ProductLed Podcast

How to Build a Winning Sales Pitch with April Dunford

Oct 3, 2023

Positioning expert and bestselling author April Dunford shares insights on building a winning sales pitch. She emphasizes the importance of a compelling narrative and distinct differentiation. April provides an example of Help Scout's sales pitch and shares her eight-step process for crafting an effective pitch, including solid positioning, emotional starting points, API value, and addressing objections.

37:11

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Episode guests

April Dunford

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Quick takeaways

A winning sales pitch should effectively outline the market context, differentiators, and the unique value a product offers, guiding the customer to choose the solution.

Building a compelling sales pitch starts with understanding positioning and differentiators, structuring the pitch to highlight the product at a high level, showcase differentiated value, and conclude with a clear ask for the next step.

Deep dives

Importance of a Killer Sales Pitch

A killer sales pitch is crucial for every company as it helps the customer confidently make the right choice and avoid decision paralysis. Without a strong sales pitch, customers may settle for the status quo or postpone their decision indefinitely. Many sales meetings focus on feature walkthroughs, overwhelming the customer and failing to convey unique value. A well-crafted sales pitch outlines the market context, differentiators, and the value a product offers, guiding the customer to choose the solution. With a compelling sales pitch, customers are more likely to be engaged and make a purchase.

Introduction

2min

The Importance of a Killer Sales Pitch

2min

The Importance of Context in a Sales Pitch

6min

Differentiating and Pitching a Customer Service Solution

4min

Crafting a Winning Sales Pitch

21min

Finding More about the Guest and their Podcast, Books, and Future Projects

2min

In the fiercely competitive landscape of product-led businesses, we often become entangled in the complexities of features and endless comparisons. Can you relate? However, to outshine your competitors, you must master the art of a winning sales pitch.

Our guest expert is April Dunford, a positioning expert and bestselling author of "Obviously Awesome" and "Sales Pitch." Emphasizing the significance of a compelling narrative and distinct differentiation, April underscores these points with a sales pitch example from Help Scout, a customer service software company. She imparts eight crucial steps for crafting an effective sales pitch, which she discusses in more depth as the episode unfolds.

Key Takeaways:

[00:10] Introduction of episode and guest April Dunford

[01:50] April’s insights on the need for a killer sales pitch

[04:10] The role of context in a sales pitch

[05:50] Signs your sales pitch needs improvement

[07:00] Characteristics of a winning sales pitch

[13:45] Example: Help Scout’s Sales Pitch

[14:45] Importance of a strong point of view

[16:05] April’s eight-step process for building a sales pitch

[16:35] Step 1: Solid Positioning

[18:30] Step 2: Emotional Starting Point

[19:20] Step 3: Insight and API Value

[20:10] Step 4: Pros and Cons of Alternatives

[21:00] Step 5: Paint the Perfect World (ideal solution and alignment)

[22:55] Step 6: Align the Audience (with the ideal solution)

[27:55] Step 7: Option to Address Objections

[28:40] Step 8: Make the Ask (for the next step in the sales process)

[29:10] Mistakes to avoid in a sales pitch

[32:00] Importance of sales involvement in the positioning process

[34:50] April’s podcast and book

About April Dunford:

April Dunford is a positioning expert for growing tech companies and the best-selling author of "Obviously Awesome" and “Sales Pitch.” She shares insights on startups, marketing, positioning, and B2B marketing.

Based in Toronto, Canada, April is the founder of Ambient Strategy and has a track record of working with over 200 companies, from startups to Fortune 500 firms, helping them develop positioning strategies that set them apart in the market.

Links:

April Dunford | LinkedIn

April Dunford | website + books

Positioning with April Dunford