OK, welcome back. So now we talk about the 3rd P, the hard yards, Preparation. As Benjamin Franklin once said:
“By failing to prepare, we are preparing to fail”.

Prepare the meeting in a way that keeps you in your comfort zone. Being confident & enthusiastic helps bring out your Passion for what you do. Any preparation sends a very clear message, we are Professionals.

Preparation is key, because if you do this well, the other 4 Ps will be easier.
So how important this is? How can you do this?

Step 1 is research – Know the reason for the meeting.
Understand your customer before you get there. How are they performing? What is their website saying about new product launches? What can you learn about that customer before you go to the meeting?
Think about what you want to achieve from that meeting. I need to go into a meeting with a clear vision of what I wish to achieve. In the same way, I am also fascinated to think about:

• What might the customer wish to achieve?
• What do we think they might need?
• What can NCAB do to help them?

This is one of the most exciting parts of selling, building a picture, starting on this journey of discovery. The area where these factors meet, that’s where it is easy and profitable to do business.
Remember – we are needs-analysts

Step 2 is get some information from the customer before the meeting.
Some examples:

• How long should we plan for the meeting?
• Who will be attending the meeting?
• What topics do they wish to discuss?

Asking questions like this send a very professional message to the customer that you are preparing for the meeting. If we don’t ask the questions, we’re either guessing or hoping. Asking is better.

Step 3: With what you now know, what material could you use?
We have so many different marketing tools – which ones can you imagine we might use?
Prepare any presentation so that it is short, interesting and relevant to this meeting.

Step 4: Setting and sending a simple agenda.
This process takes maybe one minute, but gives clear direction and structure of how the meeting will be. Agendas are so important for so many reasons:

1. It enables you to prepare efficiently.
2. It gives the meeting structure, it takes us on a journey.
3. You will come across as a professional who does not waste anybody’s time.

As Mohamed Ali once said:
“I run on the road long before I dance under the lights.”
Be prepared!