Buyers are savvier and more sceptical of salespeople than ever before. They’re fatigued by the same old sales messages and pitches, preferring to default to Google for information and research around possible solutions. As a result, if you want any sales pitch to be successful, you need to talk directly to your prospect’s pain points and challenges. Not only that, but it has to be structured to resonate with the prospect at the right time. No one likes being sold to, so stop trying to convince prospects to make a purchase. Instead, learn how to use 6 different types of sales pitches for the relevant scenarios and help prospects take the next step in the sales process.
What is a Sales Pitch?
A Sales Pitch is a messaging framework (also known as a script) salespeople use to lead audiences to a particular action, like scheduling a follow-up meeting or demonstration.
Sales Pitches can be informal or formal and don’t have a set format, often occurring anywhere, for example, verbally (cold call), nonverbally (email outreach) or something else entirely.
As Sales Pitches are a less formal version of a Sales Presentation, they’re also known as the Elevator Pitch; they are named as such because they should be able to be delivered within the time constraints of a single elevator ride.
Having a framework to shape your narrative will allow you to connect with your prospects on a deeper level.
However, they’re not a one-time thing. You can use different Sales Pitches for the same prospect throughout all stages of the sales process.
For example, you may raise awareness of your solution by giving a prospect an elevator pitch at a networking conference.
Later, you may send them a quick Email or Social Media Pitch and finish by delivering a sales presentation to a room full of decision-making executives.
Ultimately, an effective Sales Pitch sets the tone for the rest of the customer relationship by getting the buyer’s attention and communicating the value and benefits of your solution to the specific pain points and challenges of the prospect’s situation.
5 Elements of a Perfect Sales Pitch
You know what it does, but what makes a good sales pitch? Regardless of the situation, the following elements are essential for any sales pitch to be effective:
1. Research
Sadly, only 13% of buyers agree that salespeople genuinely understand their needs.
This a pretty damning statistic considering that if you can’t understand your prospect’s problems, you don’t stand a chance of becoming a part of their solution.
More so, prospects don’t care about solutions or features; they care about the value that comes with a suitable solution.
If your sales pitch is to be successful, you must thoroughly research prospects to understand what motivates them.
Identify pain points as you delve deeper into how they operate so that you can tailor their journey to provide insightful and value-based solutions.
2. Storytelling
At the heart of every perfect sales pitch is a story.
Stories help prospects visualise the value of your offering, especially when you make them the hero.
A great story always starts with a likeable protagonist who has an obstacle.
The hero can overcome the challenge through sheer determination and a little help from the product or service you are selling.
Usually, the story has a chronological beginning, middle, and satisfying ending. Regardless of format, every Sales Pitch often sounds something like this:
- States a change or issue affecting the prospect’s ability to perform to a certain standard
- Names the “enemy” or the problem
- Teases the prospect with the idea of what the situation would look like with a solution
- Highlights certain features of your solution that solve the prospect’s most significant challenges
- Concludes and legitimises the story with proof that the story itself is true (testimonials, data)
Your job as a salesperson is to connect your product and your prospect’s happy ending in a way that deeply resonates with them enough to take action.
How to Start a Sales Pitch?
You’re giving a sales presentation because you can provide a solution to a prospect’s problem. So start with the problem itself and the subsequent challenges and pain points your prospect experiences because of it.
3. A Value-Proposition
“What’s really in it for me?” is what every prospect wants to know. Why should they, or anyone, buy your product or service?
Suppose you can’t convince someone else that your product or service offers better value than your competitors.
In that case, there is no point in wasting any more time trying to sell your solution because you’ll only ever hear, “we’ll be in touch”, or worse, nothing at all.
To deliver a compelling sales pitch that wins, always ensure you arrive prepared with a value proposition that explicitly states how your company’s product or service benefits prospects.
For example, you can always follow the “value proposition formula” to get started. It goes like this:
(Your company name) helps (target audience) with (services) so you can (benefits).
Value Proposition Formula
4. Proof
Prospects are more likely to agree to the next steps if they’ve seen or heard proof that other people benefit from your solution.
To achieve this, always ensure you can back up what you’re saying with facts; have plenty of proof, like data or stats, when meeting with your prospect.
Any proof of your solution being compelling helps answer the “how can I believe you” question from prospects.
To do so successfully, consider sharing evidence such as:
- Client testimonials: Enhance your credibility impact with reasons other customers love doing business with you.
- Research data: Use industry expert quotes to create bridge statements from your features and benefits.
- Product comparisons against key competitors: Tell them why your solution is better.
5. A Specific Call-To-Action
A strong call to action at the end compels prospects to take action.
Whether that’s to buy now, take the following steps internally, or even start a free trial – you need to tell prospects what to do next.
8 Different Types of Sales Pitch Examples
While 5 core elements shape every sales pitch, having a concise framework can help deliver your message and narrative to prospects in a compelling way by assisting them to connect with your solution on a deeper level.
To shape this story into the appropriate scenario, salespeople will need to choose the right one from the 8 different types of sales pitches below:
- Elevator Sales Pitch
- Executive Sales Presentation Pitch
- Phone Sales Pitch
- Email sales pitch
- 60-second video pitch (One-minute sales pitch)
- Social media pitch (Including connection requests)
- Follow-up sales pitch
- Pain-point pitch
Now that you’ve discovered the 8 different types of sales pitches, check out examples of each that you can swipe and use today:
1. Elevator Sales Pitch
An elevator pitch is a compressed type of sales presentation where a salesperson has to explain the nature, the benefits and the solution their business offers all in under 60 seconds or less – hence the name. If you can concisely and accurately articulate what you do, why it’s important, and why the prospect should care, you’ll have much more time to talk specifics in the subsequent rest of the sales process. Discover how to craft an effective elevator sales pitch in the infographic below; alternatively, you can read our full guide.
When to Use an Elevator Sales Pitch?
The truth is, most people don’t talk in elevators, but it doesn’t make elevator sales pitches only helpful in pitching products and services to prospects. Elevator sales pitches are very versatile and can be used or back-pocketed for reasons such as selling a new idea to your CEO, explaining a change initiative you’re leading or simply just concisely explaining what you do for a job!
2. 60 Second Video Sales Pitch Template
A sales pitch video is an invaluable tool for increasing conversions on your website’s product and service landing pages. Start crafting your 60 Second Video Sales Pitch with our template and formula below:
3. Follow-Up Sales Pitch
Very few leads are ready to buy after just one discussion or interaction. That’s why you need to make sure you have multiple ways to reach out to prospects, engage and influence them as they continue to make their buying decision. Follow-up sales pitches are conducted in several ways, usually by telephone, email and social media. Discover some of our best follow-up sales pitch templates below
1. The Initial Follow Up
Did you get a chance to see my message about [product name]? I know it’s a busy Wednesday, but are you available this week to discuss [product name]?
Thanks, [your name]
Follow-Up Sales Pitch Example. 1
2. The Unresponsive Call Setter
Last week I sent through our brochure that details our [product name]. I haven’t heard from you since and just wanted to check if you received it, and if you had any questions? I’d like to organise a quick call to talk it over. Would Tuesday at 3PM work for you?
Follow-Up Sales Pitch Example.2
Discover additional follow-up sales pitch templates here in “How to follow up with unresponsive clients in 4 steps“
4. Social Media Sales Pitch
Too many people use Social Media, and LinkedIn in particular, solely as a broadcasting tool. However, Social Media is a noisy place – even in your prospects’ message inbox – so try listening to your customer base first instead of competing to see who can shout the loudest at potential customers.
Before sending any type of social media sales pitch, think about your buyer. What is relevant for them?
Don’t make the mistake of immediately sending out promotional material. That’s the quickest way to compromise or even lose the connection. Instead, focus on adding value.
Tom Abbott, Social Selling: 10 Strategies To prospect, position and present on social media
The best way to approach LinkedIn sales pitches is to personalise the connection message by letting them know who you are and why you want to connect. Showing a real-world association of having friends, schools or interests in common is a great way to get their attention and increase your chances of them wanting to connect with you. Therefore, to recap, when it comes to sending your prospect an initial LinkedIn connection, you must always follow these four rules for success:
For example:
Our company helps business owners like you, build high-performance sales teams. In fact, one of our recent client’s closing percentages increased from 20% to 50% within months of our training, based on the methodology from my sales book ‘The SOHO Solution’.
SOCO Sales Training’s Social Media Sales Pitch
5. Phone Sales Pitch
A phone sales pitch is very different from an in-person sales pitch. With phone sales pitches, you need to consider that you’ll have less overall time to engage the prospect and that they are generally less receptive to cold calls – which is why sales reps struggle to make them. Overall, the phone sales script has six different, equally important sections salespeople need to get right to engage prospects:
- Introducing yourself
- Building rapport
- Establishing credibility (why should they listen to you)
- Making your offer
- Getting a commitment
- Ending your sales call
You can use the following 6 part b2b phone sales script infographic to create compelling scripts for scheduling appointments that will resonate with your prospective customers, helping you schedule more appointments and ensure you’re dealing with a decision-maker.
6. Email Sales Pitch
Prospects are constantly prioritising their time, especially when it comes to emails. The average professional receives around 100 emails a day, so if you want your email sales pitch to be successful, you have to be serious about getting your foot in the door.
You have very little time to make a lasting impression. Rather than listing a million of your attributes, which gives the person a reason to skim your e-mail or close it,
make one key point. Tell them how you can add value or what it is about you that makes you perfect for them.
Check out our subject line and email sales pitch templates below to help you get started:
Cold Sales Email Example Subject Lines
- [Name], [Question]?
- [Number] tips for [pain point]
- Can I help?
- We have [Insert Common Fact] in common
- Quick question [Name]…
Cold Sales Email Pitch Examples & Templates
- [Prospect name], need help with [specific challenge]?
Hi (Prospect name),
Are you struggling with (specific issue) at (company name)?
I know from working with companies like yours, such as (name drop competitors) that the struggle is real.
I have a couple of ideas that might help – can we schedule a time to discuss this?
(Your signature) P.S. In the meantime, check out these resources I’ve put together that address (specific issue).
- [Pain-point] making you [emotion]? I can help.
Hi (Prospect name),
From your website and socials, I can tell that you’re trying to (accomplish/solve a specific goal or challenge your solution addresses). Without making too many assumptions about your goals, I’m optimistic (your solution) can play a pivotal role in your success.
While I’m familiar with your company, you might not be familiar with (your company name). We help businesses in (prospect industry) with three main goals:
(Your benefit #1)
(Benefit #2)
(Benefit #3)
Are you free on [day] at [time] for a short call to discuss how I can help?[Your email signature]
When to Use Different Types of Sales Pitches
The way salespeople sell to different types of prospects is entirely different. That’s why salespeople use different types of sales pitches to connect with different types of prospects. Not every prospect’s communication style will be the same, and the method you use to connect with them varies throughout the sales process. As a result, the method you use (email, sales presentation, social selling, phone) will not only affect the length and tone of your message but will also require different pitch templates to be successful. Below are the different processes and sales activities that often require effective, repeatable and adjustable sales pitches:
Cold Calling
The one surefire way to fail in cold calling is not having a clear-cut plan beforehand. By having a sales pitch ready, you get to the heart of your message quicker, giving prospects a compelling reason to keep listening in those crucial first five seconds. To be successful in this instance, salespeople invest the time to create a goal for each call and use what they know about the lead to come up with personalized points to cover before dialling. You will also need to know how you want to end the call whether the customer seems interested or not in what you were selling. Don’t just say goodbye. Instead, provide an actionable next step your prospect can take.
Social Selling
Establishing common ground is an essential key to social selling. Social media sales pitches on platforms like LinkedIn help quickly explain why you’ve chosen to reach out to the prospect – and why they should accept your connection.
Networking
Networking events are hectic; tell prospects what you do and why they should care in less than a minute to help stand out from the crowd.
Following-up
Prospects are busy people, especially c-level executives. While your offering, deal or solution may not be their top priority, that doesn’t mean you should give up altogether. Use sales pitches to follow up and confirm that prospects still want to continue with the next steps.
Inbound Sales
While inbound sales leads are already aware of your solution, they may not know the complete array of benefits. Tailoring a sales pitch to ask questions and help uncover specific needs ensures you can better present the proof and value of the benefits of your solution.
Outbound Sales
The key to outbound sales is prioritising the prospect’s time while also educating them on possible solutions in a way that resonates – following a sales pitch template can help ensure you include all your key information.
Tips for Writing a Winning Sales Pitch
While templates are a great place to start with a great sales pitch – following best practices is even better. Discover some top sales pitch tips below to deliver your message in a way that resonates:
Keep it Brief
Don’t overwhelm your audience and avoid presenting too much information too quickly. It is a much better approach to focus on one or two main points for the initial call and to use a follow-up email to delve into more details. Present information in organized short chunks, similar to bullet points, and remember to give your prospect time to ask questions.
Anticipate Objections
Start by listing the common objections people have given you in the past and then write a short rationale for each objection. Frame your response to each objection in a positive way and practice it. Think of examples of clients that had the same objection, found a way to overcome it and consequently benefited from using your products and services.
Ask for Feedback
No one stays engaged with a sales rep who talks for minutes without stopping. By asking for and receiving feedback throughout your sales pitch, you’ll be able to tell if it’s hitting the mark – or whether you need to adapt the approach.
Always Follow Up
Even if you’ve met the person in-person (unheard of!) and they seem interested – sometimes your leads go cold. That’s why the key to success in sales is that when you think you’ve followed up too many times – follow up again. It’s been reported that it takes an average of 4 attempts to get a response from a prospect, so if you’re giving up after one email, phone call or message after the fact of the sales pitch – you’re losing business.
Get the Skills to Present the Perfect Sales Pitch
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