7 Steps for Better Agency Pitches
Don’t shortchange your ideas — create an
environment that ensures the client is focused on your content.
I’ve always enjoyed pitching new business. It’s my favorite aspect of agency life. Given my own background, this should not be a surprise. What’s not to like? It’s the thrill of the hunt. The importance of making a memorable impression with a killer idea. The energy in the room. It’s the Big Show that all agencies need to ready themselves for.
The actual content of the pitch always varies by situation and client. But how to prepare for and get through a pitch? I’ve given thought of what’s worked and what hasn’t from my own experience. And what I’ve borrowed and stolen from other pitches that worked. And in today’s trendy world of providing content in numbered lists, I’ve organized it into 7 steps. (Or, in homage to Mr. Koufax above, could also be considered 7 pitches.)
1. The Things We Must Know Upfront
Thy Audience: Get to know the primary client contact ahead of time. What’s his/her title, responsibilities, and POV necessitating the pitch? In addition — who else will be in the room and what do we know about them? Will the decision maker(s) be in the room? (They should/better be.) Knowing any of these details upfront lays the groundwork that your pitch will be buttoned-up from the word go.
The Date: Determine if there’s flexibility for the actual day of week to pitch. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are going to be best. Please avoid Mondays if possible. The natural rhythm of the workweek puts enough pressure on Monday to begin with, and an agency pitch only adds to that — for both client and agency. For similar reasons, Fridays also pose a problem. On the one hand, it provides most of the work week to prep. On the other hand, it is the end of the week. People will mentally check out, whether they know it or not. This is only exacerbated if it’s a Friday within spitting distance of a holiday.
The Presentation Space: If not at your office, where is the pitch taking place? If possible, get access to the location ahead of time and check it out. Or at least get a good description of it from the client contact. Visualize how it can be used to best effect. Can tables and chairs be re-arranged or not? Consider moving furniture around to create the best environment for your presentation (i.e. classroom style versus a circle). Lastly, where’s the A/V located and how will that work in respect to organizing the space? One more person to know upfront, btw: The A/V contact.
The Timing: What’s the official time limit? Most pitches tend to be 60–90 minutes, but confirm if not already known. Also know how strict the time requirements are. Is it ok if things run long? Or, if a Procurement or Purchasing entity is involved, expect you will be timed by the second. One rule of thumb: allow for one quarter to one third of total time for Q&A/open discussion.
The Criteria: What’s the scorecard or evaluation criteria, and always ask if a copy of it can be furnished ahead of time. The chance of success will always be better if the pitch is tailored to clearly addresses the criteria, let alone if there are actual points to be scored for the criteria.
2. Casting it Right
The Real People: An age-old debate for every pitch I’ve been involved in, but my opinion is: the people that would actually work on the business should be the ones in the room. Period. Most clients will stipulate something to that effect as a pitch requirement, anyway. For sake of transparency, do include content that calls out the broader team that would be involved on the business, and clearly define their roles and relationship to those presenting in the room. But by virtue of being in the room, those pitching the business are committing themselves to a level of direct involvement on the business. In short, no one likes a bait and switch of “pitch team” vs. “the rest of the agency who actually does the work”. Especially clients. Not to mention “the rest of the agency who actually does the work”. A related point is training agency people to be comfortable pitching (a future topic for this space).
No Room for Silent Roles: Non-speaking roles like Spear Carrier #8 work well for Shakespeare plays or participating in the London International Mime Festival, but not for pitches. If you’re in the room, you need to be involved. Simple. Justifying a non-participatory role as moral support isn’t a compelling enough reason to be in the room.
3. Rehearsal Process
How much is enough? My own experience says two rehearsals total are worth it, but no more than three. Plan on rehearsals within a couple days before the pitch itself. The first rehearsal is a stumble-through, intended for getting an initial feel of content, flow, and transitions between presenters. It should feel like a horrible, awful train wreck. And it always is. That’s ok. Embrace the horror. Share notes about what worked and what didn’t. The second rehearsal should be timed, incorporating notes from the stumble through. It should feel sharper. Then, if necessary and depending how the team is feeling, a third rehearsal for final polish/tightening up.
Smooth Transitions: Know your own content flow, and when you need to hand off your speaking role to others. If using Keynote, your final slide voiceover needs to act as a natural segue to who will be speaking next. Absolutely nothing can derail energy quicker than an awkward or abrupt transition from one speaker to another. It’s probably the most common thing I’ve seen and experienced, and really one of the more easy things to address up front.
Questions for Us, Questions for Them: Talk through potential questions that could come from the client during the pitch. Decide who will answer them. Then put them on the spot to practice answering them succinctly. Also discuss what questions you’d like to ask of the client. Having questions for the client demonstrates interest in solving their business challenges, beyond any ideas you’ve shared during the pitch itself.
Working the Deck: If using Keynote or PowerPoint, always test that it’s working on whatever device you’re going to use for versioning and fonts. Run it in Presentation mode to make sure animations and/or videos work. Have a PDF version handy, and a copy of it on a thumb drive. Or if technology completely betrays you: bring at least one printed copy of your deck. Also, make sure to bring a power supply, clicker (unless provided) and connector/adaptor cables. Or designate someone on the team to own this responsibility.
Wardrobe: Are we pitching to a group of Boomer bankers or to a wily Millennial start-up? While there’s no mandate to coordinate outfits and colors, do need to dress client appropriate. Make sure it’s a chat to have with your team during rehearsal mode. You can inform that discussion by asking the client what their dress code is, as part of their culture.
4. Final Prep
Pre-visualize: Find some alone time and imagine yourself in the presentation space. Envision the people in the room. Both those you’re presenting to, and those on your own team. Rehearse the presentation in your mind’s eye. Envision yourself delivering your content.
A little Jazz is ok: This is not an endorsement for the music genre. But like a good jazz piece, every presenter will have their time to solo. But other team presenters can add color if it helps enhance or support any given point in the overall pitch narrative. This doesn’t mean free license to cut one another off mid-sentence. But it shows a team that’s actively listening, works well together and supports one another. Build upon each other’s points when it makes sense to do so.
5. Showtime: The Pitch
Pre-Show: There usually is time for presentation set-up, and naturally this lends itself to a little pre-pitch client mingling. Don’t be shy. Say hello to those in the room. Exchange business cards. Engage in small talk. It will help your comfort level. Breaks the ice.
Have energy: Be excited, dammit! Not to the point of a nervous, psychotic Chihuahua. But remain engaged and take your time. Breathe. Be present, and keep your thinking in the moment. Smiling always helps. People smile back when smiled to. That too will lessen anxiety.
Make eye contact: Be conscious of who’s in the room and try to establish eye contact with them as you present. Making eye contact is the most direct way to connect with anyone, under any circumstance.
Read the Room: Always, always allow for some spark of improvisation. Ideas can and will arrive in the moment. Pay attention to them, because they might be better than whatever meticulous speaker notes you created. Remember, it’s far more engaging to speak “off the cuff” with a bit of charisma, then recite notes you’ve memorized.
Gratitude and humility: Remember, that it’s a “please” and “thank you” kind of world. A little humility and graciousness can go a long way. Thank those in the room for the opportunity to be there in the first place. And be genuine about it. It can be a fine line between confident and cocky. Being genuine means you’re closer to confident. Stay there.
Ask For the Next Step: Not like a used car salesperson, but leave on a point of action, what the next step is. Is there anything else we need to cover? When can we start? At the very least, leave the room hearing the decision-making timeline and when to be in touch.
6. Immediately Post-pitch
Decompress: You and the pitch team will leave the room a spent force. But you’ll all want to talk about how it went. Plan ahead to meet somewhere to relax and talk through initial thoughts. Might be at the office, airport lounge, hotel lobby, or anywhere that’s not far from the room you just left. The point is: sit down, relax, and talk it through.
Don’t Despair: Whether you feel it went well or not, you’re going to remember things you could’ve said, or said better, or wish turned out differently. But you know? The pitch is done. Don’t dwell on it. Remind your teammates of the same.
7. Saying Thanks
Send a Thank You note: Send a note to those you met in the pitch in addition to the key contact from the client side. If you know their physical address — a handwritten thank you note is always better than an email.
Always follow-up: Leaving the pitch you should have decision-making timing confirmed. Within a week’s time and if you haven’t received an update, check-in.
Have fun out there. Break a leg.
