The greatest sales deck ever will make you re-think your sales pitch

After many years of seeing a parade of account managers pitch all sorts of services to our business, it was a hygiene disposal company that did the job of attracting my attention, then maintaining it and ultimately winning our business. Before this initial meeting I had dismissed it as merely a quick meet and greet, however on presentation my opinion changed within 2 slides this company’s sales deck, effectively convincing me that sanitary services were in fact neither boring nor irrelevant.

Traditional pitches may start with introducing the history of the company, why they are so good, then list their products, features and benefits. At this point, your prospect has already formed their first impression and won’t change their minds. What was different about this company’s sales deck is that the first slide warned of an issue that until now, I didn’t know that I needed to solve - the need to maintain good office hygiene in order to minimise employee sick leave. While most companies can tell you what their company and products do, they don’t know how to make it relevant as well as engaging.
I thought to myself, this is actually a great sales deck and one of the best examples I had seen.

So what makes a brilliant sales deck? Luckily Andy Raskin, the man behind some of the most successful investor pitches in Silicone Valley, has officially awarded the title to the “Greatest Sales Deck Ever” to Zuora and has pin-pointed why it’s so good. In his analysis he has highlighted 5 key elements below, which we have also put into a PDF template that you can download.

Elements of a brilliant sales deck:

 1. Identify a big and relevant change in the world.

This is the big hook and it grabs attention because change creates uncertainty (and opportunity).

2. Show that there will be winners and losers.

A natural result of change, this is where your B2B prospects sees that there are two paths available.

3. ‘The promised land’ – how your services will help your prospect achieve results.

This promised land should be aspirational but also appear difficult to achieve without the help of your services.

4. Re-frame features and benefits as ‘magic gifts’.

These ‘magic gifts’ are what help your prospect reach the promised land.

5. Present the evidence that you can bring them to this happy ever-after.

Raskin notes that this narrative is similar to an epic film or movie. The most compelling evidence is an example of how your services has successfully helped others. This overcomes any known challenges and obstacles, after all, they would have done it themselves if they had been able.

To download a PDF template of how to capture your audience with a brilliant sales deck, click here:
Finlayson Sales Deck

To view Andy’s full article via his Linkedin page visit:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/greatest-sales-deck-ive-ever-seen-andy-raskin