Get Great Sales Presentation Training – 11 Top Tips

Do you want better sales presentations skills? Would you benefit from sales presentation training? How do you improve your sales presentation skills? What can you learn with sales presentation coaching?

Meet the Author: Paul Farrow

Paul is a partner at Benjamin Ball Associates, leads the media and sales coaching teams. He advises a wide range of companies, particularly in financial services. Paul’s background combines PR (MD, Financial Services at Fishburn), financial journalism (Deputy Editor at IFR magazine) and investment banking (Swiss Bank Corp, FG Inversiones Bursatiles and Ahorro Corporacion). He speaks fluent Spanish.  Follow Paul on LinkedIn or visit the contact page. 

Why Sales Presentation Training is Valuable

With sales presentation training you can learn how to make a sales presentation more successful and improve sales pitches.

We all know that a good sales presentation will impress your customer. It will make it more likely that your customer wants to buy from you.

But, what seem to happen is…..

The fluorescent lights hum. Faces behind polished conference tables grimace through forced smiles. A PowerPoint slide drones on about market share…

Do you recognise this? This is the reality of many sales presentations. But you can get beyond dull slide shows with sales presentation training.

Because, if you know the best practice of sales presentations, you’ll be better at running sales meetings and sales pitches.

 Benefits of Sales Presentation Training 

Sales presentation coaching transforms you from good at selling into being exceptional. By improving your delivery, storytelling and persuasion techniques, you’ll close more deals, build stronger relationships and stand out from competitors. Coaching helps you: 

• Boost your confidence – Eliminate nerves and present with authority
• Improve engagement – Keep prospects hooked with compelling narratives
• Handle objections effortlessly – Turn challenges into opportunities
• Shorten your sales cycles – Deliver clear, persuasive pitches that drive decisions faster. 

Investing in coaching is more than learning skills. It’s about building new processes and behaviours that will improve your sales success.  

 What to Expect From BBA Sales Presentation Training 

Effective sales presentation training goes beyond generic tips. It’s a structured, personalised approach to mastering the art of persuasion. Here’s what you can expect from our top-tier training: 

• Audience analysis – Learn how to tailor your pitch to different buyers
• Storytelling structures – Replace boring pitches with stories your prospects will remember
• Interactive role-playing – Practise handling tough questions, so you’re always prepared
• Non-verbal mastery – Use your body language and tone to reinforce your messages
• Feedback & refinement – Video reviews and expert critiques to sharpen your skills. 

Our programme blends theory with real-world application and uses extensive role-play, so that you leave ready to win. 

What makes a great sales presentation? Here are eleven core sales pitch techniques that apply, no matter what you’re selling. They will help you make a positive impression, come across memorably and will help you engage, inspire and convert:

Read more about sales presentation skills training and how to create great sales presentations:

1. Excavate the Gems: Deep Dive into Your Audience

Think of your potential customers as a diamond mine. Beneath the surface lie the glinting gems of their customer needs, challenges and aspirations. Uncover these treasures through research, interviews and active listening.

Tailor your sales presentation to meet their specific needs rather than talk about your product’s generic features. Remember, potential customers are not interested in another generic pitch; they want a personalised service – where you help them unearth the solution they desperately need.

“Don’t sell life insurance. Sell what life insurance can do.”
Ben Feldman, American businessman and one of the most prolific salespeople in world history

2. Craft a Compelling Narrative, Not a Corporate Infomercial

Structure is your scaffolding; and a captivating narrative is the art that adorns it. Ditch the linear, bullet-point-laden slides. Instead, show powerful sales presentation skills and weave a story with a hero (your prospect), a villain (their challenge) and a magical elixir (your solution).

Introduce conflict, build suspense and then unleash the triumphant solution — your product as the shining knight on a white charger. Make them look up, make them lean in, make them desperate for the happy ending.

Having a single persuasive message is more powerful than 100 pages of PowerPoint.

3. Unleash the Visual Wizard: Visuals with Bite, Not Buzzwords

PowerPoint can be your brush, but don’t paint with the boring beige of data dumps and stock photos. Infuse your slides with visuals that pack a punch – think infographics that dance with data, images that evoke emotions and charts that tell stories, not just scream “statistics!” Remember, a single, potent image can resonate louder than a firing squad of bullet points.

Or even better, ditch the PowerPoint and use samples, examples, stories and questions.

Why Pick Benjamin Ball Associates for Your Sales Coaching

At Benjamin Ball Associates, we’ve been coaching business people to improve their business communication skills for over 15 years.  Our coaching is fast and effective.  We work with individuals and with companies, one-to-one and in groups.  Call us today to learn more.

“I honestly thought it was the most valuable 3 hours I’ve spent with anyone in a long time.”

Mick May, CEO, Blue Sky

Our most popular training courses include:

• Presentation Coaching
• Public Speaking Coaching
• Investor Pitch Support and Coaching

Trusted by some of the most successful companies globally

Speak to Louise on +44 20 7018 0922 or email info@benjaminball.com to transform your speeches, pitches and presentations.

Speak to an expert. Get a free consultation

4. Master the Art of Conversation: From Pitch to Dialogue

Presentations are a two-way street, not a one-way toll road. Be ready to ask questions, field questions, address concerns and adapt your pitch on the fly. Embrace the unscripted moments, the improvised riffs that demonstrate your product’s value and your own expertise.

The best salespeople with winning sales presentation skills are not just sales presenters; they’re conversation architects, building bridges of understanding and forging relationships that lead to deals.

“Most people think ‘selling’ is the same as ‘talking’. But the most effective salespeople know that listening is the most important part of their job.”
Roy Bartell, sales expert

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR SALES PRESENTATION SKILLS

If you want to transform your sales presentation skills, then find out more about our award-winning sales presentation training courses.

5. Practice Like a Pro: From Rehearsal Room to Stage

Rome wasn’t built in a day and effective presentations don’t materialise overnight. Hone your sales presentation skills through rigorous rehearsals. Get feedback from colleagues, mentors and (gasp!) even your family.

Polish your delivery until it shines, anticipate questions and objections with the grace of a seasoned fencer. Remember, practice makes perfect – and in the high-stakes world of sales pitches, perfect can mean the difference between a handshake and a closed door.

“The key to success is self-confidence. The key to self-confidence is preparation.”
Arthur Ashe, Tennis legend

Speak to an expert. Get a free consultation

6. Embrace the Unexpected: The Art of Grace under Pressure

Technical glitches, audience distractions, the dreaded dropped coffee cup – these are the gremlins of the presentation world. So, embrace the unexpected as an opportunity to show your flexibility and quick thinking.

A witty quip in the face of a projector meltdown, a ‘spontaneous’ (ie carefully prepared) anecdote to refocus a wandering audience, these are the hallmarks of someone who has mastered their sales presentation skills.

So ditch the tired tropes and the predictable patterns. Remember, you’re not just presenting a product; you’re crafting an experience, an emotional journey that leads your client to the promised land of “Yes!”

Let your sales presentations include storytelling, engagement and conversion. Use your sales skills wisely and watch your audience not just nod, but actively join you in the chorus of “That was one hell of a presentation!”

7. Great Sales People Don’t Present

Instead, the best sales people speak to their customer directly. It is all too easy to fall into the trap of “giving a presentation” when you really need to have a conversation with your customer. Yes, visual aids (slides) and handouts have a role, but they should be “aids” to support what you say, rather than guiding what you are saying.

“The best salespeople know that their expertise can become their enemy in selling. At the moment they are tempted to tell the buyer what “he needs to do,” they instead offer a story about a peer of the buyer.”

Mike Bosworth, author of Solution Selling

Great sales presentation training will help you build these skills.

8. Uncover What Your Customer Really Wants

Ideally do this with a pre-meeting call, or start the meeting by asking them. Most people are very happy to talk about themselves, their business and their needs. You can then spend the rest of the sales meeting addressing the points that the customer has raised, rather than the ones you guessed that they might raise.

“A good listener is not only popular everywhere, but after a while he knows something.”
Wilson Mizner, playwright

IMPROVE YOUR SALES PRESENTATION SKILLS

Build winning sales presentation skills. Discover how with award-winning sales presentation training.

9. Keep Asking Questions Throughout the Sales Meeting

• Is what you are saying of interest?
• What do they like about other suppliers?
• What concerns do they have?

If you can establish and remove each of those concerns, you are closer to  closing a sale. Great sales presentation skills involves asking questions – the right questions.

Questioning is the most critical sales skill you can learn.

10. And Again, Tell Stories

Your stories will make you stand out from the crowd when you are competing against other firms with very similar products or services. What are the best examples of the difference that your services have made to another customer? Impress the decision maker by showing you understand their real world problems by telling stories that demonstrate product knowledge.

People remember stories, not bullet points. Learn how to tell stories.

11. Reconsider Whether You Use PowerPoint in your Sales Presentation

There were sales pitches before PowerPoint; many successful sales professionals and sales managers have now abandoned it. Could you use A3 boards, short videos or maybe a scrapbook-style document that you’ve clearly prepared just for that client?

You have a wide variety of delivery options beyond PowerPoint presentation skills. Take your sales skills to the next level without slides.

Be creative: you will stand out and be remembered.

Key Factors to Consider Before Sales Training 

Not all sales training is equal. Before you commit, ask yourself: 

• Is it customised? Generic training wastes your time. Look for programmes tailored to your industry
• Does it build practical skills? Avoid theory-heavy courses; prioritise what you can use straight away
• Who’s coaching you? Trainers should have real sales experience, not just textbook knowledge. 
• How is your progress measured? The best training tracks metrics (e.g., conversion rates, deal size)
• Will it stick? Post-coaching support (e.g., follow-up sessions) makes sure you keep improving. 

Choose wisely. The right training should pay for itself in your next closed deal. 

 How to Determine Your Sales Training Needs 

Before you decide on which training you want, diagnose your team’s gaps: 

• Are your prospects zoning out? → Work on engagement and storytelling
• Struggling with objections? → Train in handling pushback
• Low conversion rates? → Improve pitch clarity and your call-to-action
• Nervous presenters? → Build confidence through practice and feedback. 

Record your past pitches or survey your clients for honest feedback. The right training fixes your specific weaknesses. 

 Sales Presentation Coaching That Works – Train with BBA 

At Benjamin Ball Associates, we don’t just train. We transform your sales effectiveness. Our coaching is: 

• Results-driven: Proven to increase your win rates and deal sizes. 
• Tailored: Customised for your industry, whether you’re in financial services, tech, or B2B sales. 
• Expert-led: Coaches with decades of real-world sales success guiding you. 
• Interactive: Role-playing, video analysis and real-time feedback to perfect your technique. 

We Can Support You to Build Your Sales Presentation Skills

To discuss your sales pitches and coaching for your sales presentation skills and hear how we’ve helped others become more effective, contact Louise by calling 020 7018 0922 or emailing info@benjaminball.com.

Speak to an expert. Get a free consultation

Why Choose Us:
Transform your pitches and presentations with tailored coaching

We can help you present brilliantly. Thousands of people have benefitted from our tailored in-house coaching and advice – and we can help you too.

“I honestly thought it was the most valuable 3 hours I’ve spent with anyone in a long time.”

Mick May, CEO, Blue Sky

For 15+ years we’ve been the trusted choice for leading businesses and executives throughout the UK, Europe and the Middle East. We’ll help you improve corporate presentations through presentation coaching, public speaking training and expert advice on pitching to investors.

Some recent clients

Unlock your full potential and take your presentations to the next level.

Speak to Louise on +44 20 7018 0922 or email info@benjaminball.com to transform your speeches, pitches and presentations.

Speak to an expert. Get a free consultation

Speak to an expert. Get a free consultation

How to make a standout sales presentation

Watch this video on improving sales and new business pitches and presentations

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Read our Ultimate Guide to Business Presentations