Four reasons sales pitches crash and burn

Ever had a sales presentation that you thought went great? You left the room feeling like a rock star, confident that you’d soon have a sale. Within a few days or weeks, they fell off your grid, wouldn’t take your calls, and basically disappeared without even an explanation. All too often seemingly productive sales presentations end up going nowhere fast. Why? Here are four reasons sales pitches crash and burn just after take-off:

1. You pitched to the wrong people. It’s all about who has buying authority. Do your homework ahead of your meeting and make sure that the decision-makers will be listening to what you have to say.
2. You didn’t address specific, personal needs. To captivate prospects enough to get them to buy, you better be finding out how you can help them. Without this information, you have no ability to offer them an improvement of their current situation. This translates into them having no reason to return your call.
3. You didn’t communicate value. You could have the flashiest, most innovative product or service on the market, but if you’re not explaining why they need to have it, you might as well pack up and go home.
4. You didn’t ask enough questions. Besides determining their specific needs, you still need to find out much more before you have the sale. What’s their timeline? How best to follow up? What else can you do to help them?

Do you have ideas to share with other advisors? E-mail them to us at [email protected].

Sign up for The Lead and get a new tip in your inbox every day!