When you're giving a sales presentation to a prospective customer, it's key to keep the engagement and interest levels high. When you're presenting online, the delivery is even more important. If the prospect doesn't see the value of what you can deliver, you'll have a hard time making the sale.

Sean McPheat, founder and managing director of MTD Sales Training, says sales professionals can deliver a first-rate online sales presentation by following a few simple tips. In this issue of Promotional Consultant Today, we share McPheat's thoughts on how to excel at virtual sales presentations that engage your audience and close deals.

Cue up your media. If the file is large it is probably best to run it from a USB rather than to wait for the data to buffer, says McPheat. If you are streaming the content from the web, this requires a little more thought and consideration.
Avoid specifics. When working with figures, McPheat says it's best to stay away from specifics. For example, 76.4 percent is roughly ¾, so use this instead.

Just keep going. If you forget what you are going to say, as this happens more frequently than you think, simply advance to the next slide, recommends McPheat. Nobody need know and the flow will be sustained.

Contemplate your slides for the next time. If for any reason the slide that you put on screen did not make perfect sense to the audience, McPheat says it's worthwhile to build it slowly in a different way, redesign it or delete it altogether.

Rehearse your presentation. McPheat says you should know your sales presentation to the point of knowing what's going to happen with every click of your mouse button or remote.

Use the power of a pause. When people feel an awkward silence, they often feel compelled to fill it somehow, says McPheat. Use this to your advantage to learn more about your prospect's pain points.

Refrain from apologizing. No matter what happens in your virtual presentation, you should never apologize, says McPheat. This can undermine the work and effort you invested in your presentation.

Don't criticize. This follows the tip above—don't criticize your own presentation. McPheat recalls attending a webinar recently where the presenter opened with, "Sorry about the quality of the slides. I just threw something together over the weekend." This is not only unprofessional, but also sets the tone for the prospect that you invested very little effort.
Get your facts straight. If you use figures in your presentation, McPheat urges you to double check them and make sure they're consistent from start to finish.

Have a back-up plan in place. Just like things can go wrong in a physical presentation, the same thing is true when delivering a virtual presentation. McPheat says you should have a tablet available in case your laptop fails and spare batteries handy in case your remote or mouse goes out.

Giving an online sales presentation requires some forethought. It's not the same as going into a prospect's office and presenting around a table to a group of people. The more you present online, the more comfortable and confident you'll feel.

Compiled by Audrey Sellers

Source: Sean McPheat is founder and managing director of MTD Sales Training, which offers various kinds of sales training for all levels of sales professionals.