What’s Your Core Message?

If you could sum up your presentation into a single, three-word catchphrase, what would it be? Most sales reps have trouble with this exercise and therein lies the problem with most sales presentations: If you can’t sum up your presentation, how can you expect your prospects to sum it up when they’re considering it later or discussing your solution with the decision maker?

The core message is so essential to a solid presentation that it’s Step One of Doug Stevenson’s 21-step Dynamite Speech system. Stevenson, creator of the Story Theater methodology, works with sales forces to help them use stories in their presentations to overcome objections, build rapport, and clearly position their products (www.storytheater.net). He points out that a core message is just what it sounds like – it’s a summation of the way you want the audience to think differently or act differently. It addresses your major strength. And it should be summarized into a “phrase that pays” – a three-word phrase that can be woven through the presentation, drilled in again and again until, when a prospect thinks of your presentation, he thinks of this phrase.

Here’s an example. Say you sell financial services and a prospect has called you in to get your perspective on a pressing financial concern. You know you can solve the immediate problem, but you also want to sell the client on a broader financial planning program. Your core message might be: Think Long-Term. You’d start your presentation by saying, “I’m here today to help you Think Long-Term. Yes, you’ve got a crisis to address today and I can help you do that, but I also want to help you Think Long-Term to ensure these types of crises don’t come up again.” You would then weave the “Think Long-Term” phrase into the stories, testimonials, and data that make up your presentation. And you’d conclude your presentation with something like, “Thank you for allowing me to come in today to help you Think Long-Term.”

Here’s another example. Stevenson is working with an IT company whose strength is integrating multiple systems. For a company like that, the core message catchphrase might be as simple as, Integrate, Integrate, Integrate. A presentation might start with, “Your company is using 17 different computer programs to conduct its day-to-day business. I’m here to talk to you about how to Integrate, Integrate, Integrate.” Then the presenter would go on to show why lack of integration is a problem, what benefits the prospect would achieve with integration, and why the rep’s company is the one to do it.

“The phrase that pays is like a mini advertising jingle,” says Stevenson. “It’s the call to action statement that summarizes your main point.” It must be very short – three words are ideal – it must be catchy, and it must start with a verb, he adds. Finally, the words must have some musicality or rhythm to them. To achieve that rhythm, use words that are similar in some way – number of syllables, an ”ly” ending, the same first letter, and so on.

Sound like a lot of effort? It’s worth it. A core message that is clear, concise, and simple is one the prospect will repeat. “He’ll repeat it to the decision maker. He’ll repeat it to his team,” says Stevenson. “He’ll use your words verbatim and now the influencer is selling your message using your exact words.” And that’s a phrase that really does pay.