Black Sales Journal

The presentation gives you the opportunity that you need to secure prospects and customers.  The presentation can envelop customers and clients and hold them firmly while you show value and solutions. The most important aspect of this is your recognition of who this presentation is for…. the attendee. Let’s take a look at some ways that you can fulfill your etiquette responsibilities.  Whether you have a solid presentation or not, everyone notices the things you do incorrectly  from an etiquette standpoint.

An ‘I’ Problem

Years ago I was in a presentation for financial products as a potential customer. The seminar/sales presentation was entitled “Retirement Moves You Should Make Now! It took place at a local hotel, and there were three speakers.  Each of them was noted as an expert in the field of retirement products, strategies, and investments. The three of them spoke for approximately 15 minutes each, and it was evident to me that they were all experts in their subject matter as they had been billed.  I quickly learned that two of them were ‘experts’ on themselves and felt it necessary to tell us over and over.  The other was a great speaker. It got a little sickening hearing them talk about all of the people that they ‘saved’ and how they were preeminent and what others did that could not compare.

“I did this…” and “I did that…” makes for a difficult presentation.  How long can you listen to it?  There are some rules and we will cover them later, but for the preservation of good audiences out there, you can talk about situations and examples without droning on incessantly with the word “I’!

They also did some other rather annoying things.  There were presentation slides with little wording and  numerous presentations featuring cartoons. One of the presenters dined on a piece of hard candy during his whole talk and could not keep it quietly in his mouth. I considered this actual presentation rude and a waste of time given the fact that I was supposed to be there to hear how their products and strategies could help me be able to have a happy and fulfilling retirement. What did they do wrong?  Based on the title of the seminar (and the fact that I understood that it was sales related.  The problem lies in that I just got a basic ‘bait and switch’.  The did not tell me how I could retire well, unless the answer to that is just to turn it all over to their operation.

What Are the Rules?

Here are some things that I am going to suggest that will help you as simple guide to the most vexing etiquette issues:

• Write or display your name prominently
• Establish eye contact
• Be Prepared
• Never waste a customer’s time
• Dress “up” at least one level
• Speak clearly and with intent
• Do not read slides or copy to your audience
• Get rid of the ‘uhs’, ‘ums’, and ‘you knows’
• No candy or gum
• Mind your time
• Take questions with a smile

Above all, remember that the presentation is not for you, but for the audience.  The quickest way to lose the audience is to forget this important point.

Write your name prominently – Always include contact information.  Some people are hesitant to ask questions as they forget the name of the presenter or do not know how to contact him/her. If you have a difficult to pronounce name, spell it phonetically to help them get it right.

Establish eye contact – Then you will want to keep it.  If you are going to read or focus on your slides then send it to everyone in an email.

Be Prepared - Prepare and practice, then make sure that you have prepared for the presentation and the things that go wrong such as overhead projector bulbs, media that does not work, and compatibility issues with others equipment.  Your audience deserves better.  Have paper copies ready.

Never waste a customer’s or prospect’s time – Avoid useless material, cartoons, and novelties.  Realize that the fewest slides and the most meaningful content is what you need, and what your customers deserve.

Dress ‘Up” a level – Presenters should be properly dressed, which means that they should be dressed that when every one else is casual, a tie should be the mode of dress.  Your appearance is important.

Speak clearly – No one is going to ask you more than once to repeat yourself.  They will just tune you out and begin to doodle.  Speak clearly and with intent for all to hear.

Do not read slides - The rudest action of all is to read slides or text to your audience. You might as well send the content to them and let them be read it for themselves.

Get rid of the ‘Ums’, ‘Ahs’, ‘like’, and ‘you knows’- Nothing, I repeat nothing drives an audience mad like the chorus of these three phrases.

Lose the candy or gum – This one is easily self -explanatory.

Manage Your Time – Proper breaks and adherence to the schedule is in your audience best interest, and remember, “It is all about the audience”.  If you need to, assign someone in the front row to help you manage time.

Always leave time for questions – Did I forget to advise that, “It is all about the audience?” Advise them of the format for questions and honor it. Leave ample time for questions.

Have Your ‘I’s’ Checked

As I spoke of in the practical example, the last thing you want to have is an “I” problem.  That is of course when you start talking about yourself and don’t know when to stop.  If you are selling a product or service it cannot be about you.  You will alienate many, and not sell anything. Tell your qualifications and credentials quickly, and then deal with what you are there to do.  Keep it short, and give a link to a bio if they want to get assurance that you are the real deal.

Remember, the best presenter is the one who gives the audience what they need.

Be the best.

Your comments are welcome. Your comments are welcome.  You can reach me at Michael.Parker@BlackSalesJournal.com.

Any sales professional looking for that new sales position recognizes that their success is based on a process.  The sales process includes your understanding that each sales professional is different, and each product is different.  The most important part of that is realizing that each sales professional needs to be able to determine and articulate what gives him/her success based on their own level of skill.

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In Black Sales Journal 2/28, How Many Prospects Do You Really Need we discussed knowing your metrics.  This was a wake-up call to some who do not necessarily agree with the sale process fundamentals.  I assure you those fundamentals exist, and the variable for each sales professional is based on individual effectiveness, product, and industry.

The most important item to know is that you need to be able to articulate the basis of your own success.  This is powerful in an interview, and you need to be able to do it cogently and clearly.  You will find, that if it is well rehearsed and documented, it will put you to the front of the line in getting that new sales position.

You Are the Expert on You

You have heard me cite the phrase “You are the expert on you!” as it is obvious that you should be able to define yourself better than anyone else.  Nowhere is it more important than in the interview process.  Knowing your strengths and weaknesses is one thing, and your benefit will potentially be that you may be able to sell someone on them and get past first base.

Knowing your process, and being proficient at articulating it can be the shot that you need to impress that hiring manager.  What is more important, two things can happen on that next interview:

1. You could be asked to define your sales process
2. You could be asked to define why you are successful

Either way, you will need to be good at explaining it, yet not glib or slippery.  You will want to show that you are successful because you do the things that make you successful intentionally, consistently, and systematically.  You will want to show that your routine is solid, and not responding to what happens on a particular day.  Your respect for the law of large numbers and volume will come through in your characterization of your daily effort.

You can give the best presentation of yourself possible, as well as the best display of your mastery of your own “process” by practicing it in the mirror and with a caring listener.  Someone who cares enough to listen to you drone on and on until you have mastery of this important piece.

A Practical Example

The interview would lead to this statement and comment:

“Jerry, from what we can see your sales results are admirable, and enviable in terms of your percentage of goal attainment, and your ability to do this year after year.  Will you share with us what makes you successful?”

Jerry responds “Bob, I would attribute the consistency of my success to the regimen that I hold myself to.  In addition to that I wholly subscribe to the law of large numbers and their effect on prospecting and quoting.  I measure my success against my continuous activities and results and adjust my prospecting efforts based on my call (prospecting) to appointment ratio, my appointment to quote ratio, and my sold to quote ratio.  I track them and utilize them in determining my effectiveness and my level of future activity.”

Jerry expands:“I make 75 prospecting calls a week religiously by phone, and 20 in person cold calls per week.  I believe that if I do this, I give myself a realistic chance of increased success and earnings.   I reach all hard to get prospects by phone after hours, which means the hours of 5:00 to 6:30P, as I have found that to be a time when the “gatekeeper” is not on duty, and the decision maker has to answer the phone on their own.”

Then Jerry pulls it together: “What I do works for me and I believe in it.  My results are in the portfolio that I just handed to you.”

Why Does It Work?

Every sales manager wants you to have a system that works.  It makes management easier.  Your sales statistics are yours, and others have their own.  Believe me, if you cite you discuss your process like I am suggesting, and you are able to back up your claims, you will be a primary candidate.

When I was a sales manager, I knew my role was to get the most out of every sales candidate.  A candidate with the basics well in hand was one who would be ready for advanced sales techniques, as opposed to me pressing him or her for the rudiments.  Knowing your plan is more than rudimentary though; it is the start of being the true professional.

We welcome your comments. You can reach me at Michael.Parker@BlackSalesJournal.com.