You got through the gatekeeper; you piqued the interest of the decision maker. The appointment to pitch your product or service has been scheduled. You are launching something new and you hope to convince current clients to come on board. Regardless of the situation, putting together an effective sales pitches,presentation is key. This is the moment to shine; and convince the audience that they need what you are offering, and more importantly, that they need it now. Here are some helpful tips for putting together a killer sales presentation that gets results.

Clear Structure

An effective sales presentation is one that has structure—jumping around not only makes it hard for the client to follow what you are saying, it is all too easy to forget to address key points or present important information.  You may also start rambling a bit, and lose the attention of your audience. Generally, you will do best with a presentation that touches on, and clearly illustrates, three key points. More than that, and your client will likely not remember everything. So, when putting together your presentation, think of the three most important things you want the client to know, and structure the presentation around them. You want an introduction, the body or meat of the presentation, a conclusion and the closing, which outlines the next steps to take.

Approach the Presentation Like a Lawyer

Lawyers do their magic by making an argument in support of their client’s position. This is how you should approach a sales presentation. You have to make a convincing argument for purchasing your products and services now. Start by telling the client what you plan to prove, provide the facts, figures and other supporting information, make a good summary and then ask them to act.

Third Party Examples

A sales presentation is all about convincing a client or potential client that you can provide the products and services that fulfill their needs, advance their business and solve their problems. Providing examples of how your company has helped others do those very same things is a powerful tool in your arsenal. But, choose examples carefully—they must be highly relevant, such as companies in a similar industry or ones that face the same challenges.

Conversation Not Monologue

Yes, you are presenter and the audience is there to learn all about your company and how it can help their business. But, do not approach a sales presentation like a monologue. This is not about rattling off a bunch of information while the client just sits there and listens. This is boring and they are less likely to remember what you said. Design your presentation so that it is more like a conversation. Plan for breaks in the presentation where you engage the audience directly, whether you solicit questions, ask for their input, check to see if they understand what has been presented to them

The Leave Behind

A leave-behind is a crucial part of the presentation; it is a summary of what you presented and contains all the vital information the client needs to make a decision. If you are providing a written report of what you presented, do not give it out until the end; if you give it out in the beginning, the audience may not listen to you as closely since they are reading the summary. The one exception is if you are presenting extremely detailed information and  a written summary will help them follow along better. You might also consider seeking out the services of a flash drive manufacturing company who can make customized USB drives pre-loaded with data.

Kelli Cooper is a freelance writer who blogs about all things business and sales.