“Opening up a .ppt presentation at a first meeting. Can you imagine walking into your doctor's office with a little issue and the doctor sits down and shows you every procedure performed over the past week? It would be a nightmare, wouldn't it? ....And it is a nightmare when a new customer sees you open up your computer the minute you walk into their office. I dare you to walk into your next meeting with nothing in your hand but a business card. It will force you to get to know the person - as a person - rather than another "kill." I realize this is a numbers game and time is money, but one person who may not even buy from you may be the best referral you ever had, and every lead they bring you they've already pre-qualified.
Blog continued below...
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This story is based on an experience I had as a customer. I was a bride seeking a DJ and because the music was probably the most important part (outside of the vows) to my husband and me, we wanted to interview multiple DJs until we found a fit. We knew exactly what we wanted, and it was very easy to "weed out the weak" in a matter of minutes.
The first guy started walking through his canned presentation the minute we walked in and when we got to the Daddy Daughter Dance, he slowed the presentation down and discussed the details of how he makes this special. I told him there would be no daddy daughter dance. He started to argue saying this is a tradition and that every bride dances with her daddy and that daddies dream of this big day...now why would I rob my daddy of this moment......I was trying my best to be discreet about the issue...but my husband finally interrupted and said, "I'm sorry, but as much as we'd love to have this daddy daughter dance, he's not here to dance....do you understand now?" Strike One.
DJ #2 took us in to a video room and tried to sell us his video services. We were specifically looking for a DJ. I told him to please "skip this part of the presentation" and he said, "I CAN'T - I ALWAYS include the video portion. I can't continue unless I show this to you first." Two hours later (well it felt like two hours) we finally got to the DJ presentation. Strike Two.
The third guy invited us to his home and said, "Hey, let's not talk about DJ stuff yet, let's talk about you two.... How did you meet? When did he ask you? How many people do you expect? What are your tastes in music? How important is music to your wedding? What is your budget? What kind of sound quality do you expect? What kind of dinner/music would you like? What is the mood of the wedding-party, romantic, casual, formal, a dance?" Needless to say, this was our guy, at double the price....and it was worth every penny. Home Run!
See the difference? Sit down and get to know your client. Stop presenting and start getting in touch with your client. Take note of salespeople who sell to you and learn from them.
A lot of people say that they won't walk into an appointment without doing their "homework." Okay, review their website, their news articles and their LinkedIn website, but you don't know the Person or their Story behind the business/decision. Don't assume you already know someone when you walk in. If you can't "wing it" a little, then you can't survive in this business anymore. We need to have a back pocket full of open ended questions. If we can't solve their issue, then let's get someone in there who can. The customer will never forget you for that.
In your next "cold" appointment (maybe someone you're willing to make a mistake with), do whatever background that you can online and talking to people and such, but then walk in with no brochures, no capabilities statement and no PowerPoint. Walk in with just your business card and see what happens. I bet with a list of simple open-ended questions, you'll get to the bottom of the client's needs and you'll be able to pinpoint an exact solution.....and you may make a new friend. Now, pull out your sales material and highlight only the items of interest today.” (Copyright Eileen Kent.)
Well said Eileen. Thanks so much for allowing me to share your thoughts on my blog!
Eileen’s credentials:
Eileen Kent
Fedmarket.com
National Seminar Leader/Keynote
Author of "On the Sales Firing Line"
NOTES
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Amen! Death by powerpoint happens far too frequently . . . this reminds me of the Joey Asher approach too--his focus is on presenting in a style that connects with your audience. Thanks for sharing!
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