A few years ago I was with a client who was pitching at a travel event and she was horrified – not only was her closest competitor in the room, he was scheduled to pitch directly after her!

She was comfortable pitching and comfortable changing her content dependent on time, place and audience. However, that that day she had to give it all she had – not only was he straight after her – he was younger, far more good looking and the ladies in the room “couldn’t get enough of him!”

 “Remember”, I told her, “it’s not about what you do, it’s how you do it and how your prospects benefit, that is the difference between you and him.”

I waited with baited breath as she got up to deliver…..

She chose to share a testimonial from one of her past clients. It was not necessarily the words that she would have personally used, but the testimonial was about the things her client had loved, why she would refer others to her business and why she would do the experience again.

She was the only person in the room to share a testimonial. Because it was genuine, (she literally read the email off her phone) and spoke to the benefits her company offered she stood out. There was a queue of prospects who “wanted the same experience” and she closed some pretty good deals that day!

Back to Mr Good Looking, he delivered his pitch – who he was and how to contact him, but somehow it lacked the spark, in comparison it was dull. HE even went to my client to say “WOW, you blew me out the water back there, how could I compete with that?!”

There are times you need to think on your feet, situations come up, they change, things happen. My recommendation, particularly if you are heading into a networking environment where your competitors may be pitching, is to be sure you have a pitch up your sleeve to ensure that you stand out!

Lets be honest, a travel agent is a travel agent right? WRONG! It’s about finding your unique selling points, highlighting these and ensuring that you stand out!!!The same applies to ANY business!

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