Persuasive Selling - Planning Your Message

Delivering effective sales presentations requires careful planning. A sales message must be concise and to the point. Since prospects are bombarded with information, it must also be hard-hitting. Focus and efficiency are the rules of thumb in selling.

Therefore, when you plan a sales presentation, it must be: unique, directed to a specific audience, delivered in the most efficient manner and cause the prospects to selectively remember your value proposition from among many alternatives. There are some simple methods you can use to help your sales message stand out and be more memorable.

First, outline your presentation. Start with how you will open and close. Write out, in detail, specifically what you will say to get the prospects’ attention. Also, draft a strong closing statement. People tend to remember greater amounts of information at the beginning and end of a message. So make sure that you deliver hard-hitting first and last impressions.

Narrow down the main points of the presentation into simple, easy to remember “bytes”. The more complicated you make the middle, the less the listeners remember. Since this a time when their attention span lags, find ways to emphasize major points by using stories, props, proofs, demonstrations, role-plays and interaction. Remember the “hear, see, do” rule. People remember: 20% of what they hear, 50% of what they hear and see, and 90% of what they hear, see and do. So, if you want your prospects to remember what you tell them, try and present in all three ways.

Stories are a great way to reinforce major points. Stories paint pictures, which are easy to remember. “Jack and Jill went up the hill” create a picture in your mind of two people, a setting and an action. It’s instantaneous, requires almost no conscious thought on the part of the listener, and yet is easy to remember.

Get the picture?

In addition to stating your key points simply, you should also issue a call for action. The key points are what you want the audience to remember; the call for action tells them what you want them to do. Be specific. If you want them to buy something, ask them to buy it. If you want them to consider some other type of action, tell them exactly what it is they are supposed to do. Don’t expect them to figure it out on their own. Persuasion is the art of getting others to think and do what you want, at a time you specify, and causing them to like it.

Solicit positive feedback about your message from prospects. This allows them to do two things: articulate their own positive feelings and, if there is more than one, have an influence on others. Use simple questions like, “What do you see as the advantages of using these products and services?" This is the epitome of the hear, see and do principle.

The use of collateral material can enhance your presentation. It is most effective if it is pertinent to what you are saying and distributed at an appropriate time. It doesn’t matter whether you hand information out at the beginning, middle or end, as long as it is at the same time you will be referring to it. The purpose of collateral is to reinforce your message, so get the maximum mileage out of it by combining prospects’ visual experience with verbal reinforcement.

Finally, check in with your prospects once in a while. Watch for signs of distraction or discomfort. Make sure that they remain attentive. Encourage interaction and take questions as they come. Practice active listening. Engage the prospects rather than talking at them.

Be good to your prospects and they’ll be good to you.