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When your firm has the opportunity to make a presentation on some new business, it may be tempting to think it’s in the bag because of your skills and experience. But, while your ability and related experience can get you on that short list, it’s the power of your team’s presentation that may win or lose you the business. You have a double challenge. You need to deliver a comprehensive and compelling team presentation. And the other and often bigger challenge is the effectiveness of your “people skills.” Clients who are in search of a vendor don’t just want someone who can do the job. They’re looking for trustworthiness, commitment and chemistry with the project team. Despite the fact that a vendor search may be based on a rational, objective decision-making process, the bottom line is clients are going to select people they like. No matter how well you meet their criteria, if they don’t like you, it won’t matter. So rapport building is an important strategy in the team presentation.

Here are six strategies to consider in your rapport building to enhance your likability:

1. UNDERSTANDING. How well do you understand not only the client’s business and project needs, but their constraints, their challenges, their difficulties? Be sure to focus on your knowledge and understanding of the client’s needs, not just on your strengths and assets. 

2. ATTITUDE. Having a confident, can-do attitude is extremely appealing. You exhibit confidence when you answer questions knowledgeably, speak positively — “we can take care of that” — and don’t put yourself down and sell yourself short. Clients want to work with pleasant, positive people. The dark side of this coin is “arrogance.” Projecting a sense of “fait accompli,” or worse, criticizing or putting down the competition, could spell a death knell. You want to project a sense that you want the business and can do the job, not that no one else could do it… 

3. LISTENING. Good listening skills are potent. Remember to use “active listening,” the three-step technique of using your EAR — Engage the speaker, Actually hear what’s being said, and Respond appropriately — to engage others and let them know you’ve both heard and understood them. When your prospect talks about their issues, problems, and objectives, your ability to show you’ve heard and understood has immeasurable impact. 

4. NONVERBALS. It doesn’t matter if you feel pleased and proud to be there. What matters is if you look pleased and proud. If you’re leaning back in the chair, with your arms crossed and a bored or distracted look on your face, that’s what the client will believe you feel. So watch your body language — make sure it’s open, relaxed, and interested. Lean forward when someone speaks to you, make eye communication with every member on the team, put some energy in your comments. Show your pleasure at this opportunity. Smile easily, have enthusiasm for the project. 

5. INTEREST. Without a doubt, showing interest in others is one of the most powerful likeability factors. Make sure that the focus of your presentation is not entirely on you and what you offer. While you certainly want to communicate your positive points, keep in mind that everyone else is doing that, too. What will impress the client and be more memorable is how much interest you took in them-as individual members and as a company. This starts well before that final presentation, of course. You want to take every opportunity to meet with the decision-makers beforehand and show genuine interest in their business and their projects. Keep in mind that the client isn’t interested in how tough or difficult it will be for you to pull this off. But they’ll be sincerely impressed if you’re interested in their challenges-and can offer ways to solve their dilemmas. It’s a fact of basic human relations that we’re drawn to people who are interested in us. 

6. TEAM COHESIVENESS. Any time someone’s ego takes over on a team, it’s usually disastrous. You’re there as a team because the prospect wants to see a representative sampling of your expertise and skills and wants a feel for the chemistry between your group and theirs. When one person tries to hog the spotlight or insists on correcting or contradicting team members when they say something wrong, that person — no matter how right or bright — will doom the team to failure. 

People do business with those they like. So exhibit these traits to show your commitment to a project and you’ll increase your “win” factor.

Most people don’t like to stand up in front of an audience to give a talk or presentation. Some are even uncomfortable presenting their information in business meetings, especially in front of senior executives. Stage fright is the number one obstacle in giving a presentation. People feel nervous, get “butterflies” in their stomach, and feel like they can’t remember what to say. But take heart, if you have stage fright you are in the majority.

The most important thing you can do is to simply acknowledge that giving a presentation is an uncomfortable task for you. Notice I didn’t say a weakness; it’s simply an area where you need some help in developing the skills that give you the confidence to talk before a group. The uneasiness you feel just before you talk is really just adrenaline, a natural “energy boost”! Any top athlete or performer has this same adrenaline energy rush that helps them to perform their best. The butterflies you feel in the pit of your stomach are “a good thing”.

The first step in improving your presentation skills is to stop thinking of it as a negative task or experience. Master these soft skills and all you’ll have to fear is fear itself:

• Organize the presentation properly – There are three clear-cut parts to any presentation. The introduction, the main body and the conclusion. Make sure you have all three or your presentation will not be cohesive.
• Introduction should tell the purpose – It’s important to let the audience know at the start and during the introduction the reason for the talk. Also make sure you grab their attention in the beginning. Start with a related story, quote an expert or statistic, or ask a question, such as “Did you know that Twitter already has 86% of the internet Social Media market? ”
• Main body – There should only be three to five main points. That’s about as much as the audience can absorb and process. Back up each of the points with stories, pictures, facts or details.
• Conclusion – Make sure the close is effective. Briefly recap the main points and end on a positive note or call to action. Following the conclusion, take questions if appropriate. Always repeat the question before you give your answer.
• Practice – “Practice makes perfect”, so take the time to practice the presentation out loud and in front of a mirror. The more times you practice, the more comfortable and confident you will be with the delivery of the material.
• Physical Considerations – Dress appropriately for the audience you are addressing. Posture is key. Stand with your legs 4-6 inches apart to help with weight distribution and make sure to keep your shoulders back. Watch your hand gestures. Vary the volume, rate and pitch of your voice. Make eye contact with the audience. Never point a finger at the audience; use an open hand, palm up instead.
• Other Things – Be careful with humor. Arrive early to check room set-up and audio visual equipment. Keep Power Point slides simple – use a title and 3 bullet points per slide and go easy with the graphics.

Remember, when you act well, you do well.

Unless you have done a good job selling value throughout the buying process, it is unlikely that even a great sales presentation will turn the tide. However, even if you have done a superb job selling value, a bad presentation at the end might be enough to lose a deal you could have won.

There are some basic techniques that can minimize that misfortune from occurring:

• Be ruthless about clarity. Sales presentations must be compelling, engaging, or memorable.
• Add emphasis to key points. Present targeted success stories and examples.
• Weigh the importance of each portion. Sometimes you need to triage on the fly.
• Customize the sales presentation. There are no generic customers hence there are no winning generic presentations.

But there is a fifth area where the game is often won and lost and it’s one we find account executives often spend less than sufficient planning time – getting the Q&A session right.

The Q&A session is a full-fledged part of any sales presentation. And, it requires the same attention to preparation as the rest of the presentation.

Some tips:

• Most questions can be anticipated. This means that salespeople can plan and rehearse answers. It is not only what you say, but also how you say and what you don’t say that makes the difference.
• If you don’t know the answer, don’t fake it. The best approach is some variation of “I don’t know but I’ll find out.” One of these pops up in almost every presentation.
• Focus on information that is fact-based vs. personal opinion. If it is a fact based point you need to make sure that the backup information is in a “hip pocket.”
• Don’t back away from a challenging or confrontational question. But – never argue. Rather, begin your response by asking a simple question that helps you to better understand the concern – like “Could you just tell me a little bit more about that?” It is often the case that you don’t quite understand the challenge or the reason behind it, hence without a more information it is difficult to come up with a compelling answer. Plus, this approach gives you a little more time to think.
• Follow the 6-second rule. Don’t panic if you don’t immediately get a question. Wait 6 seconds – it might seem like an eternity but it’s very like one will pop up. If you actually don’t get any, considering proposing a question yourself – “In similar situations we often find the client will ask about the onsite support that is an important question because…”

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©2013 Sales Momentum® LLC