The stage is set. You’ve greeted them with a handshake and exchanged pleasantries. Now it’s “show time”. You must win over your potential customers. As you begin, the last thing you want to do is flub your lines. And winging performances works for virtually no one.

Instead, follow these tips for perfect business pitches and, beyond applause, you’ll get orders for promotional product, printing, plaques and awards and anything else you are selling!

1. Provide details. If your potential customers have everything necessary to make informed decisions upfront, they are more likely to feel confident in choosing to do business with you.
2. Know the audience. Always be prepared and tailor your pitch to whoever you are meeting. “Shark Tank”, (a reality TV show in which wannabe entrepreneurs make business pitches to investors) investor Barbara Corcoran told Business Insider that one of the best pitches she'd ever seen on the show to date was from Sabin Lomac and Jim Teslikis in 2012. They were co-founders of a seafood truck company called Cousins Maine Lobsters. The secret to their success was preparation. The business owners watched four seasons of “Shark Tank” episodes together, studied each shark and wrote down every objection they made to entrepreneurs. The result was a successful pitch. Take a lesson from them and know who you are pitching. Get your hands on any available research, read bios, scan social media accounts, delve into their industries, understand their competitors and more. And of course, know your presentation backward and forward.
3. Let them talk. Make sure when making your pitch that you keep it conversational. In the words of Rhys Metler from SalesForce Search, “Let go of your script from time to time and ask your buyer for feedback. Ask follow-up questions to ensure that you’re really hearing what he’s saying so you can close the deal. The perfect sales pitch should feel like a conversation, which means you require some healthy back and forth.”
4. Tell the story. The basis for almost all effective marketing is storytelling. Grab their attention with a client experience or maybe your own personal experience with your product and services.
5. Differentiate. Explain why your products and services are better than everyone else’s. According to Inc., you will want to address three main points:

• Competition. By acknowledging that you have competition, you’re telling investors that you’re confident that your business and options are better.
• Advantages. Whenever you address the competition, you have to say why your business is better. What advantages are unique to your products and services? This could include quality, expertise, options for different product variations and more.
• Marketing Plan. Show your customers your recommendations for what types of products are best to promote their businesses, outline campaigns so they get the best results for their investments and provide detailed plans on how they would work with you, including set-up requirements, turn times and anything else pertinent.

When you have taken all these steps, congratulate yourself for putting the time and energy into preparing your pitches. Your prospects and clients will appreciate it and you’ll see the volume of orders rise. Idea Custom Solutions is ready to provide support 24 hours a day, whether you need vector artwork, embroidery digitizing, image editing and/or marketing material design to complete customer orders. We’ll help both your customers brands’ and you to shine!