Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career

A step-by-step guide to crafting a sales pitch that wins | April Dunford (author of Obviously Awesome and Sales Pitch)

Oct 22, 2023

01:30:52

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April Dunford, author and expert in sales pitching, shares invaluable insights and tactics on creating effective sales pitches. Topics include crafting a sales pitch for value, helping buyers overcome inertia, importance of differentiated value and insight, walking away from business that's not a good fit, category creation and extending boundaries, the Bowling Pin Strategy, aligning with the customer's point of view, refining sales pitches, exploring different frameworks, the value of writing skills in product marketing, and the perseverance in business.

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Quick takeaways

Crafting a compelling sales pitch that reflects differentiated value improves the effectiveness of the overall sales process.

Arming the champion with necessary information and resources to handle objections from other stakeholders facilitates consensus within the buying team.

Maintaining a posture of honest and effective communication by being transparent about the product's strengths and limitations helps establish trust with customers.

Refining and tightening the sales pitch, focusing on differentiated value, increases the success rate and conversion of deals.

Deep dives

Understanding the Challenge of Decision-Making

The majority of B2B purchase processes end in no decision because buyers struggle to confidently make a choice. Rather than sticking with the old solution or finding a better alternative, buyers often delay the decision out of fear of making the wrong choice. This highlights the need for companies to help customers feel more comfortable in making a decision and provide them with the tools and information they need to confidently choose their product or service.

What b2b Buyers are looking for

01:23

Sales Call Structure Part 1: Market Setup - Insight, Evaluation, Perfect World

01:13

As a challenger, find ways to derisk the decision

03:22

How to find your differentiated value

04:11

Introduction

4min

Crafting a Sales Pitch for Value

8min

Crafting an Effective Sales Pitch

16min

The Importance of Helping Buyers and Overcoming Inertia

14min

The Importance of Differentiated Value and Insight in a Sales Pitch

3min

The Importance of Walking Away and Qualification Calls

3min

Category Creation and Extending Boundaries

4min

Exploring the Bowling Pen Strategy for Market Domination

2min

Crafting a Sales Pitch: Aligning with the Customer's Point of View

6min

10.

Crafting and Refining the Sales Pitch

15min

11.

Exploring Different Frameworks and Approaches in Sales Pitches

5min

12.

The Importance of Writing Skills in Product Marketing

3min

13.

The Value of Perseverance in Business

8min

April Dunford is a speaker, mentor, podcaster, best-selling author, and beloved returning guest to the show. Last year, she joined me on the pod to discuss product positioning and differentiated value. Today, April offers invaluable insights from her latest book, Sales Pitch: How to Craft a Story to Stand Out and Win. We go deep on the art of effective pitching and selling, and April shares the specific framework she’s used to successfully pitch products at companies like Google, IBM, Postman, and Epic Games. Together we discuss:

• Tactical advice on pitch creation and testing

• Real-life examples of companies transforming their narratives into successful sales strategies

• How to combat customer inaction

• How to become your prospect’s guide in their buying journey

• The importance of differentiated value

• Marketing’s role in the process

• Why you should avoid FOMO as a sales strategy

• Tips for handling objections

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Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-step-by-step-guide-to-crafting

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Where to find April Dunford:

• Website: https://www.aprildunford.com/

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aprildunford/

• Newsletter: https://aprildunford.substack.com/

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Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/