So, there you are, ready to step out and make your carefully prepared presentation. You step on stage you welcome your audience and then you bring out the big opening, you tell them your best joke. The one you always tell to get a laugh. Well you better be sure it’s a good one or you are about to blow your credibility out of the water.

Are you sure your joke isn’t offensive to anybody in the audience? Will everybody understand the punchline? Will most people laugh? Have you got the delivery right? If you aren’t one hundred percent certain of the answer to any of these questions (and please double check even if you are sure) then ditch the joke.

Telling jokes is risky business in a presentation. Although people definitely want to be entertained and informed by your presentation, telling jokes may not always be the way. The problem with jokes is that they can polarise an audience. While one section of your audience may find your joke hilarious, others will think both you and the joke are dumb and another section may find both you and the joke offensive. With your first sentence the whole audience will have formed an opinion about you and your subject based on a joke that may not even be related to your subject.

When you open your presentation you are looking to make an impression that engages your audience in your subject and arouses their interest. So even if you are blessed with the ability to tell jokes and can choose appropriate humour, save it for the body of the presentation, use the opening lines to make an impact that is key to your subject.

Your opening line should challenge, surprise, intrigue or shock your audience. Make a bold statement about what they will get from your presentation (as long as you can back it up) and grab their attention. Tell part of a relevant story (even if the relevance is not immediately obvious) and leave them on a cliffhanger with the promise of the rest later.

Whatever strategy you use, your opening line needs to grip your audience and make them want to pay attention to see if your presentation lives up to the opening. Don’t let the dangerous business of telling jokes spoil the impact of your whole presentation.

1. Get your hair cut – regardless of how well you are dressed, unkempt and out of control hair will make you look untidy. 30 minutes and £10 well spent! Make sure you have any facial hair under control too.

2. Wear a suit – so many people these days go suit-less, and this gives you a great opportunity to stand out and look professional and more presentable. However just any old suit will not do. It must be 100% wool (please, no polyester) and preferably in dark navy or charcoal grey. You may even have something suitable in the wardrobe already; however if you bought it ready to wear IT DOES NOT FIT YOU!. A poor fitting suit is worse than no suit. Go to a good alterations tailor and get it fitted; It is not expensive! By the way, you really do need two suits so you can alternate each day. If you are really skint look on eBay or in a nearly new shop.

3. Wear a proper shirt, and one that fits – so many people wear casual shirts to work and usually with the wrong length arms and neck. Go to a store that sell shirts in various arm lengths and reasonably constructed to look good with a suit. If you are on a budget T.M. Lewin often do 4 shirts for £100 which are more than adequate, and will be enough to get you going – I suggest two each of white and light blue plain as a minimum.

4. Wear a tie – why, oh why do so few people wear a tie? A man is not completely dressed without one; a suit is not casual so why dress casually underneath it? The silk of he tie (and do ensure it is silk) offers a contrasting texture to the matt of the suit and shirt and is a great opportunity to express your personality through colour.

5. Shoes – So many people wear a suit and then finish it off with totally inappropriate shoes. Wear some black traditional, welted shoes in an oxford style. These will last a lifetime if looked after so don’t skimp.

These five simple steps can make you look more professional and presentable.

A lot of factors play a role in whether or not you are able to land a sale with a new client. From your reputation to your experience in the industry, there isn’t just one solid thing that will determine whether or not a sale is successful. One way to increase your chances of landing a sale with a client is to ensure that your company looks professional. There is nothing worse than an unprofessional company trying to sell their product to new clients. Professionalism is important when it comes to gaining profit and gaining new clients. An easy but noticeable way to appear more professional is to have notebooks ready to be used during your sales presentations. These notebooks will show that your company is ready and prepared to do business. Having a notebook in hand proves that you take your work seriously which is always a great way to start off a sales presentation.

When it comes time to use custom notebooks you’ll want to ensure that you have enough notebooks for those on your team and possibly some for the client you will be speaking to. This way, even if your sale doesn’t go through successfully, the client still has access to your company’s name. Visibility is still important no matter if you get the sale you’re hoping for or not.

Finding the right notebooks

However, before you can provide any type of custom notebooks to your company or the client, you’ll first have to buy them. The quickest and most widely assorted place to find notebooks is online. Online vendors sell hundreds of different types of notebooks that can be customized to fit your sales presentation needs. Remember that the notebooks should look very professional. This means using neutral colors and nothing too flashy. It helps to have your company’s name, logo, and possible even contact information customized on the notebooks especially if you have plans to provide some of the notebooks to the clients you are presenting your sale to.

When buying your notebooks, be sure that you always have your budget in mind. You don’t want to over spend on notebooks. Find a high-quality professional looking notebook that can be customized at a decent price. Buying notebooks to use at your sales presentation doesn’t have to be a bank breaker. Many companies also offer discounts when buying items in bulk, saving you plenty of time and money.

Before buying be sure you have a clear idea of the design you want to have placed on the notebooks.

Custom notebooks can increase your success!

Remember that a successful sales presentation is combined of all sorts of factors. One factor to really focus on is how professional your company looks. A company that comes to a sales presentation well-prepared with notebooks in hand is sure to set the stage for a quality meeting. Professional companies are often seen as reputable and dependable, two important parts of a company that is destined to be successful.