The 10% difference
People will forget 90% of what you say within 48 hours. This is a discouraging statistic when we know a great meeting must be both memorable and repeatable.
Most people think forgetting is a failure of memory, but it’s quite the opposite. Forgetting is actually part of the natural processing system of an active and healthy brain. In any given moment, thousands of sensory inputs flood your brain — the noise of an airplane flying overhead, the smell of coffee, the cold temperature in the room. Your brain can’t possibly retain it all, so it gets busy ignoring them. This rapid suppression of inputs is critical because it frees you up to focus on the more essential pieces of information coming at you.
Your brain doesn’t just suppress sensory inputs, it also suppresses memories to free up space to remember more important information. You discard the old to make room for the new.
The problem with all of this memory suppression, is that our brain will forget important information too. That’s because memory can be tricky. A short-term memory's conversion to a long-term memory isn’t perfect. It requires changes within the brain that are meant to protect the memory. Here’s some of what happens and how that impacts your clients during sales meetings:
- We tend to suppress the details and remember only the gist or general idea of what we learn. Our gist memory is much better than our memory for the details. But is the gist of what you present to a client enough for you to win a deal?
- Our ability to remember information is often blurred by things we learn before it or after it. Blurred memory is especially strong when we’re presented with new information back-to-back with little time in between, and when the information shared is so similar, we lose sight of where one ends and the other begins. This is exactly the situation you are in when you are one of multiple finalists presenting to a client, often back-to-back, and much of what you all say sounds exactly the same.
- While we are listening, our brains unconsciously make random connections to other information we’ve stored. Random memory is common. The problem is that it can lead your clients to interpret your message in ways you do not intend. It’s not that your client isn’t listening, it’s that what you are saying is distorted by their brain’s propensity to connect dots.
The question is, how to avoid gist, blurred, and random memory? How do you build your presentation around the 10% you want them to remember? And of that 10% how can you ensure the information they remember is accurate?
How to avoid gist, blurred and random memory
1. Tell them the 10% you want them to remember
Create 3 key messages for your presentation that align what you do uniquely well with your client’s challenges. The Rule of Three is very effective in sales meetings because clients can comfortably remember three chunks of information. Any more than three and their brains will automatically start purging what you’ve already said to make room for what you are now saying. Three key messages make it easy for them to remember who you are and how you are unique. And it’s sure to set you apart from the others, because as obvious as it is, few do it.
2. Show them what you want them to remember
Build your visuals around your 3 key messages so your client not only hears you speak to them but sees your 3 key messages on the screen. Visual memory is better than auditory memory because it’s processed by two different brain functions. The combination of visual and auditory dramatically increases retention and the accuracy of the stored information.
3. Give them reasons to believe
Support your three key messages with data, facts, or stories that prove what you do works. Be very specific about why each proof point is important to the client. By providing concrete reasons to believe you, they are far more likely to store the information you intend for them to remember, not just the gist or their interpretation of what you said.
4. Repeat the 10% you want them to remember
Preview your 3 key messages during your opening. Dive into each one during your presentation. Then remind them during your close by saying something like, “If you take only three things from today, I’d want you to remember 1., 2., and 3.”
Summary
Focusing your presentation on 3 key messages that uniquely align your strengths with the client's challenges ensures your message is memorable and repeatable. When you are clear about the 10% you want the client to remember, you significantly improve your chances of winning.