How to make a sales pitch that sells by using 8 magical steps

Wondering how to craft a sales pitch that converts every time? 

A good sales pitch conveys the intended message to the target company or individual in a compelling manner. However, crafting a winning sales pitch every single time is not easy. In this article, we will learn how to create a killer sales pitch with well-defined pitch points that can turn the tide in your favor. 

Before we move any further, it is imperative to know what a sales pitch is.

A sales pitch is a quick presentation, made in person or over the phone, explaining the product, its use benefits to the client. All this happens in less than a minute or two, so they’re also popularly termed “elevator pitches” as the time one gets to influence a client is approximately the same as an elevator ride. If you make a good sales pitch, chances are your client will be interested and you'll get more time to explain your product. So, a sales pitch is both a first impression and an opportunity to open a two-way dialogue with your client.

In this article, we will guide you on how to make a sales pitch over the call, as during the pandemic, it is the new normal. After this, we will discuss the key steps to prepare a good sales pitch along with relevant examples. 

How to Successfully Pitch Over Phone

Pitching your sales pitch over the phone has become the new normal during the pandemic, but it's very different from an in-person pitch. 

Being a cold call without face-to-face interaction, the individual at the other end may be less receptive. You have limited time to establish your credibility, build trust and win over your prospect. 

Here are some tips to help.

1. Prepare and do your research before the call to know your client's possible problems and how your solution might help them. Have a clear understanding of your product and its key features and anticipate any questions and objections too.
2. Craft your pitch to be concise and crisp. Get to the point right away. 
3. How you pitch matters as much as what you're pitching. Keep your voice professional and speak slowly and clearly. 
4. Finally, practice! Playback calls to evaluate your performance, identify areas of improvement, and act upon them. Get feedback from coworkers and watch YouTube videos on sales pitches over the phone. Experiment with different techniques to identify what approach works best. The more sales you make over the phone, the less fear you will have about cold calling. 

Up next is a step-by-step guide to draft a selling pitch that has a high success rate.

How to Make a Sales Pitch That Sells by Using 8 Magical Steps

Step 1: Familiarize Yourself With the Different Components of a Product Pitch

A sales pitch has three key components.

The first part is the opening-- a brief introduction. The goal here is the catch the prospect's attention and it works best if you've researched your product and the client's needs. 

Your opening line can make or break the deal-- the customer will make a snap decision whether to engage further with you or not. 

The second part is the body of the pitch, where you explain how the product works. Here, speak to their needs, like a specific problem the product can solve, or emotional benefits such as being respected, liked, and recognized. Avoid industry jargon and connect with them at a human level, so they can engage.

The third part, the conclusion, consists of a "call-to-action," where you ask the prospect to take your desired action, such as agree to sign up for a demo or place their order. 

Step 2: Make a Comprehensive Introduction 

Your name, designation, and company are enough detail. Don’t provide too much information about the company, except the punch line, like "we are a leading internet marketing agency with a decade of experience" or "a startup to make candidate background checks affordable for SMEs". The introduction has to be short so that you get to the main point.

Depending on the vibe, you may ask a question, like how their business survived before the pandemic or their opinion on a particular industry news item. 

Step 3: Modify Your Pitch When Needed

Cultivate the ability to modify your sales pitch on the spot. The best way to do this is to overprepare, research and respond proactively to the customer's unique context and constraints. Prepare different sets of pitches for different clients, such as price-sensitive clients or those with specific problems or concerns. Remember any objections they may have and prepare a rebuttal. Be confident and if you fumble, stay calm and rely on your practical industry experience.

Step 4: Define the Product USP

You have to define the USP of your product in the body section. The USP is something your product has that is beneficial to your prospective customers, and not offered by your market rivals. Do your research here about why you're unique and offer relevant examples to demonstrate.

For instance, you could mention your product is both electricity and battery-operated, so if there is a power failure even for a minute, business operations wouldn't be affected. In general, avoid using price as your USP, unless you're priced significantly lower than your competitor or the client is highly price-sensitive.

Step 5: Keep Your Typical Customer in Mind

One of the most important aspects of preparing a well-crafted sales pitch is to know your customer persona and tailor your pitch delivery to the person you are speaking with. Be aware of key demographic details such as age, education level, and income. Identify their pain points, and how your product can solve them. You have to imagine them using your product or service, so take them into consideration before you pick up your phone and make a sales pitch. 

Step 6: Add Probing Questions to Understand your Client

When you are drafting the body of a sales pitch (after you introduce yourself and before your USP) make sure to include probing questions to dig deeper into your client's pain points, and offer the best solutions. 

For instance, if your digital marketing agency makes a pitch to clients, ask how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their sales? When do you think things will improve? Mention aspects of your USP the specific client finds valuable to genuinely draw their interest. But don’t overdo this-- if your prospective client is not willing to answer your query, move on.

Step 7: Set Goals

Begin by figuring out your goal-- what you want to happen at the end of the call. Are you in pursuit of asking for a FREE demo? Do you want them to place an order? This will guide you in preparing a confident closing statement and call-to-action.

Quickly discern whether your prospective client’s needs are met by your product. Are they willing to take the pitch or do they need more information? If your goal is getting approval for a product demo, then the focus of your sales pitch must be primarily on the features & benefits of the product demo. In case you want them to place an order, then include the pricing aspect in the sales pitch. Explain how competitive you are, without being too salesy. 

Step 8: Next Steps & Follow-Ups

The purpose of a sales pitch is to get your prospect to make a decision or take any further action. Typically, clients don't make decisions right away. Recognize hurdles to their decision-making, for instance, do they want an in-person product demo or price cut? Offer options and flexibility, like with the time to schedule a consultation, to make it as easy as possible for them to say "yes". 

Follow up! Make calls, or send a gentle reminder over mail. The follow-up need not be direct, either. For instance, first, appreciate having a great conversation over the phone call and express that it was good to know their business or problem. Then remind them of your solution, which can make their lives a lot easier. 

The motive of a follow-up mail is to get them to take the next step. So make this as easy as possible for them. For instance, ask for a 10-minute call versus a half an hour call. Suggest an easy medium, like over the phone, versus an obscure app they'd have to download.

Make a direct ask only at the end, not at the beginning, otherwise, your prospective clients will put your mail id in the spam box. And do not disturb your client daily with an email, once a week is more than enough. 

Finally, know when a client just won't convert and put them on the backburner for the time being to focus on easy to convert clients.

In Conclusion,

If you implement the above steps, you will significantly increase the odds of winning that big client with an impressive sales pitch. With SalesKen, you can now craft a winning sales pitch. Salesken’s Good Call Engine leverages the power of artificial intelligence to build a winning call profile unique to your organization.

It helps you:

1. Identify the conversation snippets that influence your prospects the most.
2. Know how your top-performing sales reps handle customer objections. You can then replicate these winning strategies across your team.
3. Determine, with Salesken’s state-of-the-art emotion detection engine, if the customer is responding positively to your pitch, and tailor your talking points accordingly.
4. Provide Real-Time Assistance in the form of cues to navigate conversations towards success.

Book a demo now! See for yourself how Salesken can help you close 74% more deals!