Be the first to present

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You are one of three suppliers bidding on/pursuing a lucrative prospect. All three of you have conducted the necessary needs assessments and site surveys to determine the scope of the opportunity. You have learned that your two competitors are scheduled to provide their final presentations on Tuesday and Wednesday.

When do you schedule your final presentation?

I say Monday afternoon. I say be the first to present. There are, of course, pros and cons to being first or last or in the middle.

Being First
One word: landmines. Assuming you know your competitors, by being the first to present you not only set a high standard that others need to try to match (without having seen your presentation themselves), but more importantly you lay unavoidable landmines for your competitors. By “landmines,” I mean you position your competitors by the things you say and the things you don’t say. These things you say, without disparaging anyone or any company directly, can build preferences in the mind(s) of your buyers for how you do things.

Being first has its risks, of course. The buyer(s) possibly haven’t learned yet what all their options are, and depending on their decision-making style, they may withhold any kind of conscious or subconscious commitment until they’ve heard everything from everyone. More specifically, the buyer doesn’t fully appreciate what features they want until they’ve heard it all (but again, your goal is to build preference).

Being Last
The most common “pro” I hear for being last in the parade is that you can justify closing the buyer right then and there. That’s well and good if you’re working with an extraordinarily decisive person. But it won’t happen if you’re selling to a committee. Or a “thinker,” As Tony Alessandra puts it.

Being last is too fraught with risks: What has been decided in the minds of the buyer(s) already? Who has he emotionally bonded with? Who has she been “wowed” by? What details have been already brought up, that you haven’t prepared for but will be expected to address? What kind of presentation are they expecting in the first place, formal or informal?

In the Middle
Avoid this at all costs. Your message will get lost.

Final Thoughts
We’ve all won hotly contested sales where we presented first, or last, or, gasp, somewhere in the middle. But the reality is, your closing ratio should climb as you seize the moment wherever possible and put your competition on its heels.

sales presentations, sales strategies