HOW TO WIN A PITCH
WITH DIAGRAMS

1. WHICH PROSPECTS?2. GETTING YOUR
PRIORITIES RIGHT 3. GREAT STORYTELLING 4. RELATIONSHIP LESSONS

1. WHICH PROSPECTS?

The New Business Pyramid •
Relevance, not volume • Populate with names and numbers • Don’t waste time on those who won’t get it • Three proper wins a year will do

The Business Satisfaction Triangle •
Three reasons to work with a client • All three ideal • Two out of three ain’t bad • Only one is highly dubious • None = decline business

The IF Triangle • Essence
of any negotiation • The prospect can have any two • “If you require x, we require y...”

2. GETTING YOUR PRIORITIES RIGHT

The Pitch Deadline • Human
nature to delay, but don’t • Convene decision makers in first 24 hrs • Set direction, brief experts, course correct if necessary

The Priority Matrix • Do
the worst first • Think and plan properly • Ignore irrelevant stuff

The Bargaining Arena • Always
plan a negotiation • Get what you want, on your terms • Understand trading variables

3. GREAT STORYTELLING

The Market Map • Win
the business with one diagram • Plot any market • Encapsulate strategy visually • Try multiple variables • Imply direction of travel and success

The Whittling Wedge • Tell
an engaging strategic story • Start broad, then reduce • Consider, then reject • Exclude competitor proposals • Recommend with authority

The Bow Tie • Perfect
story telling • Reduce, big reveal, expand • Cadence and pace of a presentation • “And now for the detail...”

The Central Idea Satellite System
• How to explain ideas clearly • Sub-sets and interrelationships • Proper anchored strategy • Multiple themes and fertility of ideas

4. RELATIONSHIP LESSONS

The Motivational Dip • Honeymoon
period always fun • It never lasts • Listen and learn phase vital • Ends in success or tears • Can almost always be predicted

The Less-Than-Twelve-Month Year • Year
plans are usually unrealistic • Can predict when things will happen • Decision windows and crisis bombs • Sensible forecasting, fewer surprises • Tertials, not quarters

AND FINALLY, A PUZZLE FOR
YOU... Draw nine dots on a blank page like this. Now try to join all the dots using no more than four lines, and without taking the pen off the paper.

www.thediagramsbook.com @kevinduncan