The Six Deadly Mistake of a Sales Presentation

1. Not being prepared. - Be on time and dressed appropriately. Dress just above the level your client has. Read any information you may have on them just before you enter the appointment. This will make you look like you have an incredible memory! They will be impressed! Uptime - Any time you are in a presentation or on the phone talking to your client. Downtime - The time you spend on the road and doing paperwork or customer service work. Each sale has a certain value to it in total commissions. You can't afford to miss any of them due to being unprepared or looking unprofessional. A Professional athlete practices 10 times as much as he actually plays in a real game. You need to do the same if you want successful results.

2. Presenting without giving your prospect the opportunity to talk and ask questions. Make them feel comfortable enough to ask you questions during the presentation. Your presentation should be more of a two-way communication than a monologue. Be a consultant, not a sales person. Be thinking of what their problems or concerns are and how you can resolve them, not how you are going to make the sale (or worse yet, counting commissions!). Ask more open-ended questions, and then really listen to the answers! Video or cassette tape your presentation and phone calls if you can. This will allow you to see yourself in the eyes of the client. You will learn more by watching yourself than with all the constructive comments that anyone can give you. Don't be too harsh on yourself. Just learn and strive to get better. Don't blast the prospect with all of your knowledge. You will bore them and they will lose interest. It is much better to ask them their concerns and then shut up and listen. It's OK to take notes. They will view you more as a consultant than a sales person if you do. If you listen, people will tell you their greatest concerns in descending order. Address them in reverse, with the least first and ending in a climax of their greatest concern. Then ask for their business. Don't be surprised if you get it. You've earned it!

3. Ask for the sale with conviction! You have to believe that you have done a great job determining their needs, answering their questions, and informing them of your product's features, and how it will benefit them.

4. Never apologize for shortcomings of yourself or product. You have to exude confidence in yourself, your product, and your company. If you don't believe in it, then why should they?

5. Never interrupt a prospect, or cut their sentence off at the end. Pause 2 seconds at the end to think about it. Then carefully answer. Do this even if you have heard the question before a hundred times, and are already prepared with your answer. This will do a number of things for you. First, it will let them know that you are listening to them. People love to be respected by having others care enough to hear what they are saying. Second, it will give you time to formulate your thoughts and words to answer precisely, confidently, and professionally. Lastly, it will tell them that it was a good question and that you really thought it through before you gave your answer. As soon as prospect agrees on a point, it becomes fact for them. Reflect their statements back to them to get agreement. You will never convince someone of something that they either don't understand or have a misconception of.

6. Rambling on and on with your presentation, and not being aware of what the prospect is not telling you. Always be aware of your customer's body language and eye contact. Look them in the eye when you talk, and when they talk to you. Smile and nod when it's appropriate. Don't talk too loud, too soft, too fast or try to use college words to a simple client. Always mirror the prospect's body language, speech, rhythm, rate, and volume. Do this subtly. Remember, a tactic known is a tactic blown! If you are able to do this effectively, you will see that your rapport will grow very quickly and deeply. They will feel that you just "click".

Suggestions for success.

Create a sense of urgency by using present tense terms. Use the word "Now," 5-6 times in your presentation. Use a present tense to all benefits to make the prospect feel they are already on the plan. If they can picture themselves already owning and using the product, then it is only a formality to sign them up.

Your brain can't spell. It only hears the words (phonics) and tries to make sense of them in the context that they are used. Buy Now you may realize how the benefits of our product will help you...

You are responsible for both the sending and receiving all of the communications in the presentation. If your client doesn't understand, it is your responsibility to ensure that you explain it another way. Sometimes a story or an example will explain a concept the best.

A smile and a simple head nod will make the prospect nod back. When you are making an important point, look directly in their eyes, smile and gently nod your head. You will be amazed that they will most often do the exact same thing back to you. This works especially well when you ask them a "yes" confirming question.

Act as if it was already done. Act as if the sale is already in the bag. Program your mind to believe that your success is inevitable, you can't fail. Act as if you don't need the sale or the money. The pressure you put on yourself will exude out into your presentation, and negatively affect your prospect in pressure. The harder you push, the more they will push back.

I have written many other articles on sales and the art of salesmanship. Please read, learn, enjoy and succeed!

Scott Rowen is an accomplished insurance professional with 18 years business insurance experience. He has MBAs in Business Insurance and Finance, and is a highly requested speaker at many professional venues across the US. He's currently the CFO of a very successful, award winning errors and omissions insurance company. http://www.EandOInsuranceofAmerica.com