What’s in a word?

As I was putting together my latest client pitch presentation, I was reminded of the importance of the almighty word. You see, when I go to pitch a client on what my company does, I often present a, “fancy,  eye-catchy” video, custom animations, and interactive solutions to make their heads turn. My view – let them see what we do. Usually this works, and after a swanky presentation they want to know more about what my agency can do for their marketing efforts. However, at my last client pitch meeting, as I was getting my AV and computer set up, the CEO of the company entered the room asked me who I was and then proceeded to say, “Tell me about how your company can help us to increase sales.” I was gobsmacked.  The client didn’t want to see my visuals, they didn’t want my customized though prepared presentation, they didn’t want to “see” anything – they wanted answers; they wanted to talk and understand in “words” how I could help them. And so I spent the next 40 minutes or so having an honest-to-goodness two-way conversation – no visuals needed. The result:  a new client. The moral: even though a picture is worth a thousand words, never ever underestimate the power of the spoken word.

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