There is a thin line between a good pitch and a pitch that ‘wins’. A pitch that blows away your clients needs to be truly memorable and must grab all their attention. In the first part of our two-part blog series, I’d like to highlight how to create a pitch that is bound to impress your audience. It is very essential for entrepreneurs to master the art of confident pitching as they will always have to be prepared to seize opportunities and ‘wow’ their clients.
1. Telling your story – and telling it well:
The key to a successful pitch is to find that point of convergence between a powerful narrative and favorable audience reactions. Establishing a compelling and logical narrative is half the task done. Telling a story testimonial to your capabilities is the best way to get your audience hooked to your pitch.
2. Giving your clients exactly what they want:
A great pitch convinces prospects about how your product/ service can fulfill a need and meet their objectives. Before forcing your own ideas on the prospect, it is important to understand their business and their needs thoroughly. Assessing your audience and their specific requirements puts you in a better position to develop a more holistic proposal. Moreover, it demonstrates to your potential clients, that you make well-informed decisions and recommendations. So feel free to simulate your audience’s reaction by asking relevant questions and obtaining their feedback throughout the content development phase.
Clients usually want to know why you are better than the competitors so it pays to carry out a self-SWOT analysis before you start your preparing the pitch. Try to address questions such as – “what can I offer that my peers cannot”. Nothing puts off an audience more than a condescending tone, clichés and jargon, so it’s better to keep your presentations succinct and substantive.
3. Creating engaging content:
While PowerPoint presentations have been the norm for pitches over the decades, yours can pack a punch if it is crafted in the right way. There is no dearth of marketing mantras to create a highly engaging and visually appealing pitch presentation, but we’d like to turn on the spotlight on a few key issues, that are often overlooked.
Break free from the passé style of bullet-points and experiment with unconventional formats such as a news flash or headline to grab attention successfully. Alternatively, incorporate visuals in your content and explore using infographics to illustrate your results in one slide, rather than excessive use of charts and graphs.
Video, as you may be aware, is another mode of communication that is gaining steam quickly. If you are a creative firm, you could also venture into other pastures such as Flash and drive home your pitch through a well-produced video.
Often ‘less is more’, when you’re trying to deliver your idea. Wouldn’t it be great if your client was not distracted by unnecessary transitions and clip arts, and focus on your unique business proposition instead? Don’t shy away from letting images do the talking. Great presenters often resort to a single, relevant image on a slide, to tell the story of their brand. In fact, it may be a good idea to move to a blank slide when you’re making your most important point, so that all the attention is focused on you.
The opportunities are limitless and the power of using them to your advantage lies with you. Creating a winning pitch is definitely not rocket science – all you need is great conviction and great content. Stay tuned to the sequel to this post to learn quick and easy techniques to deliver your persuasive pitch.
Useful reading:
How To Make A Pitch Deck More Awesome
Three simple, easy to use, pitch content and structure tools
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