Sales Effectiveness Articles

Research Shows…and Other Attempts at Credibility

Have you ever attended a course or read literature that uses the phrase “research shows?” I’m getting skeptical in my old age. “Research shows that…” is used more often than the referral to a higher authority, and usually is an indication of fiction.

“I believe that the most popular colour of lingerie is nude.” This may be true, but nothing in this statement says that it is true – belief is entirely dependant on the reader’s assessment of my integrity (dangerous at best).

“Research shows that the most popular colour of lingerie is nude.” This reads like it isn’t my opinion and because the word research is mentioned, it must be true. However, there is still no validation of the truth.
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Be Careful What You Ask For

A question can tell you more about the questioner than they realise: be careful what you ask!

I’m helping a bid team prepare for a major RFP and eventual presentation. It’s for outsourced global business services to one of the largest companies in the world, and the team has an opportunity to ask clarification questions tomorrow. Today our conversation focused on what information is needed to improve the RFP response–a good thought process only one side of the equation. Continue reading →

Imagination, Technology and a Captive Audience

Here’s an interesting article on the developments in meeting and conference presentation technology, and some tips for enhancing speeches. Gary Bowerman, a KL-based writer, asked for some insight for this feature article in MIX magazine, Asia Pacific’s leading corporate meetings, conferences and events magazine – please read on for some more details on our experiences in the marketplace and some of the new products/services m62 has developed.

Download AV Management Captive Audience Article

Incumbent vs New Supplier: Should Your Pitch Strategy be Different?

Several people have asked me lately which is more difficult – developing a wining pitch presentation for the incumbent already delivering the service, or for the competition attempting to unseat them. As with all things, there is both a short and a long answer.

In Short, No.

There should be an advantage to being in place already, but in reality there is no difference. We have completed 36 sales presentations over the last 2 years with a win rate of 78%.  The ones lost are split fairly evenly between incumbent and competition. So I would say that your chances of winning with us are at least 2 out of 3 regardless of whether you are rebidding for existing business or pitching for new work.
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Don’t Print Your PowerPoint Slides

Should you produce handouts for your presentation?

The process for my company’s newsletter allows me to edit and vet before it is published. It’s a process that never quite works and this month pretty much failed, hence I get the uncomfortable job of publicly disagreeing with the team.

Their position in the article “PowerPoint Handouts” (in my opinion) is fundamentally wrong. The short answer to the lead question isn’t that there are pros and cons to the use of handouts at all. It’s a resounding NO NO NO.
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