SALES TIP #3
During one of Jimmy Fallon’s 2020 “At Home” episodes, he and his Late Night band sang “Don’t Stand To Close to Me” with Sting. A fitting song during social distancing! The television screen of 3x4 squares showed 12 musicians, each in their own homes with makeshift instruments, coming together to deliver an uplifting and laugh-out-loud performance.
My next-door neighbor and his friend play competitive bridge. During the pandemic, they had to transition from playing together at a table to playing remotely. They now compete from their respective homes against other separated teams.
In each of these cases, these ‘experts’ — like you — had to figure out how to work seamlessly with their remote partners. They had to prepare differently. They had to adjust and refine their individual roles to fit the changing environment. And they had to master the technology.
The one thing they all had in common? They had to find new ways to practice in order to deliver a great performance.
Practice matters — in bridge, in music, and in presenting to your clients. It mattered before social distancing. And now it matters even more.
Let’s face it, practicing is not easy
- There are other more pressing things to do.
- You don’t like to practice.
- It’s uncomfortable to get feedback from your peers.
- You have presented this so many times before, you’ll just do what you’ve always done.
- You’re thinking a virtual meeting is easier. You can use your notes and your client won’t know any better. But here’s the reality, as good as you think you are, they will know you are using notes. This is not the impression you want to make.
While not easy, practicing is critical
- You are in uncharted waters when presenting virtually relative to the old world. It requires a whole new skill set that will take a long time for you to master.
- You have to know your story, use your slides effectively, work as a team, and manage the technology all at the same time.
- Your clients are judging you by a different set of standards now. They can tell who is prepared and who is not. They are looking for partners who seem to be adapting with ease to the digital world.
Here are tips to get you started
1. Block out time the week before the presentation
- Decide on your 3 key messages specific to this client that align your solutions with their challenges.
- Create the right visuals to support that story. Keep them simple.
- Choose the right team members to attend the client meeting.
- Define clear roles, who is doing which part and how long you each person will have to speak.
- Brief the team on the client, their role in the meeting, and what messages they each must cover.
2. Block out time the day before the presentation with the full team
- Review the final pitch book.
- Practice as a team, in full character with the technology you plan to use.
- Time yourselves to be sure you are leaving ample time for the client to ask questions and for you to engage in conversation.
- Decide how you will manage your handoffs from one team member to the next.
- Practice answers to questions you anticipate.
While this assumes just one rehearsal in character, the reality is that the more you practice as a team and as an individual, the better your chances of success.
Or as Arnold Palmer once said, “It’s funny. The harder I practice, the luckier I get.”