5 Tips for Pulling Off a Killer Pitch Presentation

Author: Gwendalyn Tavares

When it comes to new clients, your pitch presentation can mean make or break! We have all been there and know the immense pressure. So to help everyone out there struggling with knowing where to start, we have decided to share 5 of the most important tips to make sure that your pitch seals the deal!

Deadlines are tight and time is precious, so let’s jump straight in:

1. A good pitch starts with a good brief
   When you are taking the brief from the client, ask questions and get as much information as you can. Make plenty of notes regarding what the client says they want, because when you revert to them you want to be able to say: “You said you really wanted [this], so we suggest [this and that].”

2. Research is very important
   Even if your client gives you a lot of information, it’s important to do your own research and add additional insights. External insights are often more powerful than those from the inner organisational team because the in-house team can sometimes be too close to the project to see what’s either obvious from the outside or what opportunities could possibly be leveraged.

3. Present as a team
   Let each team member talk the client through the sections they know most about. By showing a collaborative approach, the client will feel that the project has been taken seriously, and you have used all the necessary resources, sought the experts for various tasks and combined the skills of all involved.

4. Use props/sounds/smell for impact
   A while of staring at slide after slide can become boring for your audience, and you may certainly find their thoughts drifting. One great way to keep their attention is to include multi-sensory elements; like sound, smell and sometimes even props. To demonstrate the power of technology, for example, you can compare a person’s ability to Google contact details to finding a number in the Yellow Pagess directory. In this instance you could actually bring the old school Yellow Pages to your meeting for full impact. Whatever you use, make it smart and impactful!

5. Do a dry run!
   This is the most important part of preparation. Before you present to the client, talking through the slides with your team from start to finish will help ensure that you are happy with the overall flow, and you can also check for any potential mistakes. Doing this with someone who hasn’t been involved in the full pitch is always useful to ensure that the information has been woven together as an engaging and easy to follow story. NB: Check the amount of time that you take to present and make sure that the presentation can be completed in the allocated time you have been provided, with a few minutes spare for questions from the client.

Last but not least – have fun! Be excited, and show it. Let the client see how hard you have worked, how much you have enjoyed it and most importantly; how awesome your idea is! Dress to impress, arrive early and make S*#T happen.

Good luck!