How you present yourself, makes all the difference as to how you are perceived. From how you present yourself in person, in writing and in your sales presentations. At audit, presentation is very important to us, obviously.
MSPs use audIT to make the technical information they gather understandable to non-technical clients. We know that the way MSPs present makes a big impact on their sales success and bottom line.
I recently interviewed author Anne Janzer for the Elevating IT podcast. Anne has written several books on writing and marketing. As well, she coaches non-fiction authors.
Anne’s book; “Writing To Be Understood: What Works And Why” caught my attention. The book does a great job of illustrating the importance of simplifying communication.
In this interview, Anne shares a ton of great information and tips on how to speak to non-technical people in a way they can understand. Which if you follow the audIT blog or are an audIT user, is extremely important to being able to close more sales.
Here are some standout short clips from our interview (and the full interview below):
Clip 1: The Curse of Knowledge
We have talked a lot about the curse of knowledge and how it can really get in the way when selling. Here’s what Anne has to say about this.
Clip 2: The cognitive burden (Don't do this to your clients)
Here’s what happens when the presentation and what you’re talking about is too technical. As an MSP you will always have to talk tech. But you also need to be sure to make it as clear as possible for the non-technical person on the other side of the table.
Clip 3: Are you using the right words?
The words you choose are important. Whether on a page or spoken. In this clip Anne talks about why you want to choose your words carefully.
Clip 4: Dumping data won’t win business
Data is essential. But it won’t help you change your prospect or client’s mind. Here’s what can happen.
Clip 5: A very simple storytelling method
Instead of dumping data on your client, use story. But this can be easier said than done. Here’s how Anne recommends you do it.
Clip 6: Help your client visualize to make a deeper connection
More on the difference between using too much tech-talk and keeping it simple. Here’s why it is so important.
Clip 7: Being smart can actually hurt in sales presentations
MSPs are going to score pretty high on that knowledge scale. Here’s more on why this can be your enemy if you’re not careful. This is from a study by Daniel Oppenheimer
https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2006-04065-001
Clip 8: A test that proves simpler sales presentations will win over more technical
Here’s how you can understand better what your own prospect or client might be going through. This is a great illustration that proves the importance of being understood over presenting with technical data or even being mildly complex.
Clip 9: A tip to help keeping the complex tech talk out of the presentation
Anne mentions a new study from the Columbia Business School. It talks about the psychological dangers of using industry jargon (aka “Tech Talk”). The study demonstrates that lower status people tend to use more jargon. This could be because people feel less secure therefore trying to beef up their credentials. When this is detected, the prospect may see you as a lower level than you are.
Clip 10: The mark of a true expert
It is easy to get caught in the trap of using tech talk because we think it makes us look smart. And when we look smart, our prospects and clients see we are experts. But it actually has the opposite effect.
Watch the full episode
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