The Sales Pitch Success Trap

Success can be a trap. Lots of startups deliver bad sales conversations because they use material that WORKED in another context.

Here are two traps: The vision pitch and the how to demo.

The vision pitch is what the founders put together for investors or conferences. It tells the story of how the company’s talented team is addressing a grand problem that affects a huge market and, in so doing, will change the world.

And let’s be clear: The vision pitch KILLS at conferences and it does a great job raising money.

With that applause in their ears, founders often look to adapt this pitch for sales. They add a few slides about product features and… viola, they have a sales pitch!

There’s just one issue: Prospective customers don’t see what this grand vision has to do with them. They wish you well on your hero’s journey to change the world and… that's the end of the conversation.

Other companies try to sell with a “how to” demo. This literally shows someone how to use the product, starting with how to sign in.

This kind of demo absolutely DOES work in some settings. There are a few tech-forward buyers out there who want to get under the hood and see how the product works. And you absolutely DO need to have this kind of conversation with customers after you’ve signed them so they can get onboarded and implemented.

But there’s a critical disconnect: Showing someone how to use the product isn’t the same as showing them why they should use it.

For all the regular buyers out there, the “how to” demo is going to leave them impressed with your tech but feeling a little lost.

So what do you do instead?

You have to think about what messages matter to prospects.

It’s not you, your vision, or your product.

It’s three things:

1. What problems does your product solve?

2. What solutions does it offer?

3. What impacts does it create?

Define those three things.

Build your sales conversations around them.

And watch the revenue come in!

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If you liked this article, have a look at our piece on Demos: Principles for Structure and Impact to see how to take the information you uncover in discovery and turn it into a persuasive software demonstration. You can also check out the P.S.I. Selling Content Page for more insights on sales communication, strategy, and leadership.

Want to build a sales process that proves value and a team that can execute? Get in touch.

For more about the author, check out Mike's bio.