How using a tablet improves your on-site sales presentations

We’ve all sat through a bad sales presentation at one point or another. 

I remember one particularly bad one from my high school days when a salesman knocked on our door at 7 in the evening (on a school night no less!) and tried to sell us encyclopedias—claiming that they would be incredibly useful in college.

Mind you, this was less than a decade ago and I was already using the internet every day for school research—and definitely not wasting hours of my life watching cute dog videos. 

But it wasn’t only the fact that what he was selling was useless to me—I’ve bought plenty of things that I don’t need just because the marketing was compelling—it was the fact that his entire presentation was just BAD. 

He handed me and my mom crumpled pamphlets and pulled up a super cheesy and cliche PowerPoint (outdated Clipart images and all!) on his laptop, which was awkward as he had to keep leaning over us to click to the next slide. 

Needless to say, we couldn’t get him out the door fast enough!

We probably don’t need to point this out, but the last thing you want is your potential client rushing you out the door because your sales pitch is painful for them to sit through.

Luckily, it doesn’t have to come to that. Here are four reasons using a tablet can help improve your sales presentations to potential clients. 

1. Professionalism

Walking into a sales presentation with a tablet instantly makes you look more put together than walking in with a stack of papers.

Though they’ve been around for years now, tablets used for business presentations still possess a bit of a novelty factor. When a sales rep shows up with a tablet rather than a laptop or binder full of papers and brochures, people sit up and take notice. Right off the bat, you’ll be making a good first impression.

Not only will you look more professional and tech-savvy for using a tablet, but your presentations themselves will look more professional and stimulating. 

Many clients become overwhelmed by paper hand-outs, especially when there’s a considerable amount of information packed into them. But using a tablet to create a more visual and interactive presentation will keep them more interested and have you looking like a pro.

2. Visual Interest

With a tablet, the possibilities for your sales presentation are endless. Instead of boring your potential clients with statistics and informational brochures, you have the power to create visually stunning presentations literally at your fingertips. 

Perhaps your client would be interested in an interactive demonstration, or a 3D mockup of your product. Or maybe they would be more persuaded by a video testimonial from satisfied customers. With a tablet, you can use a variety of media to better showcase your product. 

Perhaps the best part of using a tablet is the fact that it’s interactive.

"Tell me, and I forget. Teach me, and I remember. Involve me, and I learn." - Benjamin Franklin

Studies show that customers who physically interact with a product or engage with an interactive demo are 82% more likely to purchase the product. 

Being able to hand your tablet to a potential client and have them interact with your visually interesting presentation—by watching videos, zooming in and out of photos and graphics, etc.—will allow them to better understand your product (and make them more likely to purchase it!).

3. Customization

Any good sales rep knows how to make their sales presentation not feel like a sales pitch. In the past, this was more difficult to do as most sales reps were told to stick to a tested formula that worked for their company.

Now, with the use of tablets, there’s no longer one “right” way to present a pitch. Sales reps have the power to customize their information for each individual lead.

While it’s true that personalization isn’t a new tactic in sales, tablets allow reps to better emphasize the most relevant information to the lead sitting in front of them while minimizing what is less important. 

With a tablet, you can even let your leads choose the topics they’re interested in learning more about and go from there. When presenting with a tablet, it’s much easier to jump from one place to another in your presentation. 

With just a few taps or swipes you can easily find the slide or segment you’re looking for, or skip sections that do not apply to the potential client. 

4. Savings

Last, but certainly not least, is the amount of time and money using a tablet will save you.

Traditional presentations typically include handouts or large brochures for every person in the room. And while a handout might help some leads follow along, their usefulness is negligible—it’s not worth the time it takes to create them and make copies for every new presentation. 

And any changes you make to a presentation means having to scrap all of the paper handouts you have and reprint them with the changes. Though the cost to print isn’t exceptionally high, it does add up over time.

A tablet allows you to make changes at any time—even just minutes before you meet your potential client. There’s no scrambling, no Wite-Out, no reprinting—just a few taps, and your presentation is updated. 

The takeaway

Using a tablet during your sales presentations will make you look more professional, allow you to present your product using a multitude of media, allow you to customize your presentation to each lead, and save you time and money.

More than 70% of companies using tablets have reported positive ROI. So if you haven’t already, now is the time to invest in tablets to help your business grow!