Sales Presentations–Contents: Some of the practical selling skills you will develop

non-verbal communication No Comments

Part One: EARLY PREPARATIONS



The crucial “must-do” before you invest any time in preparing to conduct a sales presentation or demonstration, or to invest time and effort in any other kind of proof source — including offering free trials or free samples.


Why and how to begin working out what both you and the prospect expect from this early: why it’s very smart to ask the Prospect to “invest” before you invest your time and effort.



“Decision influencers” are people who may not make the decisions, but they are key allies. How and when to work with them early-on.



Checklists on setting up the logistics of the presentation or demonstration.




A sales demonstration, presentation, or trial offer is a PROOF source, so what you cover and your key messages flow from what exactly needs to be proven in order to close the sale. The Prospect’s role in shaping the plan.



Mental strategies in preparing — not just what you’ll say, but where you’ll stand, where you’ll position the Prospect, how you’ll get the Prospect’s team actively involved in the meeting.



Preparing key visual aids, handouts, and other paperwork.



Part Two: DELIVERING THE SALES PRESENTATION OR SALES DEMONSTRATION.




In Section A we cover essential preliminaries to be handled on the day of the presentation or demonstration.



This section B guides your sales presentation or demonstration through the six key phases. These include early confirmations of purpose, conducting the body of the session, handling questions and objections, and closing for action.



Part Three: COMMUNICATING ON ALL LEVELS



As the old saying puts it, “Words alone are not enough.” The words you say, and the Prospect’s words — questions and objections — that you respond to are, of course, crucial.



But research indicates that only about 7% of the messages transmitted during fact-to-face communication are carried by the words that are said. Let me underline that: the words alone total only 7% of the whole communication



Which means that 93% of the messages back and forth during presentations and demonstrations are conveyed non-verbally . . . via indicators such as posture, hand gestures, movements, voice tone, eye focus and facial expressions, even how people choose to sit or stand, or how they sit in the chair and then draw back or move forward.



In the first section of this part of the book, the focus is on how to shape and discipline the subtle and non-verbal messages that you as the sales person sends TO the prospect and others.



The second section of this part focuses on interpreting and responding to the clues and messages coming FROM the Prospect and other decision influencers sitting in on the demonstration.



Some of these are signs of interest, some are signals of readiness to buy. Some may be warning signs that the Prospect is tuning out. We examine what these signals mean, as well as how to react to them in order to keep the selling momentum going forward.