How to Create a Sales Presentation That Converts

Increasingly sophisticated presentation tools are changing the face of product pitches. Enhanced capabilities, combined with new technology, have created both a challenge and an opportunity when it comes to setting your pitch apart from the crowd.

It is more important than ever that your sales collateral—including your pitch deck—reflect your brand sensibility. Your presentation should explain the market problem, offer clear evidence, and then confidently introduce your solution. And it should do that all with beautiful visuals, graphic element, and a clear message. Luckily, there have never been more tools at your disposal for achieving that goal.

Sitting through an excruciatingly boring presentation (60 slides, huge blocks of text, and 8 point font, anyone?) is a nearly universal experience. But it doesn’t have to be. We’ve developed an antidote. Here’s an clip of a presentation we created this week:

With bold visual representations of the most important information, it captures your audience’s attention without needing huge amount of text to get the point across. Using simple language and interactive graphics, you can create a presentation that not only wows viewers with visuals but also compels them to convert.

Why does it matter?

You might think it’s the information that makes the sale, not the presentation itself. While your message is ultimately the most important element, how you share that message will profoundly affect the way that people receive it.

The quality of your presentation is an ambassador of your brand. A sophisticated presentation communicates who you are before the pitch even starts. When you come to the meeting with a standout, visually beautiful, interactive presentation, your audience will start making assumptions about both your company and your product. Right away, you will appear advanced, modern and—most importantly—in control.

In the world of B2B technology, it pays to be forward-thinking. If you’re pitching a next-generation app but you’re still using stale presentation techniques to do it, something doesn’t add up. And potential investors and buyers will take note.

Here are some tips to take your presentation to the next level.

When it comes to text, less is more. 

For those of us who have experienced text-packed presentations, this first tip is a no-brainer. Your slides should complement your pitch, not duplicate it. You don’t want your audience to be so busy reading the screen behind you that they are not fully engaged with what you are saying. A redundant slideshow presentation splits your audience’s attention and ultimately compromises the effectiveness of your message. A good presentation will add emphasis to the points you are already making with compelling graphics and visual representations of important information.

If it can be represented visually, then it should be.

In a recent study, research participants were 23% more likely to rate a product more effective when they were shown information about it containing both text and a corresponding chart than those who saw the text only.

The graphs were simple to understand and didn’t contain any information that wasn’t provided by the text. Even so, simple visual representations of data instantly improved the audience’s ability to digest the information.

This is true of even the most basic charts and graphs. However, we recommend taking the time to tie in your graphics with your overall brand identity. By customizing these assets, you give your presentation a consistent, branded, beautiful look that goes a long way toward establishing credibility and building trust.

Let’s get interactive. 

The new generation of presentation tools offer options for transitions and animations. There are two categories of transitions: “slide” transitions and “build” transitions. Slide transitions refer to the transition between entire slides of layout; build transitions refer to the entrance/exit of individual elements on one particular slide. This is where you can start to have some fun.

Movement-based transitions, like the ones you see in the video above, have the ability to highlight certain points and draw visual connections in a way that plain text cannot.

In addition to the ability to accent certain points, these interactive presentation elements can be used to recreate the experience of actually using your technology. For companies with a product demo, these presentations can provide a totally controlled, simulated environment to ensure a flawless pitch every time—without worrying about the shoddy wifi connection in a hotel ballroom.

Customize it to your viewer.

If you are launching a tech product, chances are good that you’re pitching to a lot of different people—from investors to C-level decision-makers and even members of the press. Each of these individuals has different concerns, so you want to be able to adapt your message to fit their priorities.

Presentations offers the option to “hide” certain slides or sections. Pitching to an inventor who majors on the financial side of things? You can activate a deck of slides ready to provide the facts and figures he’s interested in.

Maybe you’re presenting to a prospective buyer who is really interested in how her employees can interact with the product dashboard? No problem. You can set up an in-depth product demo that walks her through the screens that will be most important for the end user. This customizability allows you to give a tailor-made presentation every time.

Employ these tips for your next pitch and we promise you’ll be rewarded with an attentive and engaged audience.

Need help creating a jaw-dropping sales presentation? Shoot us a message and we’d be happy to help.