How I screwed up a sales pitch

[Andy Black]

How I screwed up a sales pitch


We're all in sales one way or another.

When you're convincing your kids to brush their teeth, you're selling.

When you're trying to go to the Italian when everyone wants to go to the Chinese, you're selling.

When you're trying to inspire someone to take action, you're selling (themselves on themselves!).




When you're trying to help a business owner generate more leads, sales, and revenue by hiring you as an AdWords consultant, you're selling.

I made some school boy errors in this particular sales pitch, and in this video I do the post-mortem so you can learn from my mistakes.

EDIT:

When you're trying to get someone to click on your subject line, you're selling.

When you're trying to get someone to watch your video, you're selling.

When you're trying to get yourself to do another video, you're selling.

See? We're always selling!

 

[Salvador8907]

We're all in sales one way or another.

When you're convincing your kids to brush their teeth, you're selling.

When you're trying to go to the Italian when everyone wants to go to the Chinese, you're selling.

When you're trying to inspire someone to take action, you're selling (themselves on themselves!).




When you're trying to help a business owner generate more leads, sales, and revenue by hiring you as an AdWords consultant, you're selling.

I made some school boy errors in this particular sales pitch, and in this video I do the post-mortem so you can learn from my mistakes.

EDIT:

When you're trying to get someone to click on your subject line, you're selling.

When you're trying to get someone to watch your video, you're selling.

When you're trying to get yourself to do another video, you're selling.

See? We're always bleeding selling!

haha Ive been in that situation when i would go door to door getting leads for a solar company, were they ask something and I go off into a pitch. Oh its embarrassing haha, I would be in bed then think "oh what a dope I was, that's not the information he was asking!"
Keep up the videos Andy!

 

[Ubermensch]

We're all in sales one way or another.

When you're convincing your kids to brush their teeth, you're selling.

When you're trying to go to the Italian when everyone wants to go to the Chinese, you're selling.

When you're trying to inspire someone to take action, you're selling (themselves on themselves!).




When you're trying to help a business owner generate more leads, sales, and revenue by hiring you as an AdWords consultant, you're selling.

I made some school boy errors in this particular sales pitch, and in this video I do the post-mortem so you can learn from my mistakes.

EDIT:

When you're trying to get someone to click on your subject line, you're selling.

When you're trying to get someone to watch your video, you're selling.

When you're trying to get yourself to do another video, you're selling.

See? We're always bleeding selling!

@Thiago Machado

We should talk about this. Good points made in this thread.

 

[Andy Black]

@Thiago Machado

We should talk about this. Good points made in this thread.

I'd be interested in your thoughts on this too. Care to add them to this thread for others to learn from?



Something I'd have done differently is to have brought a printout rather than the report on my iPad. That's what I normally do, and only used the iPad because I was out of toner ink.

Leaving a printout for them means they can study it after you've left, and you're hopefully on their desk for a few days ... still "talking" to them.

 

[GuestUser1178]

I'd be interested in your thoughts on this too. Care to add them to this thread for others to learn from?



Something I'd have done differently is to have brought a printout rather than the report on my iPad. That's what I normally do, and only used the iPad because I was out of toner ink.

Leaving a printout for them means they can study it after you've left, and you're hopefully on their desk for a few days ... still "talking" to them.

I like that thought, it's just better to have something in hand rather than just having something in an imaginary (email)folder.

 

[Andy Black]

I like that thought, it's just better to have something in hand rather than just having something in an imaginary (email)folder.

Even when I was an IT Contractor I'd bring along a portfolio of work (code, documentation, reports) and discuss them in interviews.

I'd walk out having left a few copies with them.

No other IT Contractor thinks to do it, so I stand out.

I give them "proof" they can use when speaking to the hiring manager.

I'm also giving them a get-out-of-jail card for when they hire me. They're worried they will mis-hire and look bad. They can imagine showing my portfolio to whoever's grilling them and saying "he looked good... who wouldn't have hired him?".

I'm giving them the paper to cover their arse.




What do YOU leave behind after you've spoken to a prospect?

 

[GuestUser1178]

Even when I was an IT Contractor I'd bring along a portfolio of work (code, documentation, reports) and discuss them in interviews.

I'd walk out having left a few copies with them.

No other IT Contractor thinks to do it, so I stand out.

I give them "proof" they can use when speaking to the hiring manager.

I'm also giving them a get-out-of-jail card for when they hire me. They're worried they will mis-hire and look bad. They can imagine showing my portfolio to whoever's grilling them and saying "he looked good... who wouldn't have hired him?".

I'm giving them the paper to cover their arse.




What do YOU leave behind after you've spoken to a prospect?

I was laughing at my screen, so my female colleague on the opposite of the office just asked if everything is fine with me

Good point you share here Andy, whenever I pitch my game app Bridezilla, I have a flyer/sales letter with me! So I say "Listen, check out my game xyz which is free doing xyz and is going to launch in May! Here you have a flyer with my website, go check it out, sign up and join the early bird's list!" It's working!
Of course having an email list is important too, but sometimes a plane paper works magic!

 

[JoeB]

Hey Andy,

Unless you had an off-chance meeting and he didn't know what you did (highly unlikely) and why you were there then I don't think you made a mistake at all, if anything, I would say the answer you wished you would have given would have been a mistake.

If we had a meeting, specifically about Adwords, and I asked you "what you can do for me?", and you came back with:

A) "What do you want me to do for you?"

or

B) "Well I've done extensive research into your current Adwords campaign and I am 99% sure that I can save you a substantial amount of money on your current campaign while still bringing in the same business, or bring you more business for the same expense, here's how *grabs ipad*"

Then I'd much prefer you came back with something along the lines of B - which you did.

Answer A just sounds too smarmy/salesy. I'm sure it's the 'correct' response in a lot of sales books, and definitely the better option for poorly qualified, generic 'marketing' or 'web design' pitches, but for something as niche as a qualified Adwords meeting I think getting him hooked straight away and showing him you've already invested time is definitely the best way to go.

I know you are saying that he didn't fully understand what "adwords" was and he calls you all "Golden Pages" but I think for a Solicitor to pay out minimum £xxx+ a month, it generate him business and him to know that sometimes he is at the top and sometimes on the side and to agree a meeting with you, then he knows enough.

 

[Andy Black]

Hey Andy,

Unless you had an off-chance meeting and he didn't know what you did (highly unlikely) and why you were there then I don't think you made a mistake at all, if anything, I would say the answer you wished you would have given would have been a mistake.

If we had a meeting, specifically about Adwords, and I asked you "what you can do for me?", and you came back with:

A) "What do you want me to do for you?"

or

B) "Well I've done extensive research into your current Adwords campaign and I am 99% sure that I can save you a substantial amount of money on your current campaign while still bringing in the same business, or bring you more business for the same expense, here's how *grabs ipad*"

Then I'd much prefer you came back with something along the lines of B - which you did.

Answer A just sounds too smarmy/salesy. I'm sure it's the 'correct' response in a lot of sales books, and definitely the better option for poorly qualified, generic 'marketing' or 'web design' pitches, but for something as niche as a qualified Adwords meeting I think getting him hooked straight away and showing him you've already invested time is definitely the best way to go.

I know you are saying that he didn't fully understand what "adwords" was and he calls you all "Golden Pages" but I think for a Solicitor to pay out minimum £xxx+ a month, it generate him business and him to know that sometimes he is at the top and sometimes on the side and to agree a meeting with you, then he knows enough.

Thanks for your reply @JoeB.

Yeah, agreed with your thought. He thought I did AdWords alright, but I should have got him talking first so I could gauge where he was at (so I'd know what "level" to speak AdWords geek at him).

I'd probably ask "What type of leads do you want more of?" or something like that, rather than too vague a salesy question.


Good point... you have me thinking now. Thanks.

(Thanks for watching too!)

 

[Ubermensch]

I'd be interested in your thoughts on this too. Care to add them to this thread for others to learn from?



Something I'd have done differently is to have brought a printout rather than the report on my iPad. That's what I normally do, and only used the iPad because I was out of toner ink.

Leaving a printout for them means they can study it after you've left, and you're hopefully on their desk for a few days ... still "talking" to them.

Unless you're doing a "one-call-close" (the type of sale in which you can sell the prospect in only one meeting, like in door-to-door sales), I think it is almost imperative that you have some kind of "follow-up" materials with the client.

I usually leave an executive summary - a one-page summary of the value proposition - and a copy of the agreement that the client has to sign (agreement is only two pages).

Even when I was an IT Contractor I'd bring along a portfolio of work (code, documentation, reports) and discuss them in interviews.

Definitely.

If you're just meeting a prospect, they don't know you. Why should they work with you?

Sure, you can always just tell them.

But actions speak louder than words.

Showing the client a portfolio of work, demonstrating examples of real-world successes, case studies, etc is the most effective way to sell.

 

[sonny_1080]

How I screwed up a sales pitch


We're all in sales one way or another.

When you're convincing your kids to brush their teeth, you're selling.

When you're trying to go to the Italian when everyone wants to go to the Chinese, you're selling.

When you're trying to inspire someone to take action, you're selling (themselves on themselves!).




When you're trying to help a business owner generate more leads, sales, and revenue by hiring you as an AdWords consultant, you're selling.

I made some school boy errors in this particular sales pitch, and in this video I do the post-mortem so you can learn from my mistakes.

EDIT:

When you're trying to get someone to click on your subject line, you're selling.

When you're trying to get someone to watch your video, you're selling.

When you're trying to get yourself to do another video, you're selling.

See? We're always selling!

Phenomenal. As usual.

- Coming from a salesman lol

 

[Andy Black]

Phenomenal. As usual.

- Coming from a salesman lol

Thanks.

What were your main takeaways. I’m especially curious since I don’t consider myself a salesman.

 

[sonny_1080]

Thanks.

What were your main takeaways. I’m curious given I don’t consider myself a “salesman”.

I've worked as a salesperson in various capacities (satellite tv contracts, financial plans, suits, etc.). My biggest takeaways from your video are the same things that Zig Ziglar talks about in Secrets to Closing the Sale (life-changing book).

Sales is a transference of feeling... that feeling of being "salesy" is exactly what you DON'T want. People aren't stupid. If you (generally-speaking, not you specifically Andy), feel salesy, then the prospect feels it too; and the last thing anybody wants is to be sold.

The key that shifts one's "salesy-ness" to that of a servant is the underlying motive of helping people. "You can't feed your ego and make a sale at the same time" (Ziglar).

And the best way to help people is to ask questions while really listening. Nobody cares how much you (generally-speaking, not you specifically Andy) know about something. All they want to know is how you can help them. And 9 times out of 10, how you FEEL about what you're selling is much more effective than what you KNOW about what you're selling.

In other words, the best trait to have in sales is "sheer ecstasy about what you're selling" (Ziglar).

It's the salesperson's job to extract the prospect's underlying problem. The best way to do this is to ask questions because more often than not, the prospect won't tell you what the real problem is. Why? Because to protect myself, I act like I don't care... and the more I know about me, the more I know about you.

So the objection about price isn't the real objection. As a salesperson who understands that "you can have anything you want as long as you help enough people get what they want" (Ziglar), the key is not only navigating their objections (by asking questions and genuinely being interested in solving the prospect's problem) but also truly believing that what I'm offering is the best thing to solve that problem.

In your post-mortem Andy, I think you give an excellent firsthand account of how true these principles are. I thank you for the reminders.

You're the best!