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What Are The Drivers of a Winning Sales Pitch?
Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is an excerpt of a current article from the blog of Dave Wendland, VP, strategic relations at Hamacher Resource Group (HRG) and Forbes Council Member. The article first appeared on Forbes.com.
Preparation is critical when bringing a product to market or introducing it to a retailer—especially considering that most new products fail. For retailers, there are certain manufacturers that simply stand out from the crowd.
Here are several factors that successful pitches have in common.
- Telling the right story: Once accounts have been determined as targets, the best pitchers do their research with a focus on understanding critical business goals. For retailers looking to make their stores more customer-friendly, pointing out how a product’s bold, clean packaging makes it easy for shoppers to spot can be highlighted. For a retailer looking to grow online, an emphasis could be on SEO-optimized content or web-ready text and images. Additionally, familiarity with a retailer’s culture or “personality” can be used to illustrate how a brand may be a perfect fit.
- Recognizing that details matter: Beyond features and pricing, the presentation needs a compelling rationale for how the products fit into the overall category. Providing a merchandising strategy, including accurate and professionally produced planograms, can show where a new product launch will perform best on the shelf. A market basket analysis, a consumer decision tree and a summary of marketing plans can further build confidence in a new product’s incremental sales potential to the retailer.
- Delivering the “wow” factor: Retailers should be able to see how the brand addresses specific consumer needs immediately. The product may offer significant innovation and that may be the basis of the story or maybe the pitch highlights incremental sales growth that will make the portfolio stand out. Perhaps its marketing plans are undeniably strong. The “wow” must make the product rise above the competition.
- Building a relationship: After the presentation, brands that follow up with buyers to either keep trying to reach a mutual agreement or to lay the foundation to work together are more likely to win favor. And those willing to modify their offering to meet whatever the buyer identified as shortfalls increase their likelihood of success. Whether a business deal was forged or the brand is still working toward one, continued efforts to build on relationships with the buyers are critical.
Discussion Questions
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: What are the elements of a successful go-to-market product pitch? Which elements cited in the article are often overlooked?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
"With innovative ideas, it is essential that a mutual goal be clearly understood by both the brand and the retailer."
Karen S. Herman
CEO and Disruptive Retail Specialist, Gustie Creative LLC
"I am always astounded by the lack of understanding that all pitches should be about the customer/client and not the pitcher!"
Gene Detroyer
Professor, International Business, Guizhou University of Finance & Economics and University of Sanya, China.
"It is more imperative than ever for manufacturers to thoughtfully prepare their pitch and ensure their launch aligns with their targeted retailer’s objectives."
Based on my meetings during last week’s National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) Annual Conference, retailers are are once again hungry for and seeking innovative products to bring into their storefronts and/or feature virtually. Last year’s event was focused on recovery from the pandemic and supply chain turbulence. This year it was about bringing new and exciting products to consumers.
It is more imperative than ever for manufacturers to thoughtfully prepare their pitch and ensure their launch aligns with their targeted retailer’s objectives.
Telling a story is so important and many times the retailer lacks a full understanding from the product presenters.
Things like packaging being a lot larger than the product when it’s a “good for you” or a “clean” product is an issue. Or not understanding the customer in situations where the suggested retail price is so high they price themselves out of their target audience.
I am very supportive of vendors being passionate about their products, but they also have to be flexible to make changes to be able to sell their products to the projected target audience.
In my retail B2B advisory and coaching work, I encourage my clients to look at initial meetings as an opportunity exploration, rather than a pitch. Big deals are rarely, if ever, closed in a first meeting, and an air of mutual vetting should be in place initially. That way, resources can be deployed once true opportunities and alignment are established rather than the “kitchen sink” trap so many companies fall into in their eagerness to close a deal. It’s also important for companies to conduct appropriate research. Gone are the days when overall volume and store counts lead the conversation. With all of the options available to retailers, no two are taking the same approach so digging deep into press releases, investor calls/transcripts, and executive interviews, and documenting alignment between retailers’ specific initiatives and the products, solutions, or services being presented are critical. Lots more to share but I’ll add that, with the “revolving door” dynamic at work within most retail organizations, it’s imperative to develop multiple contacts to include decision-makers and internal influencers. Your biggest cheerleader will likely be on his/her way to another opportunity (or layoff) shortly.
This is an insightful article Dave. Innovation is a hard sell to retailers who are focused on ROI, and one feature of a pitch I recommend is a SWOT analysis of the brand that authentically conveys their internal strengths and weaknesses (no brand is perfect) and external opportunities and threats. No fudging here — authenticity and clarity build strong business relationships. With innovative ideas, it is essential that a mutual goal be clearly understood by both the brand and the retailer.
Innovation has a dual purpose in a sales pitch. First and foremost, it should be seen as a meaningful solution to a client’s business challenge, not simply adding innovation for innovation sake. Second, it should be used as a differentiator in the presentation from whom you are competing against to win the business. Winning a pitch often comes down to just one or two things that make you stand out, be it price, chemistry, offering or simply knowing the business best. When all these become an even playing field or worse, you fall short in one or more of them–then being seen as the most innovative can be a difference maker.
Solve a problem for both the retailer and the customer. Fill a need they didn’t even know they had. Create an efficiency they weren’t even looking for. Tap an emotion that creates a feel-good moment.
Jeff, spot-on. Solving an issue for a retailer will win the day, no matter if the item is a consumer product, a technology product or a managed service. To do this takes a lot of homework and a lot of collaboration with the retailer, looking holistically at the pain points and understanding how your product/service can remove the gap that exists today.
Experiential retail is fueled by the feel-good moment that you mention, Jeff, and sustainability should be part of the conversation, to create efficiency and avoid one-off brand events. Reduce, reuse, recycle is a planning must.
Since I’m a market researcher, I looked for the phrase “consumer research that confirms the pitch.” In particular, package design research when administered with the right objectives and methodology provides the insight into how consumers will respond when the new product is on the shelf: Will they notice it? Will they engage with it? Will they understand what the product is and what benefits the manufacturer is promising? And will they think the price is right?
Yes, we all know that most new products fail. Very often, in my experience, there is too much ego involved in the process. I recall the introduction of a new distilled spirits product that was intended to be on the low end of the premium spectrum. The package design research pointed out that there was one design that fit the goal while another promoted a product that was premium and inconsistent with the liquid in the bottle. The brand manager told me he’d be embarrassed to show his friends the product in the “winning” design, and so he choice to use the alternate package.
In another instance the marketer utilized the learning from the package design research. The results had shown that while consumers were drawn to the package/product, the design conveyed a more premium product with a price tag that shoppers didn’t want to pay for what was supposed to be an item to be considered “every day, any day, not necessarily for special occasions.” Accordingly, a new design was initiated that matched marketing objectives.
Now hear this: Your client/customer doesn’t care what your product will do for you. The client/customer doesn’t care what your innovation will do for others. Your client/customer only cares about what it will do for them.
I am always astounded by the lack of understanding that all pitches should be about the customer/client and not the pitcher!
The nexus, the problem, the story, the value proposition, and the evidence. The “pitch” must also be relevant in multiple ways, on multiple levels, to the person or business to which we are presenting. Q & A, and the right listening mode is also paramount. Be prepared to present right-fitting alternatives at the right time and place. And finally, a good sales pitch presents the potential for the right results for all parties involved.
Just as there is no “one size fits all” best practice in the business we’re in, there is also no “one formula” for a successful sales pitch.
However, in the most basic terms, I think through some classic steps: The Nexus, the problem, the story, the value proposition, and the evidence (data.)
It is incredibly important that the “pitch” is entirely relevant to the person or business being presented, in multiple ways, on multiple levels, with sometimes the later being quite literal in meaning.
A professional also has a “Plan B” in mind, or makes plenty of room for adjustment as new information becomes available in the meeting itself.
The worst mistake a presenter makes is to shut off the two way communication, or to keep proceeding with the original idea, even after learning on the spot that situations and circumstances have changed.
Sometimes, we need to put our PPT presentation away, or skip some slides, and zero in on what might work better for all parties concerned.
I teach a large number of fundamentals and skills, but nothing is more important than timing, relevance, the right presenters, the right “audience,” and the right credibility.
As we navigate one of the greatest consumer resets in history, it’s critical that today’s CPGs and retailers are armed with the tools they need to make smarter decisions. As such, sales pitches should highlight how a platform or service can solve problems with actionable information. Specifically, how they can offer CPGs/retailers the insight they need to stay ahead in a market that’s more volatile now than ever. From tracking the competition to gleaning hyper-local real-time insights into the current state of the market, this level of transparency will be instrumental to the success of CPGs and retailers.
The article summarizes the question correctly in my view. One point I do not see here is a go to market pitch is more about the product’s distribution and partnership strategy. This outline is more about the actual “selling” of the product to a merchant. Presumably whoever is pitching the product has a strong rationale for “why” they picked the retailer that they are pitching to.
With that, in my experience few sales people “tell the right story” or take the time to figure out what that story is, unless the presenter is the founder or an executive of the company. Few sales people take the time to formulate a specific strategy by prospect.