Sidebar: Quick Pitch

Planning a pitch for a chance run-in with a potential customer may sound subversive. But the fact is, almost anywhere is better for winning business than the space between the four walls of a corporate boardroom.

Betsy Komjathy, of Rogen International, is so adept at winning business on the fly that her colleagues tell her that she should never leave the Delta Shuttle. According to Komjathy, the best business developers follow five tips that you too should know.

1. Never open with "What do you do?" It's a lazy question, and it leads to a dead-end conversation.

2. Listen for clues that tell you how the person looks at the world. The better you understand a potential customer's experience and values, the better you can customize your pitch.

3. Don't carry on about yourself. Top business developers are succinct, natural, and compelling: Whatever they say about themselves is relevant to the listener.

4. Don't be too quick to direct the conversation to business. Chat about a general business topic -- perhaps something in the day's news -- before making a segue into your agenda.

5. If someone is disinclined to chat, act accordingly. It's better to show restraint, to exchange business cards, and to leave a good impression.

Coordinates: Betsy Komjathy, bkomjathy@rogenusa.com

Sidebar: Pitcher's Game Plan

When the purpose of a pitch is to nail a deal, your strategy should be to win before you make the presentation, argues Rogen International CEO Neil Flett, the author of Pitch Doctor: Presenting to Win Multi-Million Dollar Accounts (Prentice Hall, out of print). Here are six of Flett's tactics for locking up an early victory.

1. Don't focus on pitching all of your company's credentials. Instead, emphasize what your company can do for the prospect.

2. Never ask a potential customer information-gathering questions. Instead, gather data from other sources, and then ask questions that show that you already know the customer.

3. Don't keep your game plan secret until the presentation. Run your idea by an unbiased member of your selection team. If it gets a good reaction, you can build on it. If it's a bomb, you'll still have time to fix it.

4. Know your weaknesses, and assume that your rivals will share them with a potential customer. Be ready to counter such criticism.

5. Listen and learn. Listen for clues from your prospect that you can use to take a pitch in a new direction. Turn the conversation into a collaboration.

6. Find reasons to stay in touch. Make sure that the pitch meeting ends with a reason to follow up.

Coordinates: Neil Flett, neil.flett@rogen.com.au