Tag Archives: pitchcoach

The eyes have it.

A programme on BBC2 on Thursday evening, “Media Revolution; Tomorrow’s TV”, looked at the phenomenal worldwide success of programme ideas originated here. In the States, where superlatives are the norm, American Idol is “the biggest show by far” and has been for five years.

Some 40 countries have their own ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ but leading the field is “Who wants to be a Millionaire”, already in 107 countries. The format is stricly adhered to including casting the right host, someone who can be the Chris Tarrant (of, in this case, Albania) or the compellingly awful show host in Slumdog Millionaire.

The programme followed the all important auditions under the scrutiny of veteran Rod Taylor, (Head of Production for the show owner, 2 way traffic). His is the vital decision in selecting the host, the person around whom the show revolves, the biggest job in television locally.

Rod takes this decision in his stride. “His inabilty to speak Albanian gives him no problem in deciding who will win the audition”!

From body language and tone, he could judge who would make the better presenter, who had the confidence, and how they would respond to the camera and how the camera would respond to them. He could see who was, or was not, comfortable.

For me, this story is the most vivid demonstration of a recurring pitchcoach theme, it’s not what you say, it’s the way you say it. Together with reminder that only 8% of communication effect is purely verbal, the rest is visual and tone.

You might say this is music to my ears, except that from now on at rehearsals, I will wear ear plugs!

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A formula for conversion (the holy grail)

It goes wIthout saying that the end game in any pitch is to convert the prospect into a client. Companies that are good at pitching will win more pitches, and have a better conversion rate, than those that are not, even though they may be similiar in other aspects of their performance.

This obvious truth holds across all types of business, where pitching is equally competitive, but it tends to be more publicly discussed in advertising than other fields. The award winning TV series Mad Men spices its drama with pitches but it is the trade magazine Campaign that leads the way with its league tables.

The most recent of these just published is the AAR’s Pitching Tables for 2008. This reveals that “the best performing agency in terms of pitch conversion was Team Saatchi which converted all of the five pitches it competed in”. No other agency achieved a 100% strike rate!

Having handed over to managing director, Sophie Hooper, three years ago, I have a good idea of their pitch winning formula. Great ideas, of course. As important, if not more so, intensity, infectious energy, a very real sense of team, and making the prospect feel like the most important person in the world.

A simple formula brilliantly executed. Congratulations Team!

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Lesson for today.

A visiting London bishop, in full regalia, gave the sermon at St Michael and All Saints church in Chiswick today. I was not there but this was no ordinary performance. In the words of one of the rapt congregation:

” His address was mainly aimed at confirmation candidates, but instead of from the pulpit, he walked up to the front pews and talked to them face to face, and then continued to talk to the rest of the congregation as his sermon expanded. He did so without notes, with no pauses, with good eye contact involving both sides of the church.

It was delivered with passion and, even though he was among the people, with no less dignity than if he were preaching from the pulpit. On the contrary, the congregation listened harder, got his message and felt his faith more readily. He was very impressive.”

An inspirational sermon by someone who understands that the power of his words is lifted by the energy, the interaction, and yes, the body language of his performance.

My own epiphany moment was some years ago. I was to make a speech to around 200 people, seated at tables, in a marquee. The occasion was my niece’s twenty first birthday, so saying the right thing was critical. I spent many hours preparing.

In the event, a combination of nerves and champagne saw me, to the surprise of the guests, and me, wandering among the tables at random, gesturing for emphasis, delivering my finely honed speech. No one remembered a word I said. But to this day, the way I spoke them has entered into Shropshire folklore!

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A very sorry performance.

The Daily Mirror, on it’s front page,majored on the surreal show trial of the four bad bankers. It was angry. “YOU SORRY SHOWER”. It went on in this vein, “the most pathetic apologies in history…their self pitying rambles…..with alarming arrogance insisting the crisis was not their fault”.

In the Mail, Quentin Letts, master of understatement, “The quartet-these guilty grovellers! this gruesome foursome!- looked queasy.” The Times was kinder, commenting that the bankers delivered their prepared soundbites and responded to questions with candour and courtesy.

The concensus was that the bankers, briefed and well rehearsed, came out of the hearing better than they deserved. They were lucky. “Select committees are currently better at theatre than scrutiny” (Times). And the Mirror,”The bloodsuckers…escaped with a couple of hours on the naughty step”.

They were indeed lucky. One of their legacies for anyone pitching today is a much more challenging climate of searching, even hostile, questioning. The subject being cost! And the questions are asked by people who do know their business, unlike select committees.

As ever, preparation and rehearsal is all. The response and the way you make it. Grovelling will not work!

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Don’t forget to warm up.

Outside of the fields of play in sport, pitching for business can be one of the most competitive acts we engage in. It is wise going in to any pitch to assume that the competition is as good as you, that their proposal will be comparable, that their people are as talented.

So, as in sport, it is the performance on that day, at that moment, that counts.

In competitive sport this calls for a serious warm-up. In the nets (not that it did England much good this week), on the practice court, since the first ball, the first serve can set up the win. In my own sport, the warm up would take 60 minutes for a race of around 14 seconds. If you did not get to the first hurdle first, it was tough to win.

Pitches too can be won or lost in the first few moments. “You never get a second chance to make a first impression”. (Will Rogers).

So a warm up, both physical and mental, is a good idea. The physical side means arriving with plenty of time to set up, decide who sits where, checking how and where materials are used, sightlines, temperature etc, etc, etc. All obvious, but even minor cock-ups can undermine confidence.

Mental preparation can be helped by spending time on the all important introductions and opening remarks. Getting through these with “easy authority “( Jan 28th post on Ken Clarke) sets you up for a great performance.

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