Hand-outs - Fuel Up!

How To Sell Coach

Hand-outs, company or product literature are rarely written by sales people. Generally they are given to the marketing department and sometimes the junior person in that department. They can be very good but they can also be very bad. Sometimes they can be sent out late, or not at all.

But here's a question - who will be responsible for the lost sale? More often than not, the sales person. Presenters and electronic sales presentations are the same - they need to be right too.. I remember being given a presenter for my first field sales job. It was rubbish. The images looked like a school scrap book, the figures were out of date it even had spelling mistakes.

I know it is easier to say than to do, but don't tolerate poor promotional or sales literature. If you are in the fortunate position of writing its or influence who does, why wouldn't you make it the best it can be. Make it sales effective but not salesy.

It may be that you are working for a company who have spent thousands on producing what they believe to be outstanding sales literature. A masterpiece. But in truth, it it affects you job, it affects you!. Therefore do what you can to change it. The use of visuals in any form undoubtedly helps in you customer understanding and retaining information from your presentation so it must work for you.

Stupidly, in that first job, I decided to make my own and was royally roasted by the sales trainer for doing so. (And here was me thinking I would be rewarded for showing initiative. Well you live and learn.) But I went about it all the wrong way. I should have taken the opportunity to present some idea's and when I did take this approach, it was well received. Better than that, it was decided to have a brainstorming session after the next sales meeting and some of the team were sitting on much better ideas than mine. All to the good.

Little point going into a presentation without as much as you can have with you to achieve a successful outcome. It's like trying to drive you car with not fuel. Even if you're making the noises - you're still going nowhere!