Skyfall and Daniel Craig Selling Focus - Presentation

Prince Consort road in Kensington with its  historic buildings like the Royal College of Music and Imperial College  was cordoned off for the World Premiere  red carpet runway for Skyfalls's Daniel Craig et al and HRH The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall for one of the grandest and historic venues in London the Royal Albert Hall acting as a movie house for one night.

The new south door of London's Royal Albert Hall
makes an impressive podium  for the Skyfall World Premiere runway
with the lovely Autumn ( Fall) colours

Presentation is key to James Bond.

Mission content, eloquence and style.

So should our sales presentation have a touch of the 007 pizazz.


Step 4 of the SKYFALL 007 selling process 

FOCUS on your Presentation

Some of the props and costumes exhibited
 in the 50 years anniversary auction at Christies

·         Your sales presentation is best centred on  the added value your Unique Selling Proposition offers the client 

·         from the questioning phase the sales person will have teased out the circumstances, concerns, consequences and conclusions to what this is - the presentation should now centre on 'matching' the benefits of the product/services with the needs of the prospect so that the prospect is motivated by  the proposition

·         To progress to the next stage ,the sales presentation should demonstrate that the offer meets the prospect's both the wants and needs, priorities, constraints and motives

·         the above point becomes particularly  important to cover when the sales person has to present on more than one occasion to different people in buying teams, who will each have different personal and organisational agenda. The presentation will therefore be adapted to respond to different benefits (despite the core proposition and main perceived benefit remains consistent )

·         all sales presentations, whether  ad hoc elevator pitches or those as result of detailed preparation, should be well structured, clear and concise

·         sales presentations should attempt to meet the expectations of the listener in terms of the level of information and relevance to their own situation.

·         when presenting to influencers, it is important to recognise that the sales person is effectively asking the influencers to personally ‘sponsor’ the proposition and the credibility of the supplier and the sales person, so the influencers' needs in these areas are actually part of the strategic and tactical needs of the prospect organisation

·         the presentation should include relevant case studies, references from similar sectors and applications, facts and figures - all backing up the offer

·         business decision-makers buy when they become satisfied that the decision will either make them money, or reduce costs or time; they also need to be certain that the new product/service will be sustainable and reliable; therefore the presentation must be convincing in these areas

Props, costumes and posters auctioned at
Christies for the 50 years of Bond auction

·         while the presentation should always be weighted on the main perceived benefit, it is important to show flexibility that any other incidental requirements and constraints that arise are met if reasonable

·         use the language and style in your presentations  to your audience for example:-

·         technical people need technical evidence

·         sales and marketing people like to see flair and competitive advantage accruing for their own sales organisation

·         managing directors and finance directors want clear, concise benefits to costs, profits and operating efficiency;

 In general the more senior your contact, the less time you will have to make your point - scut the frills, keep to relevant hard facts and evidence

Should the you be invited to present to a large group and in great depth, then  enlist the help of one or two suitably experienced colleagues, from the appropriate functions,

 eg., technical, customer service, distribution, etc., in which case the sales person must ensure that these people are properly briefed and prepared, and the prospect  advised of their attendance.

·         keep control of the presentation, but do so in a relaxed way; if you don't know the answer to a question don't  ‘bull’ - say you don't know and promise to get back with an answer later, and ensure you do.

·         Don’t knock the competition - it undermines your credibility and integrity - don't even imply anything derogatory about the competition

·         if appropriate issue notes, or a copy of your presentation ( PowerPoint hand outs are often well received)

·         use  samples and demonstrations if relevant and helpful, and make sure they work !

Number plate prop for the submarine
 Lotus at the Christies Auction

·         during the presentation check for feedback, confirmation and agreement as to the relevance of what you are saying

·         invite questions at the end, if you are confident of controlling things at the outset invite questions at any time .

·         whether presenting one-to-one or to a buying team, keep a conversational  but business style .