Sales Pitch

What is a Sales Pitch?

A sales pitch is a persuasive presentation or dialogue meant to convince a potential customer to buy a product or service. It is a critical component in the sales process that highlights an offering’s unique value proposition and addresses the prospective buyer’s specific needs, challenges, or desires.

When most people think of a “pitch,” they think of the classic scenario where a salesperson presents to a group of potential clients. But there’s a lot more to it than that. And, in reality, most pitches don’t follow that format.

Your pitch could be:

• A scripted call
• An impromptu conversation
• A video sales letter (VSL)
• A product demo
• A slideshow presentation
• A proposal with pricing and a timeline
• A collection of selling points you’ve memorized for networking events

Or, yes, it could be a comprehensive, 10-minute slideshow and demo you deliver to decision-makers.

In fact, you’re essentially delivering a pitch every time you tell a lead about your product, meet someone at a networking event and explain what your company does, or email a prospect to schedule a demo. And depending on the situation and medium, you’ll tailor your approach differently.

Synonyms

• Elevator pitch
• Product pitch
• Sales demo
• Sales presentation
• Sales proposal
• Sales script

Are Sales Pitches Relevant in Modern Selling?

The short answer: Yes, but not in the same way.

The concept of the “pitch” originated from personal selling in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with firms like National Cash Register and Coca-Cola leading modern salesmanship. Over the decades, sales methodologies have continued to evolve.

For example, in the early 20th century, phrenology-based sales techniques suggested by Ford Motor Company and relationship selling popularized by Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People” exemplified this.

However, those methods have given way to more sophisticated approaches like consultative selling and solution selling, which gained traction in the 1970s. These approaches emphasize a partnership between the salesperson and the prospect to create a mutually beneficial outcome​​.

In more recent times, frameworks like MEDDIC and SPICED have further refined the sales process, focusing on how the seller can identify and connect with different members of a buying group and tailor their pitch to each one’s needs.

The relevance of sales pitches in the modern era, however, is subject to the transformative impact of technology and changing buyer preferences. Now, we have hundreds of platforms and tools for sales and marketing — CRM, social media, data analytics, you name it. Today’s sellers can take more personalized and targeted sales approaches.

The modern buyer is more informed and empowered, often preferring self-research over direct sales interactions (75% of B2B buyers prefer a rep-free sales experience, according to Gartner). This shift necessitates a change in sales strategies, moving away from traditional pitch-centric approaches to a more value-driven, consultative, and customer-centric model.

10 Types of Sales Pitches

How you approach different types of pitches has a lot to do with where potential customers are in the funnel and the relationship you’ve built with them thus far. Throughout the buying process, you’ll use several different pitches, each with a different purpose.

1. Elevator Pitch

An elevator pitch is a concise, impactful speech designed to introduce yourself, your work, or your project in a way that sparks interest in the listener. The name “elevator pitch” reflects the idea that your spiel should be as brief as an elevator ride, typically 30 to 60 seconds.

As a salesperson, you might use an elevator pitch in various scenarios:

• Job interviews
• Networking events
• Short sales calls
• Chance encounters at trade shows

The primary goal is not to close a deal on the spot but to pique interest. You want to make a strong enough impression to warrant a more detailed discussion later​​.

2. Cold Call Pitch

A cold call is a sales call to someone who has never interacted with your company before. You found their profile and contact information during sales prospecting, and you think they might be a good fit for your product/service.

You’re calling the prospect out of the blue here. And you’re normally following a script (or, at the very least, a framework).

The objective is to introduce yourself, your company, and a product or service that could be valuable to the prospect. Your goal is to get them talking — capture their attention, actively listen to their situation, and ask engaging questions that encourage them to open up.

Once you establish a rapport and determine their needs, you can adjust your pitch accordingly. That’s where you convince them to take the next step in the buying journey, which could be scheduling a demo, attending a webinar, or simply agreeing to receive more information.

3. Warm Call Pitch

A warm call is a sales call to someone who’s already had some interaction with your company before. For example, they may have downloaded an eBook from your website or attended a webinar. When you call a marketing qualified lead (MQL) or referral, that’s a warm call.

Generally, they’re easier than cold calls because the prospect has already shown some interest in your company’s offerings. You won’t have to do gymnastics just to get them talking, you can hop straight into sales qualification.

A warm call pitch is similar to a cold call pitch, but you have an extra layer of familiarity to build upon. You can leverage data from previous interactions with your company to tailor the conversation, making it more relevant and personalized for the prospect.

4. Email Pitch

Email is one of the most common ways salespeople reach prospects. But it’s just as easy for recipients to delete sales emails without reading them. To be effective, your email pitch needs to be succinct and tailored to the recipient, with a compelling subject line (40-50 characters, or 4-7 words).

From there, you might:

• As a compelling, open-ended question
• Use storytelling to emotionally resonate with the reader
• Highlight social proof to build credibility
• Share a benefit or pain point directly related to the recipient’s business

You’ll never sell something over email alone. In an email pitch, your main goal is to get your prospect to read the message and engage with your content. You can then follow up with a phone call or schedule a meeting.

In other words, the call-to-action at the bottom (e.g., to book a call) and the message leading up to it is your sales pitch here.

5. Social Media Pitch

A social media pitch is sort of like an email pitch in the sense that (a) you aren’t trying to outright sell the product and (b) you want the recipient to continue onto another stage of the process. The difference is it’s more casual and conversational than email.

You might reach out to prospects through social media for several reasons:

• They’re part of your target audience
• You’ve identified them as a potential buyer from their online activity
• You’ve engaged their content, or they’ve engaged yours
• You’d like to create a connection with them on a personal level before diving into a sales discussion

Most of the time, social selling in B2B happens on LinkedIn. But you may use Twitter (X), Facebook, TikTok, or Instagram to do business.

In any case, the idea is simple: start a conversation with your prospect. Ask them relevant questions, share some valuable content with them, or establish a mutual connection. THEN you can move into your sales pitch.

6. Demo Pitch

In a sales demo, you present your product or service to potential customers, with the primary goal of either closing a sale, moving to the proposal phase, or obtaining a follow-up meeting to further discuss.

Making your demo pitch as effective as possible is all about the preparation. The sales rep qualifying the lead needs to ask insightful questions beforehand to understand their challenges, interests, and goals, as well as who’s involved in the decision-making process and how.

With that info, simplify your demo by highlighting key features of interest to prospects, avoiding overwhelming them with every product feature. Showing how your product applies to relatable daily scenarios helps emphasize its practical value.

During the demo, engage prospects by asking questions that prompt them to compare your product to their current solution and see its benefits.

7. Competitive Differentiation Pitch

Competitive differentiation is the part of your sales pitch that convinces potential customers your solution is the best for them by showing what the alternatives lack and how yours fits better. It focuses on product value and benefits over competitors (think: features, quality, pricing, customer service, innovation).

To effectively separate your offering from the rest, you need to:

• Use real data and examples of how your product outperforms the competition
• Emphasize the unique features and benefits your product offers that others don’t
• Tailor your pitch to your prospect’s specific needs and pain points 
• Present visual aids, demonstrations, case studies, and customer testimonials to validate your claims

In every deal, you’ll highlight product differentiation at some point. But, if you operate in a crowded market or you’re innovating against one big competitor, you’ll need to make the competitive landscape a focus of your pitch.

8. Value Proposition Pitch

A compelling value proposition is crucial for differentiating your business, attracting customers, and driving sales by making a persuasive case for choosing your brand over others. At around 2-5 sentences, it’s shorter than an elevator pitch.

When writing a value proposition, make sure it meets three key criteria:

• Specificity
• Pain points
• Exclusivity

The value proposition is not a slogan or mission statement. In terms of pitching it, however, it’s crucial to integrate it into various aspects of your business, from your company’s website and marketing campaigns to sales processes and investor pitches.

9. Consultative Sales Pitch

89% of buyers describe the sales reps they ultimately do business with as “trusted advisors.” And the reason for that is simple: they take a consultative approach to selling.

Whether it’s a complex B2C product like solar, a vehicle, or a home security system, or business software or consulting services, working with the customer to curate the best possible solution is key.

• Ask open-ended questions about their needs and challenges
• Listen actively to understand their pain points and goals
• Make genuine recommendations according to their requirements and preferences

Earlier on in the sales process, you’ll map out how you plan to guide them through the configuration process. When you pitch the final product, you will go through all the details, explaining why each one suits their needs and which goals it’ll help them fulfill.

10. Storytelling Pitch

Storytelling is all about stringing all the different aspects of your product together in such a way that your customer sees the vision from start to finish. Though salespeople often use storytelling throughout their conversations to paint a picture, the storytelling pitch happens at the bottom of the funnel. You’re ready to formally present the final product in a sales deck.

• Start with the problems your buyers deal with
• Highlight what those problems are costing them
• Move onto your product
• Show the opportunity is far to great to ignore
• Map out the consequences if they don’t take action

You’ll use storytelling to build urgency. This is critical when you’re delivering formal pitches, like sales decks. That’s where the right structure can be the final push a buyer needs to say “Yes.”

Best Practices for Writing an Effective Sales Pitch

Writing a successful sales pitch is equal parts process and delivery. Here are some best practices for creating effective sales pitches that’ll help you close more deals:

• Don’t come on too strong. A lot of salespeople oversell in the DMs or email inbox when they really should be stimulating a conversation. Buyers don’t want to hear about the product unless they’re asking for additional information.
• Remember: NOBODY likes being sold to. There’s a reason three-quarters of buyers don’t even want to speak with a rep. You’ll come off as untrustworthy if your pitch is focused more on selling than it is on finding a solution.
• Show you’ve done your research. The more generic your pitch is, the less success you’ll have connecting wtih buyers. In the prospecting phase, it takes 1 minute to personalize an email or message. As a lead moves down the pipeline, take note of everything they tell you. Use that info in your pitch.
• Include relevant social proof. Buyers don’t want to hear how great your product is from you alone. Stats, case studies, testimonials, and referrals from customers in the same situation (e.g., same headcount, type of company, and pain points) are often the deciding factor.
• Use storytelling elements, no matter the format. You always want to lead with something about the prospect. This shows you understand their situation and relate to them. Use a framework like AIDA or PAS to highlight a problem or fear they have before presenting your product as a solution.
• Inject some personality. Humor, wit, or just a healthy dose of excitement will set you miles apart from other vendors the lead is considering. It also makes you seem like a real person, so they’re automatically more inclined to do business with you.

When to Give a Sales Pitch

Of course, every pitch is different. The “when” is, therefore, somewhat subjective. Broadly speaking, you shouldn’t pitch someone until:

• You know they’re the decision-maker
• You’re confident you can help them
• You’ve got social proof and case studies to back up your claims
• You have enough context to use storytelling
• The prospect has expressed some interest

In the case of longer pitches, like demos and sales decks, the buyer (or buying group) will actually ask you to pitch them.

To determine the ideal time, you’ll need social awareness. Much of it depends on the conversation itself. Listen actively to what the prospect is saying, how they’re saying it, and their body language.

Elements of a Winning Sales Pitch Deck

1. Cover Slide

The cover slide is easy. It includes the name of your company, logo, and tagline (if you have one). You’ll also include details like the date, the buyer’s name or company, and your own name.

2. Introduction

This is a brief intro of you and your company. It sets you up as a trusted advisor. Talk about what your company does, how long you’ve been around, and any impressive stats (e.g., customer retention rate). You might also mention mutual connections or clients.

Elements of a Winning Sales Pitch Deck

1. Cover Slide

The cover slide is easy. It includes the name of your company, logo, and tagline (if you have one). You’ll also include details like the date, the buyer’s name or company, and your own name.

2. Introduction

This is a brief intro of you and your company. It sets you up as a trusted advisor. Talk about what your company does, how long you’ve been around, and any impressive stats (e.g., customer retention rate). You might also mention mutual connections or clients.

3. Problem Statement

Your first slide should be about the problems your buyer faces. They’ll have listed these out, but common types of pain points include:

• Product positioning
• Comunication and alignment
• Financial issues
• Operational inefficiencies
• Growth challenges

This is where you set up your story. Get affirmation that the buyer has felt these pains before moving along.

4. Risk Avoidance

What’s the cost of doing nothing? What is the cost to the buyer thus far? Use a slide or two to illustrate that (and visualize it with data). You’re reminding the buyer about the pain they’ve experienced.

5. Value Proposition

If your buyer is already thinking about the risks of inaction, you’ve set yourself up nicely for presenting your product. Share what the buyer stands to gain by choosing you as their solution in a few sentences. This is your “value proposition” pitch.

6. Product or Service Overview

Now, you can dive into the nitty gritty of your offering. In these slides, everything should be customized. You should have different features, benefits, and information prepared for different decision-makers and their requirements.

• Technical buyers want to know about the specs
• Executives need to see what it’ll do for their bottom line
• End users want a product that’s usable
• Budget controllers care about cost

Don’t waste time on features, use cases, or offerings your buyer won’t use. Narrow it down to only the most important details.

7. Customer Success Stories/Testimonials

Give one or two explanations of how your product/service helped similar customers. These should be short case studies that describe the problem, how your product solved it, and what the results were.

8. Competitive Analysis

This is your competitive differentiation pitch. Start by visually breaking down where each competitor stands in terms of features, pricing, and capabilities. Then, walk through comparison slides that show what makes you different.

9. Financial Projections

You won’t be able to accurately forecast cost savings or revenue increases because there are so many factors involved (in fact, you shouldn’t “promise” anything with a specific number). But, you can still have projections that show potential ROI based on your customer data and industry insights.

Pro tip: This works best if you’ve already quoted the prospect a ballpark price earlier in the sales process. You can show how much they’re leaving on the table vs. what their current solution is costing them.

10. Call to Action

What should the audience do next? If it’s a demo or trial, give them instructions for starting one. If it’s an agreement, talk about the next steps for contracting. Be specific and clear.

Sales Pitch Examples

To improve your conversion rate, you have to go above and beyond. The average decision-maker receives 121 emails per day. You have to stand out.

Here are two examples of fantastic sales pitches and what makes them great:

ActiveCampaign’s BDR Pitch

ActiveCampaign’s outbound business development team crafted a pitch that goes beyond customer problems by showcasing further benefits. Using their 85,000-member customer base as social proof, the pitch is customer-centric, emphasizing meaningful experiences for potential clients’ customers.

The pitch is concise, adaptable to the prospect’s specific business and pain points, and employs a unique strategy of “negative reverse-selling,” which builds credibility by showing understanding and empathy towards the prospect’s situation​​.

DoorBot’s Shark Tank Pitch

Jamie Siminoff, the founder of Ring (formerly DoorBot), used a direct demonstration approach on Shark Tank that was highly effective, even though he didn’t secure a deal on the show. He began by illustrating the problem in a real-world scenario, immediately engaging the audience without explicitly stating the issue.

By demonstrating the solution through his product and connecting it with a broader story about the opportunity in the market, he made a compelling case for his product. This approach is powerful as it demonstrates the product in action, establishes its reliability, and presents a clear opportunity, all wrapped in a story that connects with the audience.

Benefits of Using Sales Enablement Technology in Sales Pitches

Sales enablement encompasses the tools and processes used to support successful sales interactions, including pitches.

Using software platforms and plugins in your sales pitch can help your team:

• Handle on-the-spot objections with real-time suggestions
• Emulate the most successful pitches with AI analysis
• Personalize each pitch to different decision-makers and their needs
• Access presentation materials, customer success stories, and competitive analyses instantly
• Save time with automated follow-ups and engagement tracking
• Analyze pitches retrospectively for delivery, body language, and other factors

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