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Not using PowerPoint as a crutch - You are in charge

When we have landed the opportunity to present, especially in the sales environment, often we realize that our pitch deck is inadequate. Upon setting out to develop our revised, revamped, newly developed presentation we encounter by mistake a philosophy that turns the PowerPoint deck into the holy grail of the opportunity meeting.

A presentation utilizing Microsoft PowerPoint is a great tool to help conduct a successful sales meeting, but where in your sales 101 course did the presentation deck become the entire meeting?

The PowerPoint deck should be an element of your well-orchestrated meeting, a very important element as the principles of neuro-marketing apply to visual stimulation. However, your meeting needs to demonstrate that you are not using a PowerPoint deck as a crutch. There is more to you than a presentation. After all the audience will make an impression of you personally and will determine part of their decision to buy or develop business with you based on whether they actually like you. A PowerPoint presentation cannot convey those personal attributed.

The “lamp” time when the computer/projector is turned on, should be no more than 50% of your allotted meeting time. When the lamp goes off, you want to engage on a personal level and demonstrate to the audience that you are not reliant on a PowerPoint presentation, that you offer more as a person with vision, commitment, and integrity. That you are in charge!