9 B2B Conference Presentation Tips to Help You Win More Clients

A great value proposition, a do-able yet also aspirational marketing plan, a capable team who can execute—all these are must-haves to success. Recent events highlighted how critical it is to also be adept at conference presentations.

Ensure that your team is poised for success in the digital age. Equip them with these tips in setting up and conducting B2B conference presentations and be one step closer towards becoming the B2B partner of choice for your modern clientele.

1. Set win-win objectives

There’s obviously nothing wrong with having some idea of what you want to accomplish through the conference presentation. After all, these are what spurred you to organize the business meeting in the first place. However, if your objectives are totally out of touch with the realities of your account, you’ll have lost your credibility from the very first slide of the presentation, along with any chance of getting your B2B client's buy-in. This is not to say that you should only go for low-hanging fruit, but that you should be serious about knowing your clients well enough to see things from their perspective.

2. Do your due diligence

To get into the shoes of your clients, you have to know them like the back of your hand. How are they performing? Do a SWOT analysis. What projects or ideas have worked for them in the past? Where have they failed? What are their current pain points? What are their priorities and key performance indicators? How do they manage their processes and make decisions?

You also have to be well-versed with industry trends. Are there are any mutual areas of opportunity? What are the prevailing market conditions and trends that can either make or break them? Are there any learning opportunities that you can share with them to grow their business? If you have to invest in research tools to gain access to relevant industry data, do so.

Be mindful that the dynamics in B2B relationships differ significantly from those based on a B2C model. For one thing, because B2B clients make decisions for large groups of people, they tend to be more circumspect. Each B2B client considers several factors before making any decision, such as sales and marketing strategies, operational nuances, including budget limitations and scalability challenges. You’ll need to think about these things when setting your objectives. Find the sweet spot or mutual point of interest between your strategic route and theirs, which should increase ROI and help strengthen your B2B relationship.

3. Be selective about your invitees

How often have you wondered what you were doing at a meeting? When someone has nothing to contribute to the meeting results, their presence can be distracting. It’s also a waste of valuable company time that could have been put to better use elsewhere. Thus, when selecting your meeting invitees, ensure they are high-level decision-makers or specialized consultants without whom the meeting would be unproductive.

4. Choose the right platform

Being flippant about your choice of conference presentation software can be a costly mistake. Having the right digital tools for your business demonstrates your competence and agility to adapt to technological advancements.

Using cloud platforms for your conference presentations can help your organization become more efficient. These platforms are cheaper as there is no expensive infrastructure required. You also save time and energy because these platforms are deployed fast, easy to use and manage and readily scalable. One valuable feature is the unlimited storage space, which makes cloud apps invaluable in backing up and restoring business presentation data. Some video conferencing platforms, such as the Gmail app, also include automation features that integrate calendars and make organizing easier for participants.

When shopping for a conference platform, also be mindful of security risks. Nothing can endanger your business credibility as much as a vulnerable site. Trust is critical to any relationship. You have to secure your information, as well as that of your B2B clients. Ensure that the cloud platforms you’ll use have secure encryption mechanisms and are compliant with the latest data protection and privacy laws.

5. Create compelling content

Ensure that your conference presentation has content that is compelling, data-driven, and highly relevant to your client.

Include these must-haves

• A structured agenda
• Your strengths over the competition
• Areas of opportunity for your B2B client (how they measure up to competitors)
• Meaningful go-to-market insights
• Case studies to demonstrate your past successes (if any)
• Clear and specific solutions

Watch out for these common pitfalls

• Using company jargon that makes your presentation hard to understand
• Cluttered slides (too many texts or numbers in one slide)
• Lengthy presentations

Make it visually appealing and readable

• Choose appropriate visual elements (such as colors and font sizes)
• Use entertaining videos or attention-grabbing infographics to effectively tell your narrative
• Keep distracting animations to a minimum
• Use bullet points where you can

6. Be engaging with your style

• Connect with your audience by occasionally looking directly into the camera
• Keep a professional tone without sounding stiff nor stodgy
• If you can, get multiple speakers to avoid monotony
• Allot time for Q&A
• Entertain with respectful humor

7. Anticipate objections

Knowing your audience well can help you determine what works for them. This will help you craft a conference presentation that is more in line with their wishlist.

However, objections are part and parcel of doing business. Should your B2B customers voice out objections, validate them by restating with your own words. Follow-up with clarificatory questions so that you can break through the surface and get to their real objections.

Common objections that may be raised by your B2B clients are budget constraints, comparisons to equally capable competitors, timing, project risks and so on. Prepare the answers to these objections based on how well you know your client. Remember to consistently have a respectful and conciliatory tone in all discussions.

8. Define next steps

Be in control of the conversation by steering the group to conclusive next steps. While it may not always be possible to thresh out all the issues to come to a concrete plan, highlight where you have come to an agreement. Then share specific details of the action plan, i.e., how the group intends to progress after the meeting. This way, you can establish a follow-through plan, manage expectations and encourage people to act in the right direction.

9. Be ready with an exit plan

If your proposal still falls through the cracks despite your best efforts, be ready to leave in an amicable and still hopeful tone. The learnings and insights of today can change significantly by tomorrow—and these may yet positively impact your B2B relationships in the future.