Do you talk about your opposition when presenting your Perfect Pitch?

You have 30 seconds to convince a prospect to do business with you…. Why on earth would you want to speak about another business in that valuable 30 seconds?

Have you ever heard a pitch where the person pitching mentions the opposition? It could be running a comparison; speaking of non-compliance of others in your industry or simple naming the opposition.

  • Comparing Price / Service… “Not only do our services / products cost less than ABC Suppliers, we also far more superior service.”
  • Mentioning negativity around industry standards …”Many of our competitors in our market segment do not meet all the legal standards.”
  • Naming the opposition…. “You may be familiar with Big Joes Housing Real Estate? ….”

Although these may feel like “easy go to’s” when presenting your pitch as you believe it makes you look better, the 3 questions to ask yourself are:

  1. What VALUE does it add to your pitch?
  2. What VALUE does it take away from what you do?
  3. Have you set your opposition up for success?

Lets explore this for a moment…

  • Comparing Price / Service: There are 2 potential negative effects 1) If they LIKE ABC Suppliers, they will not feel inclined to do business with you in any mean or form and 2) If your prospect think ABC Suppliers is “cheap and nasty”, your comment on price may unknowingly place you in the same category in your prospects mind.
  • Mentioning negativity around industry standards: By mentioning that other are NOT complaint may make your prospect wonder if you TOO are not 100% compliant, AND, may put your prospect “off” your industry (and potentially YOU being in that industry). As an industry player you should always hold your industry in high esteem,
  • Naming the opposition: They may not have even KNOWN about the other company and with the name in hand may well reach out to them to get a comparative quote.

So what is the solution? How can you elevate yourself without de-positioning your opposition?

Highlight what you DO do, highlight what makes you UNIQUE; highlight your unique Selling Points.

The Result….. You have focused all the attention on you and your business; if you make mention of your Unique Selling Points, your prospect MAY reach out to your opposition AND may have questions for them (around price, service, legal standards which you have highlighted as YOUR Selling Points). If your opposition does not “match or better you”….. they have de-positioned themselves!

You have 30 seconds to convince a prospect to do business with you…. Make it about YOU!

For more key concepts come back to the weekly blogs!