A Beginners Guide to Pitching Like a Pro

A Beginners Guide to Pitching Like a Pro No matter what industry youre in, there will come a time when youll need to win some new business or impress a potential client or customer. Youll have to rock them with a pitch that not only blows them away, but also shows that you can provide the answers to the questions theyve been trying so hard to work out. So what are some ways you can really impress with your presentation? Heres my list of things to keep in mind  when youre pitching for  a new project, client or customer. 1) Humans win humans When you meet any potential clients, its easy to  get bogged down in the specifics of what you would  be doing. But humans win humans, so make sure you remain personable and human through out the pitch.  When youre pitching, let the audience know your own personal skills, as well as the individual skills that individuals within the team possess.  Its also important to remember that no one wants to hear a presentation or pitch from a robot, so have personality and try to be yourself as much as you can! Be human when presenting. Dont be perfect. People want conversations; not actors on a stage.#publicspeaking @MagneticSpeak James Greenway (@NerdCred) May 15, 2015 2) Crystal clear When pitching to a client, its very important that you know exactly what they need and want from you. Make sure you have as much information as you can get about the task at hand and details about the client. From here you can create a bespoke pitch that will tick all the boxes, without beating round the bush with information thats fluffed-up and unnecessary. https://twitter.com/thevantee/status/706716560354717696 3) Speak in plain and simple language Throwing in buzzwords and lingo wont make you sound any more convincing than your pitch actually is. So when writing your notes,  make sure you use language that everyone can understand, and not just industry terminology. You  can never  be completely sure of the backgrounds of the people youre  pitching to; someone could be an outside source who has been brought in at the last minute, or someone in there might be from a different department. You dont want to alienate people for their lack of understanding. Use plain English. The #language must be simple, clear and direct. So don’t use agency speak when presenting. pic.twitter.com/Bilt01u7wJ Bram van den Boom (@BestPrezz) March 6, 2015 4) Ask questions When youre going to a pitch, its important that you make sure you fully understand the person/company/brand that youre a pitching to. Its similar to an job interview it shouldnt just be one-sided, but rather a two-sided discussion. Make sure you have questions prepared in order to find out more about who  the process, project, client, next steps and anything else youre unsure of. https://twitter.com/jbwshh/status/719964498661097473 5) Show passion with anecdotes This again relates to a previous mention of robotic pitching. Avoid this style at ALL COSTS. Pep up your pitch with personal stories, anecdotes and jokes. This will keep your audience interested, engage their interests and avoids making them want to shut off. Its also useful to add in some friendly chitchat (when appropriate) in order to get to know them on a more personal (not just professional) level. Just getting our delegates to be creative by helping them to tell stories and anecdotes when presenting. It keeps the audience switched on Mike Ode (@Mike_Ode) February 22, 2012 Main image credit: Shutterstock