Sales Presentations: Think 'Problem Solving'

How do you describe the aggravation, frustration or anxiety of a problem on a slide? You can't. You could write a few bullets that address the pain in one dimension; or you could create a graphic that 'explains' the problem in two dimensions--but you cannot give the full, surround-sound description of the day-to-day struggle through a non-living medium like an electronic screen.

Prospective customers or clients must believe that you get their pain in order for you to turn them into buyers. Only through your spoken language in combination with your tone and body movement can you truly communicate that you 'get it.' And with these physical tools you can go on to offer a three-dimensional vision of the results following the use of your solution.

Leave your laptop out of the room when you've been invited to do a presentation to a prospect (or to up sell to a current customer). The word 'presentation' has unfortunately become nearly synonymous with the phrase 'slide deck.'

• Deliver your points through living stories
• Tell the stories so it's clear that the prospect/buyer is the hero of the story
• Show them the future after they've used what they bought from you

Features and benefits must be relegated to print or to a website. Real life, post-problem, is what your live presentation is all about. You'll differentiate yourself from every competitor and create that elusive but most desirable state--connection with the audience. "DO leave home without it!"

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