICP’s pain points?
• What end picture resonates with them?
• How does your company come into play?

Step Three: Ask account management/marketing which customers you can mention in your slides (plus where to access any case studies for pull quotes).

Step Four:  Download photos from Creative Commons . Remember: Graphics > Text. Use Canva to edit on your own — free and fast.

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Sales presentation definition

• Written by: Joby Blume
• Categories: Sales presentations , Sales messaging
• Comments: 3

A presentation is a talk in which a ‘product, idea, or piece of work is shown and explained to the audience’ (Oxford English Dictionary), often including a ‘verbal report presented with illustrative material such as slides, graphs, etc.’ (Collins Dictionary). So, how can we define the related term ‘sales presentation’?

There are a few popular definitions (in virtue of where they are) out there that I think we can quickly reject. Wikipedia (and so Google) defines a sales presentation as:

A line of talk that attempts to persuade someone or something, with a planned sales presentation strategy of a product or service designed to initiate and close a sale of the product or service.

I’m fairly sure the first rule of definitions is that they can’t be tautologies (circular), so the use of ‘sales presentation’ in the definition is a problem. Does a sales presentation need to be planned? Maybe not. Does it need to be designed to ‘initiate and close a sale’ – maybe not – it could sit in the middle of a sales process, and be designed simply to advance the sale to the next stage. Would a telephone call count? By this definition, it might.

The Business Dictionary gives its definition of sales presentation as:

Formal and pre-arranged meeting, usually at a customer’s place (or at a neutral premises, such as a hotel) where a salesperson or a sales team presents detailed information (often including live demonstration) about a product or product-line.

I think there’s plenty to dislike here. ‘Formal and pre-arranged’ – maybe, but not necessarily. Location is probably irrelevant for the definition – a sales presentation could happen anywhere. Even ‘about a product or product-line’ unnecessarily excludes presentations about services or service-lines.

The best definition of sales presentation I could find online was from the Cambridge Dictionary :

A talk giving information about a product or service that you are trying to sell, intended to persuade people to buy it.

There is one small issue with this definition – but I think it’s closer to the mark. As per the Collins dictionary above, a presentation contains illustrative material – otherwise it’s just a speech or a talk or simply a conversation. As a minor point, it could be that the phrase ‘giving information’ is superfluous – the definition works just as well without it.

I think the narrow focus in the Cambridge Dictionary definition on a commercial transaction – ‘trying to sell’ … ‘persuade people to buy it’ – is probably correct. Many presentations attempt to persuade people about ideas, or how to vote, or religion. These presentations are similar to sales presentations, but my sense is that they aren’t sales presentations. A TED Talk may well want to persuade the audience to change the world, change themselves – but I don’t think that makes it a sales presentation in the way that people typically understand the term, because we aren’t selling in the commercial sense.

It’s worth noting that the Cambridge Dictionary definition doesn’t specify that the people you are persuading to buy your product or service are actually those you are presenting to. This is important because often sales presentations are mediated through the press – consider gadget launches for the most obvious example. I think these launches are a type of sales presentation, although the people being persuaded to buy aren’t in the audience, but at home.

Trying to refine our definition becomes more difficult when we consider investor presentations. Are we selling something? Yes – a stake in a company or other investment vehicle. Do we typically consider an investor presentation to be a sales presentation? Your sense may be different, but I think not. It’s something else – because we aren’t selling a product or service, but an investment opportunity.

So, based on all of the above, I think our sales presentation definition should be as follows:

A talk promoting to an audience a product or service that you are trying to sell, including illustrative material such as slides, graphs, etc.

I originally had the phrase ‘intended to persuade people to buy the product or service’ in the middle of the definition, but removed it because it was superfluous, as ‘promoting’ and ‘trying to sell’ already said the same thing. What do you think?

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Sales presentations are the cornerstone of many companies’ sales efforts, yet so often they aren’t given the time and attention they deserve. Thrown together at the last-minute, often your sales reps stand up in front of a sales presentation that's nothing more than a glorified page of notes. Read this article for everything you need to make the ultimate sales presentation.

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Sales presentations are important, but 1000s of people each day ignore the principles of sales presentation design and sales messaging and deliver material that is tired, ugly, and ineffective. These sales presentation ideas will help you to easily improve your sales presentation; stand out, engage your audience, and sell more.

9 sales pitch lessons from exhibitions and tradeshows

We exhibited at a large trade exhibition a couple of weeks ago, and I went along to see what other vendors are up to. A lot of exhibitions are a desolate wasteland for exhibitors with nothing but tumbleweed and other vendors to stop the boredom. This show was actually pretty busy though, and by walking around l think I managed to notice things companies were doing (right and wrong). Some of these observations are surprisingly apt for sales presentations too...

Hi, Very interesting Post. We are a translation company and we are eager to find anything new. Thank you.

Good meaning of sales presentation I want more definitions

Sales presentations are a structured communication tool used to influence a purchase decision. They contain two main components: a spoken narrative, given by the presenter or presentation team, and the supporting visuals.

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What is a Sales Presentation?

A sales presentation is an event at which a company representative meets with clients to demonstrate the company's products and services, with the goal of making a sale. Sales presentations are an important part of the marketing process, as they allow company representatives to meet directly with their customers, creating a personalized and individual sales approach. There are a number of different styles and formats for sales presentations, depending on the industry and the product being sold.

In some cases, a sales presentation takes place at the customer's business, as when a pharmaceutical representative visits a doctor's office to discuss a new line of medications. Sales presentations can also be held in hotels and conference centers, in which case they are usually designed for a crowd, rather than a single client. Clients can also travel to a company for a sales presentation, a method which is sometimes used when products are bulky. Airline representatives, for example, may travel to an aerospace company to inspect a new aircraft. Online sales presentations are also popular in some industries.

During a sales presentation, the company representative provides information about what the company is selling. He or she creates a pitch which is tailored to the customer and designed to draw the customer in, promoting the company's reputation and product and showing customers how the company's product will suit their needs. The representative also answers questions during the sales presentation, often using questions as marketing opportunities.

Classically, sales presentations include giveaways. Gifts are used by companies to make sure that they stay in their minds of their clients, as every time the client sees or uses the gift, he or she will think of the company. Product giveaways can include things like pens, mugs, and free samples, along with more elaborate giveaways, like weekends at resorts, free trips on aircraft, and so forth. In the case of a sales presentation which is designed to land a major contract or deal, the company may be quite lavish.

Visual aids are also used during a sales presentation, including physical models, product samples, and slideshows such as Powerpoint presentations. Commonly, people are invited to take product literature and information with them so that they can read up about the product after the sales presentation. They are also invited to take order forms and contact information for sales representatives so that they can place orders. A skilled sales representative can land a sale at a sales presentation, closing the deal before he or she even leaves the building.

Ever since she began contributing to the site several years ago, Mary has embraced the exciting challenge of being a SmartCapitalMind researcher and writer. Mary has a liberal arts degree from Goddard College and spends her free time reading, cooking, and exploring the great outdoors.

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Discussion Comments

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• By: eillen1981 Some sales presentations are made with the assistance of a digital projector.
• By: Foxy_A It is important to wear informal attire that isn't too flashy when giving a presentation.
• By: Andres Rodriguez Sales presentations often try to get new investors for a company.

The Most Persuasive Sales Presentation Structure of All

Updated: January 28, 2020

Published: April 13, 2017

If you’ve ever sat through a presentation that went around the block a few times before finally arriving at its destination, you understand the need for a clear, comprehensible structure for your message.

Structure isn’t just for keeping you, the presenter, from getting lost in the weeds. As a salesperson, you need to organize your message in a way that has the greatest impact on your audience and ultimately encourages them to take action.

Almost any structure will help you get your arms around information, prioritize, and organize it. However, the right structure can set you up for success and increase your odds of winning the business.

The Basic Three-Act Presentation Structure

Breaking content into an opening , a body , and a conclusion is the basis of most presentations, movies, TV shows, and speeches. This basic three-act structure was invented by Aristotle and has stood the test of time. It’s familiar to audiences, digestible, and easy to follow. In fact, if you’ve ever felt uncomfortable or confused watching a movie, it’s often because the writer has broken the three-act structure ( Memento and Inception are two examples).

A three-act structure is a great place to start for just about any presentation. But within this framework there are several variations. For instance, you could sort information chronologically, by process, or priority, and so on.

If your goal is to educate or inform, these variations are fine -- but they're not optimal for persuasion. To do use, that the  Situation , Complication , Resolution  framework.

SCR: The Best Sales Presentation Structure of All

Situation, Complication, Resolution is really just a way of identifying:

• Our present state
• The problem
• What should we do about it

First identified in Barbara Minto’s book The Pyramid Principle , the SCR structure is an effective way of establishing a persuasive case and will be familiar to anyone who consumes movies, TV, or books.

Here’s an example of the SCR structure in a story:

Situation : A girl is kidnapped. If a steep ransom is not paid by midnight, a bomb will explode.

Complication : The girl's family can’t get the money together. No one knows where the bomb is except the hero. The hero is stuck on a remote island.

Resolution : The hero jumps on a plane, finds the girl, detonates the bomb, and saves the world.

If that sounds like the framework of most movies you’ve seen, there’s a good reason. The SCR structure organizes content in a way that takes people on a journey that leads to a natural conclusion. It builds up tension in the audience which increases their attention and their desire for a resolution.

By following this proven structure in sales, you can produce the same effect on your business audience. Let’s look at how you can leverage each act in your sales presentation.

To take someone on a journey, you must first know where that journey begins. In this first act, define the status quo. What is the critical business issue or challenge your prospect is experiencing, how is he addressing it, and what is the impact?

This act lays the groundwork for why your prospect needs to change and assures him you have a clear understanding of his situation. Ending this first act by painting a brief picture of where this journey can lead (i.e., current state versus potential future state) creates an uncomfortable but necessary disparity between where your prospect is and where he wants to be.

Complication

In this act, introduce complications or consequences that are likely to arise as a result of your prospect not taking action, or choosing an inadequate solution to his problem. Create tension which will make sticking with the status quo or putting off a decision less desirable.

Because most people are uncomfortable with indecision, tension taps into our innate human desire to solve the problem. Widening the gap between pain and relief increases your prospect’s urgency to take action.

Finally, when tension is at its peak, relieve that tension by providing a clear solution to the problem and making it easy for your prospect to act upon. While many structures require the presenter to deliver a heavy handed close at this point, in the SCR structure, the resolution comes as a natural conclusion to the journey.

The SCR Presentation in Action

Let’s look at how you might use the three-act SCR structure in a business example.

Situation : An HR department is doing most of their reports manually. This currently takes 1.5 days per week of each HR person’s time.

Complication : The company is growing at a rate of 20% per year. Projected HR workload will escalate to two days per week if nothing changes and the chances for errors will increase. Employee satisfaction will decline and turnover rates will go up.

Resolution : Deploy an HR workforce application that will reduce time spent on current processes from 1.5 days per week to .25 days per week, resulting in greater efficiency, fewer errors, increased satisfaction, and a lower turnover rate.

In sales, you need every advantage you can get. Following the Situation, Complication, Resolution structure gives you a jumpstart on presenting a persuasive case for why your prospect should choose your solution and make the desired change.

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Sales Presentation - Definition, Importance & Steps

What is sales presentation.

Sales presentation is the concerned talk which attempts to persuade a stakeholder or a customer to initiate and close a sale of the service or product through a showcase of capabilities, features, price etc. Sales presentation is usually designed to be either an introduction of a service or product to some particular audience who generally knows nothing about it, or a descriptive expansion of a service or product which that particular audience has expressed interest in it, already.

Advance planning can make all the difference for a sales presentation. The sales presentation should be in line with the needs of the clients and for that, it is very important to know who the audience is before making the sales presentation.

Importance of Sales Presentation

Sales presentations are mostly the first step in the selling process or the sales cycle, hence become extremely important. A successful sales presentation is followed by a proposal, quote or an order stage which leads to revenue and profit for a business.

Not all sales presentations are meant to make an immediate sale. The objective might be to create interest in the involved parties. Establishing the overall message that one wants the presentation to get across is very crucial. The structure and time consumed for presentation is also very important.

It is always advisable to make the sales presentation flexible in case a particular point doesn’t work out or one runs out of time. The sales presentations are meant to be interactive and not one way delivery. For people with lower attention span, it is important for the sales presentation to be effective to grab and retain their interest. For that, the sales presentation need to be catchy in the beginning only.

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10 Steps to make a good Sales Presentation

1. Keep the sales presentation to the point.

2. Start well with the agenda

3. Good Sales Presentation clearly defines the problem statement or the customer's ask

4. Give the solution and recommendations after defining the problem statement

5. A well made sales presentation is not open ended but talks about the plan with timelines and value

6. Provide key contacts for future

7. Make sure that business, technology and management teams in your target audience understand the offering

8. Provide past references and similar work which was done in form of case studies

9. Showcase your capabilities in the sales presentation

10. Make sure you have understood the storyline well and practice well before the presentation

Hence, this concludes the definition of Sales Presentation along with its overview.

This article has been researched & authored by the Business Concepts Team . It has been reviewed & published by the MBA Skool Team. The content on MBA Skool has been created for educational & academic purpose only.

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Four Tips to Make Your Sales Presentation a Winner

Being prepared and not being boring can go a long way toward persuading a potential customer to buy into what you’re offering.

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“I am CEO of an educational sales organization, and we need to transform our telemarketing staff into salespeople who go out into the field, make presentations and do lunch-and-learn new product seminars with potential customers. May I legally change their job duties? Would I be required to provide training for them, and if so, what type? Thanks, ‘Walter.’”

“Yes to both questions,” says Southern California labor lawyer Daniel Klingenberger . “If employers prefer sales presentations face-to-face with existing or prospective customers, they can establish those job requirements. They would be well advised to provide appropriate sales or presentation skills training to these employees.”

I also consulted on this topic with Terri Sjodin , principal and founder of Sjodin Communications in Newport Beach, Calif. “Dennis,” she says, “you would be surprised at how often these same issues come up as employees have gone from home-based to virtual and now are sent out into the field.”

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Sjodin, a New York Times bestselling author and a frequent guest on radio and television talk shows, has dedicated her professional life to helping people become effective speakers. Her most recent book is Presentation Ready: Improve Your Sales Presentation Outcomes and Avoid the Twelve Most Common Mistakes .

How to build presentation skills

“Most people want to improve their presentations,” she says, “but don’t know where to start. Understanding the most common mistakes — and figuring out how to avoid them — is critical because you can’t course-correct what you don’t recognize as a problem.”

She provided some confidence-boosting insights to help Walter’s sales professionals get started on learning good presentation skills.

Don’t wing it. Failing to prepare reveals a lack of product knowledge.

Winging it is improvising, ad-libbing or generally conducting a presentation without much preparation. It is among the top mistakes salespeople reported making that had likely ruined transactions.

Goal-oriented, persuasive presentations that need a customer’s buy-in risk failure if you are not well prepared, if you haven’t done your homework and if you don’t know your company’s product or service well. Listeners easily sense a lack of preparation where the speaker appears disorganized, unskilled and distracted.

This can have a greater cost than one lost sale; it puts the employer’s reputation at risk.

Don’t be boring. Being informative has its limits.

The 2023 State of Sales Presentations Research Study from Sjodin’s company revealed that being boring is the most common mistake presenters recognized in others. This can happen for a host of reasons, including sharing too many facts and figures.

A good presentation is much more than just delivering information; you need your message to land, to create a connection with the listener.

This is accomplished by crafting a message that is engaging, interesting and amplified by stories listeners will tune in to emotionally, making the product or service relevant — something they can visualize owning or using. “Your enthusiasm is vital!” Sjodin says.

While it is important to provide a factual basis for why someone should purchase your product, you don’t want customers to feel as if they are being asked to drink from a fire hydrant. “Buying decisions are seldom based on a massive amount of detail but are strongly linked to positive feelings the audience has about the speaker,” Sjodin points out.

Do be the first person in the room and know who your audience is.

“Audience analysis refers to knowing who will be in the audience,” Sjodin notes. “This intelligence is golden, as the more you know about your listeners, the better able you should be to fine-tune the presentation. But sometimes you will have no idea who will be present, and they might have no idea who you are.”

The solution is to be the first person in the room. By greeting listeners as they come in, you can exchange a few words and, time permitting, ask them what they might like to know about your product or service. “In so doing, your presentation has already begun, and you have likely won a friend,” Sjodin says.

Keep in mind that for a lunch-and-learn seminar, the food is important.

Lunch-and-learn seminars are popular in the investment world. “A common mistake,” Sjodin says, “is for the financial adviser to lecture while guests are eating. Few will pay attention!”

Sjodin recommends that, prior to lunch, open the session with a few welcoming remarks, advising that lunch will be served in a moment and that afterward the presentation will begin.

“In summary,” Sjodin notes, “providing your team with presentation skills training will

boost their comfort with the new job responsibilities and help them to succeed.”

In Presentation Ready , Sjodin puts her all into helping readers become more effective in the world of sales. It is a shot of confidence-building Vitamin B-12 and the ideal gift for employees preparing for a required change in performance skills.

Dennis Beaver practices law in Bakersfield, Calif., and welcomes comments and questions from readers, which may be faxed to (661) 323-7993, or e-mailed to [email protected] . And be sure to visit dennisbeaver.com .

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After attending Loyola University School of Law, H. Dennis Beaver joined California's Kern County District Attorney's Office, where he established a Consumer Fraud section. He is in the general practice of law and writes a syndicated newspaper column, " You and the Law ." Through his column he offers readers in need of down-to-earth advice his help free of charge. "I know it sounds corny, but I just love to be able to use my education and experience to help, simply to help. When a reader contacts me, it is a gift." 

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Sales Promotion: Definition and Examples

Discover effective sales promotion strategies, definitions and examples to boost sales and enhance brand loyalty in our detailed guide.

Salesforce Staff

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Sales promotion is a marketing strategy that businesses use to boost sales, create brand awareness, and drive customer loyalty. It involves various techniques and tactics to incentivise customers to make a purchase or take a specific action. In this article, we will delve into the world of sales promotions, exploring its definition, uncovering its benefits and drawbacks, and examining different types of sales promotions. We’ll also provide insights on how to effectively plan, execute, and measure your sales promotions, and how Salesforce can assist you in optimising your sales promotion efforts.

What is sales promotion?

Sales promotion is a marketing strategy designed to increase the sales of a product or service. It involves various techniques and tactics to incentivise customers to make a purchase or take a specific action. Unlike advertising, which focuses on creating awareness and building brand recognition, sales promotion is more action-oriented and aims to drive immediate results.

Sales promotions can be used for a variety of purposes, including:

Introducing a new product or service: Sales promotions can help create excitement and generate buzz around a new offering, encouraging potential customers to try it out.

Increasing brand awareness: Sales promotions can help increase visibility and recognition of a brand, especially when they involve unique or creative offers.

Generating leads: Sales promotions can be used to capture contact information from potential customers, providing businesses with valuable leads for future marketing and sales efforts.

Benefits of sales promotions

Sales promotions can be used to achieve a number of benefits, including increasing brand awareness, generating leads, boosting sales and revenue, building customer loyalty and repeat business, and clearing out old stock or inventory.

Increasing Brand Awareness

Sales promotions can help to increase brand awareness by introducing new products or services to potential customers. They can also remind existing customers of your brand and encourage them to make repeat purchases. By offering discounts, free samples, or other incentives, sales promotions can attract new customers and get them to try your products or services. This can lead to increased brand recognition and loyalty.

Generating Leads

Sales promotions can also be used to generate leads for your business. By offering a free consultation, a white paper, or other valuable content, you can capture the contact information of potential customers who are interested in your products or services. This information can then be used to follow up with these customers and nurture them into becoming paying customers.

Boosting Sales and Revenue

Sales promotions can also be used to boost sales and revenue. By offering discounts, rebates, or other incentives, you can encourage customers to make purchases that they might not have otherwise made. This can lead to increased sales and revenue for your business.

Building Customer Loyalty and Repeat Business

Sales promotions can also be used to build customer loyalty and repeat business. By rewarding customers for their purchases, you can show them that you appreciate their business and encourage them to continue to buy from you. This can lead to increased customer loyalty and repeat business, which can help you to grow your business over the long term.

Clearing Out Old Stock or Inventory

Finally, sales promotions can also be used to clear out old stock or inventory. By offering discounts or other incentives, you can encourage customers to purchase products that are not selling well. This can help you to free up space in your warehouse and make room for new products.

Drawbacks of sales promotions

Sales promotions, while effective, are not without their drawbacks. One potential downside is the risk of cannibalising sales from other channels. For instance, if a product is heavily discounted during a sales promotion, customers may be more inclined to purchase it during the promotion rather than at its regular price. This can lead to a decrease in sales at full price, offsetting the gains from the sales promotion.

Another challenge lies in accurately measuring the effectiveness of sales promotions. While some promotions may result in an immediate boost in sales, it can be difficult to determine the long-term impact on customer behaviour and brand loyalty. Additionally, tracking the ROI of sales promotions can be complex, as it involves considering various factors such as the cost of the promotion, changes in sales volume, and customer acquisition and retention rates.

Furthermore, sales promotions can potentially trigger price wars among competitors. When one business offers a significant discount or promotion, other businesses in the same industry may feel compelled to follow suit to maintain their market share. This can lead to a race to the bottom, with businesses continually slashing prices to outdo each other, ultimately eroding profit margins for all involved.

Finally, if not executed properly, sales promotions can damage a brand’s image. Offering excessive discounts or promotions too frequently can cheapen the brand’s perception in the eyes of consumers. This can make it challenging to restore the brand’s value proposition and premium pricing once the promotion ends.

To mitigate these drawbacks, businesses should carefully consider the objectives, target audience, and potential impact of sales promotions before implementation. Balancing the benefits and risks, setting clear goals, and continuously monitoring and evaluating the results are crucial to ensuring the success of sales promotions while minimising any negative consequences.

10 types of sales promotions

There are many different types of sales promotions that businesses can use to increase sales. Some of the most common include:

• Price discounts: Price discounts are one of the most common types of sales promotions. They involve offering a product or service at a reduced price for a limited time. Price discounts can be effective in generating leads, increasing brand awareness, and clearing out old stock.
•   Loyalty programs: Loyalty programs are another popular type of sales promotion. They involve rewarding customers for their repeat business. Loyalty programs can help to build customer loyalty and repeat business, and they can also be used to collect valuable customer data.
• Free samples: Free samples are a great way to introduce new products or services to potential customers. They can also be used to generate leads and build brand awareness.
• Buy-one-get-one (BOGO) offers: BOGO offers are a type of sales promotion that involves offering two products or services for the price of one. They can be effective in generating leads, increasing brand awareness, and clearing out old stock.
• Rebates: Rebates are a type of sales promotion that involves offering a refund to customers who purchase a product or service. Rebates can be effective in generating leads, increasing brand awareness, and clearing out old stock.
• Contests: Contests are a fun and engaging way to generate leads, increase brand awareness, and build customer loyalty. Contests can be held online, in-store, or through social media.
• Referral programs: Referral programs are a type of sales promotion that involves rewarding customers for referring new customers to a business. Referral programs can be effective in generating leads and building customer loyalty.
• Flash sales: Flash sales are a type of sales promotion that involves offering a product or service at a deep discount for a very limited time. Flash sales can be effective in generating leads, increasing brand awareness, and clearing out old stock.
• Social media promotions: Social media promotions are a type of sales promotion that involves using social media platforms to promote a product or service. Social media promotions can be effective in generating leads, increasing brand awareness, and building customer loyalty.
• Email marketing promotions: Email marketing promotions are a type of sales promotion that involves using email to promote a product or service. Email marketing promotions can be effective in generating leads, increasing brand awareness, and building customer loyalty.

How to prepare your sales force for a sales promotion

To ensure the success of a sales promotion, it is crucial to adequately prepare the sales force. This involves setting clear and achievable objectives for the promotion. These objectives should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. For instance, a sales promotion objective could be to increase sales of a particular product by 15% within a two-week period.

Providing comprehensive training is also essential to equip the sales team with the knowledge and skills necessary to execute the sales promotion effectively. This training should cover product knowledge, sales techniques, and communication skills. Role-playing exercises and simulations can be incorporated into the training to enhance the sales team’s preparedness.

Furthermore, it is important to ensure that the sales team has the necessary resources to support the sales promotion. This may include marketing materials, such as brochures, flyers, and social media graphics. Additionally, the sales team should have access to customer relationship management (CRM) systems and other relevant technology to facilitate their tasks.

Motivating the sales team is crucial to driving their performance during a sales promotion. This can be achieved through various incentives and rewards, such as commissions, bonuses, and non-monetary recognition. Setting up friendly competitions among the sales team can also foster a sense of healthy competition and motivation.

By following these steps and ensuring that the sales force is well-prepared, businesses can increase the likelihood of a successful sales promotion. A well-prepared sales team is more likely to effectively communicate the value of the promotion to customers, drive sales, and achieve the desired objectives.

Where to hold your sales promotion

When choosing a location for your sales promotion, there are several key factors to consider to ensure its success. The first is the location of your target market. Your sales promotion should be held in a place that is easily accessible to your target audience. If your target market is local, consider holding the promotion in a central location within your community. If your target market is broader, you may want to consider holding the promotion in a larger city or region.

The size of your sales promotion is also an important factor to consider when choosing a location. If you are expecting a large number of attendees, you will need to find a location that can accommodate the crowd. This could include a convention centre, a large retail store, or an outdoor space. If you are expecting a smaller number of attendees, you may be able to get by with a smaller location, such as a conference room or a restaurant.

The cost of the location is another important factor to consider. Some locations may be more expensive than others, so it is important to set a budget before you start your search. Be sure to factor in the cost of renting the space, as well as any additional costs, such as parking, catering, and security.

The accessibility of the location is also important. Make sure that the location is easy to get to, both by car and public transportation. If possible, choose a location that is close to major highways or public transportation hubs.

Finally, consider the atmosphere of the location. The atmosphere should be conducive to the type of sales promotion you are holding. For example, if you are holding a product launch, you may want to choose a location that is modern and stylish. If you are holding a customer appreciation event, you may want to choose a location that is more relaxed and informal.

How to make sales promotion effective

To make sales promotion effective, it is crucial to follow a strategic approach. Here are some key steps to ensure the success of your sales promotion:

1. Define Your Target Audience:

Clearly identify your target audience and tailor the sales promotion specifically to their needs, preferences, and buying behaviour. Understand their pain points, interests, and motivations to create a promotion that resonates with them. By targeting the right audience, you increase the chances of your sales promotion being successful.

2. Set Clear and Achievable Goals:

Define specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for your sales promotion. Determine what you aim to achieve, whether it’s increasing brand awareness, generating leads, boosting sales, or building customer loyalty. Having clear goals helps you measure the success of your promotion and make necessary adjustments.

3. Choose the Right Sales Promotion Type:

Select the most appropriate sales promotion type based on your product or service, target audience, and business objectives. There are various options available, such as discounts, loyalty programs, free samples, BOGO offers, rebates, and contests. Choose the promotion type that aligns best with your goals and resonates with your target market.

4. Promote Your Sales Promotion Effectively:

Once you’ve chosen the right sales promotion type, effectively communicate it to your target audience. Utilise multiple channels to promote your sales promotion, including social media, email marketing, website, in-store signage, and paid advertising. Create a sense of urgency and excitement to encourage customers to take advantage of the promotion.

5. Track and Measure Results:

Continuously monitor and measure the results of your sales promotion to assess its effectiveness. Use key performance indicators (KPIs) such as sales volume, website traffic, lead generation, customer engagement, and conversion rates to evaluate the success of the promotion. Analyse the data to identify what worked well and what needs improvement for future promotions.

How Salesforce can help with sales promotion

Salesforce is a powerful customer relationship management (CRM) platform that can help businesses with sales promotion in various ways. It offers a range of tools and features designed to streamline and enhance sales promotion campaigns.

Salesforce enables businesses to track and manage sales promotion campaigns effectively. With its robust reporting and analytics capabilities, businesses can gain valuable insights into the performance of their sales promotions, including metrics such as campaign reach, engagement rates, conversion rates, and revenue generated. This data-driven approach allows businesses to make informed decisions and optimise their sales promotion strategies for better results.

Salesforce also facilitates the creation of personalised sales promotions for customers. By leveraging customer data and preferences stored in the CRM, businesses can tailor their sales promotions to meet the specific needs and interests of individual customers. This personalised approach enhances customer engagement and increases the likelihood of conversions.

Salesforce streamlines sales promotion processes through automation. The platform allows businesses to automate tasks such as sending promotional emails, generating coupons, and tracking customer interactions. This automation saves time and resources for sales teams, enabling them to focus on building relationships and closing deals.

Salesforce enables businesses to measure the success of their sales promotions accurately. With its advanced analytics tools, businesses can track key performance indicators (KPIs) such as sales volume, revenue, customer acquisition, and customer retention. This data helps businesses evaluate the effectiveness of their sales promotions and make necessary adjustments to improve future campaigns.

Additionally, Salesforce integrates seamlessly with other marketing and sales channels, providing a unified platform for managing sales promotions. Businesses can connect Salesforce with their website, social media platforms, email marketing tools, and point-of-sale systems to create a cohesive sales promotion experience for customers. This integration ensures consistency in messaging and enhances the overall customer experience.

In summary, Salesforce offers a comprehensive suite of tools and features that empower businesses to execute successful sales promotion campaigns. By leveraging Salesforce, businesses can track and manage campaigns effectively, create personalised promotions, automate processes, measure success, and integrate sales promotions with other marketing and sales channels.

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What the New Overtime Rule Means for Workers

One of the basic principles of the American workplace is that a hard day’s work deserves a fair day’s pay. Simply put, every worker’s time has value. A cornerstone of that promise is the  Fair Labor Standards Act ’s (FLSA) requirement that when most workers work more than 40 hours in a week, they get paid more. The  Department of Labor ’s new overtime regulation is restoring and extending this promise for millions more lower-paid salaried workers in the U.S.

Overtime protections have been a critical part of the FLSA since 1938 and were established to protect workers from exploitation and to benefit workers, their families and our communities. Strong overtime protections help build America’s middle class and ensure that workers are not overworked and underpaid.

Some workers are specifically exempt from the FLSA’s minimum wage and overtime protections, including bona fide executive, administrative or professional employees. This exemption, typically referred to as the “EAP” exemption, applies when: 

1. An employee is paid a salary,  

2. The salary is not less than a minimum salary threshold amount, and 

3. The employee primarily performs executive, administrative or professional duties.

While the department increased the minimum salary required for the EAP exemption from overtime pay every 5 to 9 years between 1938 and 1975, long periods between increases to the salary requirement after 1975 have caused an erosion of the real value of the salary threshold, lessening its effectiveness in helping to identify exempt EAP employees.

The department’s new overtime rule was developed based on almost 30 listening sessions across the country and the final rule was issued after reviewing over 33,000 written comments. We heard from a wide variety of members of the public who shared valuable insights to help us develop this Administration’s overtime rule, including from workers who told us: “I would love the opportunity to...be compensated for time worked beyond 40 hours, or alternately be given a raise,” and “I make around $40,000 a year and most week[s] work well over 40 hours (likely in the 45-50 range). This rule change would benefit me greatly and ensure that my time is paid for!” and “Please, I would love to be paid for the extra hours I work!”

The department’s final rule, which will go into effect on July 1, 2024, will increase the standard salary level that helps define and delimit which salaried workers are entitled to overtime pay protections under the FLSA. 

Starting July 1, most salaried workers who earn less than $844 per week will become eligible for overtime pay under the final rule. And on Jan. 1, 2025, most salaried workers who make less than $1,128 per week will become eligible for overtime pay. As these changes occur, job duties will continue to determine overtime exemption status for most salaried employees.

The rule will also increase the total annual compensation requirement for highly compensated employees (who are not entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA if certain requirements are met) from $107,432 per year to $132,964 per year on July 1, 2024, and then set it equal to $151,164 per year on Jan. 1, 2025.

Starting July 1, 2027, these earnings thresholds will be updated every three years so they keep pace with changes in worker salaries, ensuring that employers can adapt more easily because they’ll know when salary updates will happen and how they’ll be calculated.

The final rule will restore and extend the right to overtime pay to many salaried workers, including workers who historically were entitled to overtime pay under the FLSA because of their lower pay or the type of work they performed. 

We urge workers and employers to visit  our website to learn more about the final rule.

Jessica Looman is the administrator for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. Follow the Wage and Hour Division on Twitter at  @WHD_DOL  and  LinkedIn .  Editor's note: This blog was edited to correct a typo (changing "administrator" to "administrative.")

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The following outline provides a high-level overview of the FTC’s proposed final rule :

• Specifically, the final rule provides that it is an unfair method of competition—and therefore a violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act—for employers to enter into noncompetes with workers after the effective date.
• Fewer than 1% of workers are estimated to be senior executives under the final rule.
• Specifically, the final rule defines the term “senior executive” to refer to workers earning more than $151,164 annually who are in a “policy-making position.”
• Reduced health care costs: $74-$194 billion in reduced spending on physician services over the next decade.
• New business formation: 2.7% increase in the rate of new firm formation, resulting in over 8,500 additional new businesses created each year.
• This reflects an estimated increase of about 3,000 to 5,000 new patents in the first year noncompetes are banned, rising to about 30,000-53,000 in the tenth year.
• This represents an estimated increase of 11-19% annually over a ten-year period.
• The average worker’s earnings will rise an estimated extra $524 per year. 

The Federal Trade Commission develops policy initiatives on issues that affect competition, consumers, and the U.S. economy. The FTC will never demand money, make threats, tell you to transfer money, or promise you a prize. Follow the  FTC on social media , read  consumer alerts  and the  business blog , and  sign up to get the latest FTC news and alerts .

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