Presentations to large corporations about your company’s offerings can be nerve-wracking. When facing buyers and senior leaders of corporations, the stakes are high. You must convey your ideas, the benefits of your offering and your competitive positioning succinctly and with conviction. Remember, what matters to them most is how your offerings add value to their corporation. Focus on value to attract them instead of focusing only on the features of your product or services. What follows are eight strategies to consider when crafting your corporate pitch.

1. Clearly define the problem

The foundation of any strong pitch is a clearly defined problem statement. Start by identifying the specific pain point or challenge that your product or business aims to address. State the problem clearly in one to two sentences and use relatable language and real-world examples. Emphasize client pain points and support your claims with data.

2. Explain your proposed solution

After defining the problem, shift the focus to how your product or service solves that problem. Demonstrate how your company can be a trusted partner that delivers a unique, reliable solution. Be sure to:

• Articulate how your company fills the gap for the corporation left by competitors.

• Use visuals like icons and diagrams to simplify.

• Demonstrate your understanding of their corporation, size, locations, offerings, competitors and challenges to position your company as the best fit.

• Cite market research to validate assumptions.

• Provide statistics on segment size and growth.

3. Highlight your competitive positioning

It is important to demonstrate how you are addressing gaps in the market and your competitive position. Compare product features and pricing side-by-side and identify shortcomings in competitors’ solutions—or, better, your company’s and product’s strengths. Be sure to emphasize the unique attributes you offer.

4. Introduce your team

Even for established companies, summarizing your leadership team’s experience can inspire confidence. Aim to:

• Highlight experience and talents related to the problem space.

• Reference previous engagements with large corporations, high-level contacts, awards, publications and certifications.

5. Summarize financial strength

Corporations want to understand the financial viability of your company. Communicate your success as a business that’s built to last.

6. Customize the pitch for your audience

Adjust length, depth, terminology and emphasis based on the specific audience. Before your pitch, know your audience’s role, priorities and core concerns. Adapt vocabulary to match your audience.

7. Prioritize the most important details

Be selective regarding how much data to include. Provide just enough quantitative metrics and evidence to reinforce your key claims. Focus on what they need to know about the scope of your solution.

8. Emphasize benefits over features

Avoid fixating on technical capabilities or feature checklists alone. While details validate your solution, they rarely trigger an emotional desire or identification of value. Instead, speak to client goals and aspirations and frame your capabilities around these sought-after achievements. Use aspirational messaging and imagery and illustrate through success stories when possible.