1: The best salespeople are known as Rainmakers.  

And Rainmakers “never make a sales call on a customer unless they can answer the question ‘Why should this customer do business with my company or with me?'” Jeffrey Fox writes in How to Become a Rainmaker: The Rules for Getting and Keeping Customers and Clients.

“The answer must be a benefit to the customer,” he notes.  “The answer must fit … continue reading

1: Mr. K was “arguably the best salesman in the U.S. wine industry,” Jeffrey Fox writes in How to Become a Rainmaker: The Rules for Getting and Keeping Customers and Clients.

Mr. K became chairman of one of the country’s finest premium wine companies. ” For over thirty years, he personally sold millions of dollars’ worth of wine, and many of those sales were made well before wine was … continue reading

We’ve created the perfect 3-minute pitch following Hollywood producer and author Brant Pinvidic‘s framework, which he outlines in his book The 3-Minute Rule: Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation.

We’ve outlined (1) What it is, (2) How it works, (3) Why we are sure, and (4) Why we can do it.

We’ve got an inspiring opening where we share why we got involved … continue reading

1: “I can’t tell you how many pitch tapes I see loaded with transitions and pushes and wipes throughout the whole thing,” Brant Pinvidic writes in his excellent book The 3-Minute Rule: Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation.

“It just screams amateur,” he writes. “Bells and whistles now signal to the audience that you are trying to distract them. That’s not what we want. 

“That’s … continue reading

1: “I used to end my pitches with a clever saying or pun that led me back to my title,” Brant Pinvidic writes in his excellent book The 3-Minute Rule: Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation.

“ ‘And that’s why Run for the Money will be a run-away hit!’ or something equally cringe-worthy,” he recalls.

He could feel the eye rolls in the room. 

“Everything … continue reading

1: Imagine we are watching a stand-up comedian. 

Early in their performance, they tell a joke or story.  Then, throughout their show, they refer back to the earlier joke. It’s a proven way to get laughs and build momentum in their set.

Hollywood producer Brant Pinvidic calls this technique the “call back.” 

We, too, can use it in our presentations, he writes in his terrific book The 3-Minute Rule: Say … continue reading

1: Brant Pinvidic sat in a room with his client, Keith. Brant is a top Hollywood producer who has successfully sold nearly fifty TV series using his 3-Minute Rule, which is also the title of his book on how to deliver a successful presentation.   

Brant’s brother was on the speakerphone. Keith’s assignment: Deliver his 3-minute pitch to Brant’s brother.

Afterward, Brant told his brother: “I need you to pitch … continue reading

1: Paraag Marathe‘s first major task as president of the San Francisco 49ers was to build a new stadium.

The team’s former stadium, Candlestick Park, was falling apart. As in, actually falling apart.

The team’s owners, the York family, had decided they would never move the team to another city.

The other option was to build. Which would be no easy task. “Imagine a nearly $2 billion project that … continue reading

To deliver a 3-minute pitch, must we dumb it down? Just the opposite. 

Brant Pinvidic is a Hollywood producer who has sold more than three hundred TV and movie projects, including the mega-hit The Biggest Loser.

Pitching in Hollywood is no different from “raising money, convincing parents at the PTA meeting, asking for a promotion, marketing our company, and getting board approval,” he writes in his book The 3-Minute Rule: … continue reading

1: Most of the advice about delivering an excellent presentation focuses on how to present, how to speak in public, or how to overcome being anxious.

“The truth is that none of those things matter very much,” Brant Pinvidic writes in his book The 3-Minute Rule: Say Less to Get More from Any Pitch or Presentation.

“Whether our delivery is confident or nervous, whether or not we use our … continue reading