Most sales presentations fail because they’re all about you.

Customers don’t care about your awards, your company map, or your tech stack- until they know you get their world.

In this episode I share how to flip the script and deliver customer-focused presentations that engage, build trust, and make decisions easier.

What you will learn:

• Why traditional presentations lose the room - and how to fix that
• The 6-part structure to build compelling, customer-first presentations
• How to open with a hook that gets immediate attention
• When (and how) to prove your solution with just enough detail
• The critical role of questions - and how to use them throughout
• Do’s and don’ts to keep your message clear, relevant, and action-driven

Action step:

Take one upcoming sales presentation and rebuild it using the 6-step structure: Hook, Challenges, Solution, Benefits, Proof, Next Steps. Remove the “about us” intro. Make it theirs. Present to solve, not to boast.

Bonus resource: Take the free scorecard in the show notes

Clearer structure. Stronger engagement. Better results.

Connect with Fred:

Author of Selling Through Partnering Skills, Hybrid Selling, and Ethical Selling

https://linktr.ee/fredcopestake

Take the Collaborative Selling Scorecard

https://collaborativeselling.scoreapp.com/

Watch this episode on YouTube

https://youtu.be/vqDwk1ujaOk

Proposals don’t close deals on their own - but bad proposals can definitely kill them.

Today I’m sharing exactly why most sales proposals fail and how you can turn yours into a tool that helps your customers make confident buying decisions.

Too many proposals read like company brochures, filled with “we do this” and “we do that.”

That approach rarely works because it’s all about you, not the customer.

In this episode, I walk you through a simple but effective six-part structure that keeps the customer at the centre of your proposal.

When you get this right, your proposal will reinforce the value you’ve discussed, build trust, and make it easy for your customer to say yes.

I also share my pricing approach using the “retaliation in first” concept - a simple technique that helps address pricing concerns before they arise.

I explain why every proposal must make perfect sense to decision-makers who may not have been involved in earlier conversations, and how you can write yours to achieve exactly that.

By the end of this episode, you’ll know how to create customer-focused proposals that help you close deals faster, with fewer objections and more confidence.

If you’re in B2B sales, enterprise sales or any consultative selling role, you can take this framework and start applying it straight away.

Connect with Fred:

Author of Selling Through Partnering Skills, Hybrid Selling, and Ethical Selling

https://linktr.ee/fredcopestake

Take the Collaborative Selling Scorecard

https://collaborativeselling.scoreapp.com/

Watch this episode on YouTube

https://youtu.be/tOdypn2i4pI

This episode is a live recording of Fred Copestake’s show for the Alchemie Network where he shares insight on sales with procurement professionals.

Fred kicks off the Sales Today: Procurement Special Series with a time-travelling journey through the evolution of sales - from the efficient, process-driven methods of the 1950s to today’s collaborative, value-led partnerships.

Expect punchy takeaways, entertaining side notes, and hard-earned wisdom from someone who’s trained over 10,000 salespeople in 38 countries. This episode explores:

• Why process still matters (and what it looks like now)
• How psychology shaped the sales styles of the 1960s
• Why the 1980s created the ‘sleazy’ salesperson stereotype
• What really sparked the shift to consultative and value-based selling
• How AI and modern tools can help salespeople be smarter and more human
• The power of partnering skills and what procurement should look for

Fred also shares a few tools, a couple of cheeky jokes, and some serious thoughts on how procurement and sales can truly work together - without trickery, tension, or tug-of-war.

A must-listen if you want to spot great sales behaviours, avoid the dodgy ones, and create better buying relationships.

Join the Alchemie Network for FREE to connect with other forward-thinking professionals and get access to more events like this.

Connect with Fred on Linkedin

https://linktr.ee/fredcopestake

Watch this episode on YouTube

https://youtu.be/BJsuQDRxE_o