Conversely, you know that this is your one shot to make a good impression. This alone is enough for your anxiety level to go through the roof.
Fortunately, there are 2 things you can do to perfect your presentation:
1.Practice, practice, and practice some more. Experience goes a long way in helping you perform at your peak.
2.Avoid common mistakes. This is easier said than done in the heat of the moment, but when you know which mistakes to avoid you can keep these on the outside looking in.
Speaking of mistakes, let’s examine the 5 mistakes people are prone to make when giving a presentation.
1. Focusing Too Much on Statistics
Check out this statistic from The Brevet Group:
“After a presentation, 63% of attendees remember stories. Only 5% remember statistics.”
What does this tell you?
Simply put, you need to use storytelling as part of your presentation. This doesn’t mean you should avoid data and statistics altogether, but don’t focus all your energy on sharing this type of information. The important aspect of a presentation is that whoever you’re talking to walks away actually understanding what you’ve presented to them.
2. Neglecting to Look Your Best
Sure, you have a lot on your mind, but that doesn’t mean you should forget to dress for success.
When you wake up on the day of your big presentation, think twice about what you put on. What will look the best to your audience? What can you wear to help others in the room better identify with you? Is now really the time for a bright red suit jacket?
From your glasses to your belt to your socks, plan out every detail in advance. When you look good, you feel good. And when you feel good, you have a better chance of knocking your presentation out of the park.
Take the time to plan your outfit in advance. Not only will it reduce day-of stress, you have the time to shop before the weekend before. Even if you’re on a tight budget, you can use sites like Glasses Gallery for new frames and Boohoo for amazing deals from clothing retailers.
3. Too Much Information
Yes, you want to provide as much information as possible. However, you shouldn’t pack too many details onto a single slide. If you do, you run the risk of:
●Your audience ignoring some or all of the information
●Your audience spends more time reading and less time listening
Short and sweet is the way to go.
4. Reading to Your Audience
When the lights turn on and all eyes are on you, it’s easy to bog down and immediately turn to your slideshow for assistance. Your slides should be nothing more than a visual aid, backing up the information that you provide your audience.
Reading to your audience is both boring and annoying. Plus, it increases the likelihood that these people will stop paying attention. At that point, you’re cooked.
Visuals are processed 60,000x faster in the brain than text. With this in mind, you should implement visuals throughout your presentation.
5. Lack of Preparation
Even the best sales people prepare for each and every meeting. Thinking you can “wing it” and make a good impression is not a risk you should take.
Regardless of the material, prospect, or where you are in the sales cycle, it’s imperative that you enter the meeting with the following:
●An agenda to push the presentation forward from start to completion
●A goal (or goals)
●Material to keep you organized and to keep your audience informed
It takes a lot of time to prepare for a sales presentation, but when you find yourself on stage you’ll be glad that you put in the work.
Conclusion
You can make a lot of mistakes when giving a sales presentation. You can also avoid mistakes, thus putting you in the best possible position to close the deal on the spot (or in the near future).
Just the same as anything else in the business world, the more sales presentations you give the more comfortable you will become. Over time, if you continue to practice good habits, you’ll fall in love with the thrill of giving a presentation.
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