A sales deck is a vital part of any Business Development toolkit. It is often the first chance you get to directly showcase what your business can offer to a potential customer.
So, delivering an engaging presentation could be what makes or breaks your sales strategy.
What is a Sales Deck?
A sales deck serves as a visual aid to illustrate the features and benefits of your company’s products or services during a sales pitch. Although unique to every business, a sales deck should include an introduction to the company, an overview of your services, and highlight real-world successes from previous customers.
What is the Difference between a Pitch Deck and a Sales Deck?
Whilst a pitch deck is typically designed for investors looking for insight into your company – i.e. its vision, products, financials, and target audience, a sales deck is a presentation aimed at converting those hot leads into customers by highlighting the value proposition of your product or service.
What Makes a Great Sales Deck?
A high-converting sales deck will consist of four key elements:
- Defined structure
- Consistent design
- Clear messaging
- Story-driven
Within those four elements, your sales deck must include:
- Introduction to your company
- Features of your product(s) and/or service(s)
- Benefits of your product(s) and/or service(s)
- Results on offer (using previous clients for credibility)
- Contact information
1. Defining a Structure
As with any content creation, it is vital to map out how you will reach the end from the beginning.
This doesn’t need to be an overly complicated exercise. The point is to reference your structure as the deck is created, so that everything is clear when the presentation is given.
Giving the deck a structure provides both presenter and audience the opportunity to reference certain points or ask questions at a suitable pause, supporting the flow and the overall delivery of the presentation.
2. Consistent Design
A well-designed and uniform sales deck tells your audience that your company values precision and places importance on the quality of your communications. This brand consistency contributes to building trust and credibility, essential factors when seeking to convert leads.
Maintaining consistency in your design helps to reinforce your brand identity. It ensures that your message is clear and comprehensible, guiding the prospects’ attentions, and enabling your audience to concentrate on the content without being disrupted by abrupt design and formatting changes.
3. Clear Messaging
Given the limited time in a sales pitch, concise messaging in a sales deck is key for effective communication, ensuring clarity so prospects will understand the core value proposition and key benefits easily.
It should not be a case of ‘death by PowerPoint’ – don’t include everything you’re going to say, but use the deck to help prompt and/or reinforce your message. Use bold titles, bullet points, images, infographics etc. to help deliver the information in a clear and digestible way.
This also prevents information overload and encourages active listening, allows for a more focused response from your audience, and enhances the overall impact of your presentation.
4. Story-Driven
A story-driven sales deck establishes a narrative to make a presentation much more than just a list of features – it needs to resonate with potential prospects. This emotional resonance goes beyond data, fostering a deeper connection and increasing the likelihood that your message will leave a lasting impression.
People are emotional beings and are naturally wired to remember narratives, so create a story-driven sales deck that fosters a real connection to ensure that your key points are not only heard but also retained.
All in all, a successful sales deck needs to present your company in the best light, demonstrating what you are able to offer and why you are best for the job. Keep it tight, succinct, and a true representation of how you can support your clients.
Ensure that it is delivered with enthusiasm and energy and any prospect will be thrilled to partner with you!
Keen to find more prospects to sell to in 2024? Take a look at our lead generation services here and Prospect100 here.