I am a sales nerd, and compelling performance really fires me up.
Attended the NEHRA conference in Dedham, MA last week and was treated to an amazing presentation. Considering that it took place during the last session of the day makes it all the more remarkable. As you can tell from recent posts I am all about timing in selling interactions – and yes, giving a presentation, even when it is not overtly selling, is selling!
Kris’ presentation on social media was timely, thought-provoking and note-worthy. Now, while the material was interesting the phenomenal aspect of the presentation for me was the way Kris executed it.
Kris was part of a two-person team presenting on the subject; she waited patiently to the side of the podium as her colleague spoke. This alone can be a nerve-racking experience…waiting for your opportunity, running through your presentation in your mind…worrying that you’re forgetting something…!
Twenty minutes into the session Kris was introduced to the audience. Sharply dressed and confident in demeanor, she quickly moved from behind the relative “safety” of the podium and addressed the audience. I am extremely interested in what a presenter does in the first two minutes of her presentation – a critical time period to hook your audience; or, put them to sleep.
Well, Kris nailed this critical 120 seconds of every sales call wonderfully. Of note: Body language including eye contact, placement of arms (forward), soft hand motions (a lot like the professional baseball player smoothly fielding the groundball) and stance (not cowering like she didn’t want to be up there; rather that she just knew her information would be compelling to us…). So the first two minutes went well, but could she keep it up? I was inwardly cheering her on. I wanted her to succeed.
And, did she ever!
The pace, energy and fluidity of the first two minutes continued throughout the entire presentation. At approximately the 15 minute mark, I looked down at my notes; I had written four words: Energy / Projection / Knowledge / Enthusiasm, as I wanted to capture the essence of this tour-de-force. She stayed positioned in front of the podium the entire time; with no reference to notes, instead working masterfully off the slides being projected on the screen.
After she finished, I eagerly approached her because this is the kind of stuff I love. I wanted to analyze not the information she presented on, but rather her presentation technique. I asked her what she did to prepare – over-and-above being an expert in her field, of course. In my consultancy I stress the importance of preparation, execution and debrief. So I was particularly interested to find out how she prepared for such a high level of performance. In response to my saying, you must have role-played and rehearsed this a couple of times, she replied “No, not a couple of times; ten times.”
All the hard work paid off and resulted in a masterful performance for her…and a great learning experience for all of us. Way to go Kris!
Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
The Key to Successful Presenting: Preparation
Monday, May 24th, 2010To Close the Sale – Your Sales Team Must Be On Their Best Behavior
Friday, January 15th, 2010I can’t emphasize how important it is for salespeople to be on their best behavior. As obvious as that sounds, I’ve seen deals lost after a great meeting because the salespeople are spitting in the parking lot. Don’t leave the customer with a bad impression or you’ll lose the sale. In this video, I talk about how my sales team lost a big contract after a fantastic meeting with the client. We had nailed it, and the key internal champion of the organization pulled me aside afterward and said, “Peter that was really good. We want to move ahead to contract and implementation. We’re going with you.” Watch the video to find out what went wrong!
The Power of First Impressions: The Most Important 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call
Tuesday, January 12th, 2010I talk about “The Golden 120 Seconds of Every Sales Call,” yet there are several junctures during a sales call or meeting that can be considered “the golden 120 seconds.” And none of those junctures is more important than the first 120 seconds of the sales call.
We all know how important first impressions are in a new relationship or situation. They can truly make a difference in how the relationship proceeds and the situation unfolds. But there is probably no instance in which making a first impression is more important than a sales call. A poor first impression will have you trying to dig your way out of a hole, and you probably won’t sell anything — no matter what you’re selling.
I know this fact may be intimidating! The good news is you have complete control of the situation and through preparation, practice and confidence building, you can be sure you are putting only your best foot forward and making an impression that will get you off to a positive start with the prospect.
Preparation involves a number of steps — the most important of which is creating a framework of what you’re going to say and how you’re going to say it during those first 120 seconds. Preparation involves both mental and tactical preparation and should include the following elements:
• Researching the prospect beforehand;
• Determining objectives for the meeting;
• Knowing who will be at the meeting;
• Developing the meeting collaterals; and
• Setting the agenda and forwarding it to your prospect before the meeting.
With these elements in place — as well as the elements of body language discussed in my December 30th blog post — you can produce a flawlessly-executed opening during the all-important first 120 seconds of your sales meeting. Those two minutes will be the springboard for the rest of your meeting, so make sure you have water in the pool before you jump in. Because how you present yourself will not only set the tone for the meeting, but will make or break your selling opportunity.
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