Building A Better Marketing Presentation
There are many contexts in which you might find yourself giving a marketing presentation. You could be presenting a new product line to regional prospects or doing a B2B presentation for another company. But no matter what the exact context you find yourself in, there are certain reliable angles you’ll need to hit in any of your marketing presentations.
This is because marketing is a game of persuasion, and all persuasion comes down to psychology. And basic psychology, as you may have guessed, doesn’t change much from situation to situation. Cultural and individual specifics change, sure. But the underlying reasons we buy a given product tend to remain relatively stable across time and space.
With that in mind, here are 3 slide types that you can use in any marketing presentation to captivate, engage, and persuade your audience.
1. What Are Your Direct Product Benefits?
*SPOILER ALERT* Every slide suggestion in this article is meant to answer one singular question for your audience: “What’s in it for me?” That’s the question you must always answer (and answer convincingly) if you want to be successful in marketing.
Why did detergent pods catch on? They’re quicker and simpler than pouring liquid detergent. Why didn’t dishwashers fizzle out after a year or two? It turns out that adding a few extra hours of free time to your week is pretty awesome. The key to these products’ success is their undeniable befits. Dishwashers gave us the gift of time. Detergent pods gave us the gift of convenience.
There is only one thing that will cause your audience to sit up and take note during marketing presentations: benefits. Always answer the question, “What’s in it for me?”
2.What Void Are You Filling?
Another way to ask this question is, “What need are you meeting?” If, after sufficient market research, you find that you’re filling a clear void in the marketplace, your road ahead will be paved with gold. That is the single strongest argument you can make from a marketing standpoint: “A clear and undeniable need for my product exists…no one else can fill this void for you…let’s talk.”
If you can make that case, and make it well, the battle is mostly won. If you have a benefit-rich product in a space where you stand out from your competition, you’ve stumbled upon the holy grail of marketing.
If you’re in that golden spot, capitalize on it. It’s excessively rare, and probably won’t last.
3. Who Are Your Closest Competitors?
It’s rare to have total control over your product category. Most of the time, your marketing presentations will be in the context of swaying your audience away from their current product choice in favor of adopting yours.
In order to accomplish this, you’ll need to tweak the central question somewhat. In this case, the question you’ll be answering is, “What benefits can your product give us that our current one cannot?”
This particular comparative angle is great for selling AI business phone software, for instance. What benefits can AI offer a company who operates from a purely manual phone setup? It can call customers to remind them of nearing appointments, confirm payments, and remind customers of lapsed payments.
What does all this add up to? A more freed up staff, so the company can focus less on admin work and more on sales, marketing, and mission cohesion. And what do we have right there? All the makings of a successful company.
Summing Up
Remember: all marketing is a matter of changing minds in your favor. The best and quickest way of doing this in marketing presentations is to pretend that every audience member has personally asked you, “What’s in it for me?”
If you can satisfactorily answer that question for your audience, sales will follow. It’s as simple (and as difficult) as that. And if you’re itching for more marketing tips to set you on the right track, check out this list from the American Marketing Association.
Looking for More Ways to Enhance Your Marketing Presentations?
Check out Reality Shift: 10 Ways Virtual and Augmented Reality are Changing Business or discover Virtual Reality and Marketing: The VR Funnel of Opportunity.