It’s more important than ever to grab and keep your prospect’s attention, which can be tough on a good day. That means a winning sales pitch is essential.
Effective pitches, when done right, connect you with a customer’s needs while showcasing your value and inspiring them to take action. It doesn’t matter how or where you’re giving a sales pitch—whether it’s a cold email, introducing yourself at an event, or on a sales call—you need to know how to write one that works so you can build trust and close deals.
In this article, we’ll cover the ins and outs of sales pitches, including what it is, what makes one work, and how to craft one that will drive results.
Let’s go!
What is a sales pitch?
A sales pitch is a message that introduces your product or service in a concise and persuasive way, explaining its value to your target audience. It’s usually used at the early stages of the sales cycle to begin conversations and gauge interest.
These can come in many forms, including emails, phone scripts, presentations, or in-person conversations. But what all strong sales pitches have in common is that they articulate the problem you intend to solve and why your solution is the right one to solve it.
Sales pitch vs sales proposal: what’s the difference?
Sales pitches and sales proposals are different, even though some might use the terms interchangeably. Let’s break them down:
- A sales pitch is short and focused, and it can be either verbal or written. It’s all about creating interest for the audience.
- A sales proposal is a formal document outlining your offering in detail, including the scope, pricing, timing, etc. It’s typically delivered when a lead is qualified.
Need help working on proposals? Here’s our guide to writing a winning sales proposal.
Why an effective sales pitch is critical
When a pitch is well-crafted, it can:
- Get your message across, even in crowded markets
- Show potential buyers that you understand their challenges
- Position your solution in a way that has value
- Build trust and credibility in your business from the start
- Speed up your sales cycle
Want to make this process even easier? Use digital tools like CRMs (customer relationship management) and CPQ (configure, price, quote) software. When you have access to the right data, you can create more relevant and personalized pitches that speak directly to your prospects and their needs.
For example, CRMs can give your sales reps access to the most up-to-date contact information, purchase history, and deal progress. This will help them tailor every pitch with context that helps the customer trust.
CPQ solutions, like PandaDoc’s, can help your teams generate accurate and professional quotes and proposals in minutes instead of hours. So, instead of manually cobbling together pricing details, your reps can automatically configure offerings, apply discounts, and customize documents to send out.
This means more consistency, faster response times, fewer errors, and a smoother buyer experience that will lead to more deals closed.
Combining CRM insights with CPQ automation capabilities will better equip your sales team so they can deliver a stronger pitch.
What are the 5 key elements of a successful pitch?
If you want to write a sales pitch that actually works, include these five components:
1. A compelling hook
Make sure you lead with something that will grab attention. This could be a question, bold statement, or even a relatable challenge.
Lead with something that grabs attention — a question, a bold statement, or a relatable challenge.
2. A clear value proposition
Clearly explain what exactly your product or service does, and why it matters to this specific audience.
3. Evidence or social proof
Backing up your claims with real results, case studies, or testimonials will only make your pitch stronger. A simple mention of how others have seen results can give you credibility.
4. Personal relevance
You need to show that you understand their business or role in relation to your offering. When you tailor your message to the individual, it will be much more effective.
5. A strong call to action
It’s essential you give your prospects a next step to take before leaving the conversation! You might invite the prospect to schedule a demo, book a call, explore a free trial, etc.
Bonus: Here are the 7 biggest mistakes salespeople make when presenting pitch proposals so you can avoid them.
Real-world sales pitch examples
Now that you know the basic elements of a sales pitch, let’s see how they come together in action. Here are a few examples:
How to write a sales pitch for a product
When writing a pitch for a product, it’s key to focus on connecting the features to the real-world benefits your prospect will see. It’s less about what the product does and more about how it helps.
Let’s use PandaDoc as an example. Here’s a simple pitch:
“If your team spends hours each week creating quotes, contracts, or proposals manually, PandaDoc can help cut that time significantly. Our document management solution lets you generate, send, and eSign sales docs in minutes instead of hours—plus, businesses like yours have seen up to 66% faster renewals with our software. Do you have a few minutes to see a free demo?”
This short message follows the formula above, and it’s versatile, meaning you can use it in a cold call, live conversation, or a sales pitch email (see below!).
It’s also a classic example of an elevator pitch, or a 30-second sales pitch, which needs to pack a punch in a short window when networking or during cold calls.
How to write a sales pitch email that gets replies
A sales pitch email needs to grab attention fast. Here’s a quick template you can adapt:
Subject: Cut hours from your doc process — here’s how
Hi [First Name],
I came across your company while looking into how teams in [industry] manage their sales docs.
If your team is spending hours each week creating quotes, contracts, or proposals manually, our product can help cut that time significantly. Our software lets you generate, send, and eSign documents in minutes—and businesses like yours have saved hours on their contracts as a result.
Do you have a few minutes this week to check out a free demo?
Best,
[Your Name]
Brief messages like this one work because it’s personalized while staying focused on value.
How to write a sales pitch
Ready to start writing your own sales pitch? Follow this simple framework to create the pitch you want:
Research your prospect
You have to know about your prospect’s company, role, and any potential challenges they might face. You can use internal resources like your CRM or public sources like LinkedIn to do this.
Identify a specific problem
Figure out a challenge that they are probably facing, and be specific—generic statements are easy to see through and won’t resonate.
Position your solution
Find a new, fresh way to solve their problem by explaining how your product/service will address it. Your framing should highlight how and why your offering is unique and more effective than your competitors.
Keep it brief and benefit-driven
What will your prospect gain from your product? Their time is limited, so make every word count by focusing on the benefits you can give them.
Personalize the message
Personalization goes a long way, so using their name, company, and/or industry references can show them you’re not sending a one-size-fits-all message.
Close with a call to action
As mentioned before, you need to give them an action step, whether it’s booking a meeting, checking out a case study, etc.
How can I make my sales pitch more persuasive?
The last thing you want is for your delivery to fall flat. Here’s how you can make your pitch more persuasive:
Tell a story
Storytelling techniques can make your message more relatable, because stories help prospects visualize success while building emotional connection.
Want to learn how you can do it well? Read these storytelling tips for sales.
Anticipate objections
Prepare for what concerns your prospect could have about using your product and address them proactively throughout your pitch. That way they know you see the bigger picture.
Be confident, not pushy
Don’t oversell while trying to assert the value of your product. Ultimately, you want to start a conversation, not close a deal on the spot that a customer might regret if they don’t feel secure in their decision.
How can I tailor my sales pitch for different audiences?
Remember that no two buyers are the same, so what resonates with one prospect might fall flat with another. That’s why tailoring the message to the audience is key.
Here’s how you can do it effectively:
- Segment your audience: Organize your leads by industry, company size, role, etc. using your CRM
- Speak their language: Use terminology that matches your prospect’s priorities and their specific role. For example, a marketing team could want leads, whereas a finance team might want cost savings.
- Customize your examples: When giving examples and case studies, make sure you reference similar companies or challenges that the prospect can relate to.
Final thoughts: Your pitch is your first impression
The whole goal of a sales pitch is to connect with people about your product. It should show prospects that you understand their world and can offer a path forward that solves their challenges.
So, remember to keep your message clear, confident, and customer-focused.
Ready to create more polished, persuasive sales documents? Try PandaDoc for free to see how we help sales teams pitch smarter and close deals faster.