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Some tips for anyone pitching to win new business

July 12th, 2010 | Add a Comment

A short presentation to help you prepare for a pitch and to rethink how you plan. Based on our experience of working with pitch teams, we have identified the mistakes we all make when pitching. Pitching for new business – how to win new business View more presentations from Benjamin Ball Associates – Presentation Training. … Read entire article »

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Tips for hedge funds pitching to investors

A short overview of the essentials for hedge funds to pitch successfully to investors. Prepared for GAIM10 next week.  Download free investor pitch booklet … Read entire article »

Pitching to investors – the most common mistakes made by hedge funds

Many hedge funds could be better at pitching to investors.  From our work, helping teams pitch and persuade more effectively, we have identified the five  most common investment pitching mistakes: 1. Not understanding the investor. Too many people go out with a generic presentation and expect it to work for everyone.  You should personalise for each investor.  For example, their attitude to risk, their history of investing and their mandate will all drive how they listen to you.  By  understanding what matters to that investor you can become very persuasive. 2. Over-reliance on Power Point. While written materials are important, an investor pitch meeting is all about the people.  Don’t let your document drive the meeting. 3.  … Read entire article »

Pitching for new business – where to start?

We spend a lot of time helping clients pitch for new business.  This can be business from new clients or from existing clients.  Interestingly, many people make the same basic mistake when pitching.  The maddening thing is, this mistake is obvious. What is this obvious pitching mistake and why do people make it? The big mistake is talking about yourself too much. For example, if I have invited you to pitch for a bit of business, the last thing I want to hear are your other big clients and the awards you have won.  I want to hear about me, my problem and what you are going to do to fix it.    Yet, we see this … Read entire article »

The election has changed the rules of media interviews

For the last 13 years we have got used to a certain type of media interview.  The interviewer is aggressive and the interviewee is trying to get their points across, often without any true conversation.  Listening to Ed Miliband on the Andrew Marr show last week was typical of this style.  But, post election, Ed sounded so last government: hectoring, arrogant and not listening. The new coalition politics seem to be changing this.  Media interviews with new ministers sound very different.  The new coalition seems less concerned about sound bites and repeated messages.  As a consequence the interviews are softening.  Interviewees now focus more on understanding and explanation.   The interviewer gets to think a bit more and … Read entire article »

A new ebook on pricing

This new book is not only beautiful to look at, it has some useful insights into pricing. Have a look at  Fixed to Flexible by Todd Sattersten.  In particular he gives some examples from the book publishing industry which seems to be learning from what their colleagues in the movie business have been doing for a long time – differential pricing based on time and format. Ben … Read entire article »

How NOT to Prepare a Presentation

This what most people do to prepare presentations: Switch on their computer Open up PowerPoint Search out other presentations given recently Start making changes to PowerPoint slides Print out the first batch of slides Scribble all over them Re-edit these slides Keep on at the slides until late at night Work at it over the weekend Give it to a colleague to look at Incorporate those comments Work until late at night again Rehearse in the taxi on the way to the meeting Start with “Hello, my name is John Smith and I am here today to talk about…..” This process is akin to making a movie by going out with a camera hoping to find interesting things to film. It is why so many presentations are deathly boring. … Read entire article »

You are the presentation – a slideshare document

Test Upload – You Are The Presentation View more presentations from Benjamin Ball Associates – Presentation Training. … Read entire article »

Favourite Scam Emails – Joke of the Day

This is a good one (so completely stupid…) received today: Anti-Terrorist and Monetary Crimes Division Fbi Headquarters In Washington, D.C. Federal Bureau Of Investigation J. Edgar Hoover Building 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, D.C. 20535-0001 ATTENTION: SIR. For your information, we have been authorized by the President Barrack Obama to get everyone who is involved in money laundry and terrorism; this was as a result of what happened by a Nigerian man with reported links to al-Qaida tried to blow up a US airliner with a new type of explosive device Friday before being tackled by passengers in what officials said was an attempted Christmas Day terror. Now your name has also been included in the list of terrorism and money laundry … Read entire article »

Top ten tips for putting together a presentation

Top ten tips for putting together a presentation

I am often asked for a few tips on putting presentations and talks together. To complement the various guides I have written and courses I run, I have assembled this collection of quotations which get across the advice that most people require for effective presentations. “There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all” Peter … Read entire article »

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