Every client looks forward to three things when you present yourself to them- who you are as a company, what you can do to improve their business and how you can do that.
You should always keep in mind that while meeting a prospective client, you need to be interesting and unique, but not outlandish.
This is a pretty simple concept, yet, every time we meet a client, we find it difficult to put everything across without sounding boring. To make this easier, listed below are a few things to keep in mind if you want to build a great presentation.
-> Know who you are speaking to-
Understanding your client gives you an idea about what tone you should use during your presentation. This can change your presentation completely.
For example, you need to be very clear and precise in explaining who you are and how you can help them if you are talking to the CEO of the company. However, this scenario changes when you are talking to managers or other high level executives. They would want to know detailed numbers, see what you have done in past and who you have worked with.
-> Research-
Before you talk to the client, you need to study and analyze their existing website (if any). You need to act as a user, go through their website and note down things that you think can be done in a different way or can be modified or changed by you for better results. Point out the hypothetical performance issues regarding the clients’ websites and pitch in ideas about how you can improve them.
Also, it is important how you study and interpret the e-mail that your client has sent you before the presentation to make sure that whatever you say sticks to that brief.
-> Know and Organize the content of your presentation-
All the tips are irrelevant if you are uncomfortable or unfamiliar with the content you are presenting. The more you know about your material, the more effective your presentation will be.
After getting comfortable with your content, it is important how you organize it and deliver it to the client. Your presentation should have a good opening, a strong body and an effective conclusion.
Make sure your material makes logical sense and that it flows smoothly from one topic to the next.
-> Be Straightforward-
You most probably might be in business with the client you are dealing with. Therefore, there is no point of being shy or withholding yourself from saying things that the client might not agree on, initially. Your opinion and your skills count. Go ahead and state clearly the things which might affect your future relationship with the client.
-> Embellish, don’t read-
Avoid adding tons of content to your presentation. Try and add bullet points or precise points. Make sure you don’t just read out from the slides to your audience. Reading from the presentation leaves a very negative impact on your audience and they end up thinking you are not well prepared, not confident or just very nervous. So when you present, embellish the slides with your own comments and insight.
-> Use humor effectively-
Humor, when used wisely, can break some tension for both parties. However, using it in a controlled manner is really important. Excessive use of humor or wit in your presentation will lead your client to think that you are unprofessional which is definitely a thumbs-down for your company.
