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Create a Winning Client Presentation: Tips, Tricks, & Strategies

February 14, 2024

Pitching client presentations can be a daunting experience.

You have to convince clients that you’d be a good fit for their brand and have the best solution to their problem. That your product or service can help them achieve their goals.

With multiple elements in the mix, driving engaging and relevant presentations becomes challenging. 

Learn how to deliver a successful client presentation using the strategies in this guide.

The Importance of a Client Presentation

Step 1. research and plan the pitch, step 2. create a marketing funnel out of your presentation, step 3. use visually engaging content to communicate your story, step 4. encourage two-way conversations, step 5. establish clear next steps to close your presentation, 1. detailed client research, 2. client pain points, 3. proof points, 4. call to action, 5. expected investment and timeline, 1. not setting the stage properly, 2. getting defensive, 3. mentioning irrelevant information, 4. not guiding the feedback loop, pitch perfectly with clickup, common faqs.

A client presentation is meant to give prospective clients a good idea of your specialized expertise. It helps them see what working with you might be like and how you can add value to them. 

If planned and delivered well, an informative customer presentation can help you:

• Talk about your work in the format of a compelling story
• Articulate your value to potential clients
• Communicate the progress you’ve made to an existing client
• Wrap up projects and dissect what went well and what didn’t

Effective client communication is one of the most critical skills for a sales or business professional today.

5 Essential Steps for a Successful Client Presentation

Creating engaging client presentations is tough work, whether you’re about to deliver a sales pitch or a creative slideshow.

Use this five-step checklist when creating presentations and add value to your client’s time:

You may understand your work inside out, but your potential client has yet to warm up to partnering with you. 

This is why the most essential part of an effective client presentation starts with research and planning.

• Who your target audience is (for the presentation) and what their goals look like
• Everything about your prospective client, including their problems, inspirations, interests, and more
• How to answer your client’s biggest goals, roadblocks, and issues
• Their business, team size, and industry (and how your product/services will support their vision)

Now the question is, where do you find this data?

Make sure to look up the following:

• The client’s LinkedIn page and website for information on their current offerings
• Your past pitches for inspiration—especially if you’ve catered to clients in the same industry
• The client’s ‘About Us’ page and videos online for a better understanding of your presentation’s ideal tone of voice and topics

Once you have all the information about what makes your clients tick, help them make sense of the data—structure and format the key points you plan to deliver using ClickUp AI.

Utilize this smart assistant to generate a presentation to help you reach your prospective client goals faster.

Next, you’ll want to use the client meeting to talk about why your brand is right for them:

• Start by acknowledging their pain points, showing them that you understand them, and building trust in the process
• Move on to asking questions and see if they have any pressing issues that need to be solved
• Introduce your offering as the ultimate solution to your client’s problems and tie your product to their immediate needs

Your presentation needs a tangible end goal to ensure focus and direction. Do you want the client to sign the contract? Or maybe you want them to register for a demo. 

Either way, you must clearly know what action you’d like to inspire them to take.

Here are a few tips on how to convert your presentation into a marketing funnel:

• Build your narrative using a compelling story to hook the audience
• Don’t overload the prospect with tons of information
• Ensure your presentation is to the point, and avoid beating around the bush
• Take charge of your meeting and get your clients to focus on the conversation at hand
• Beginning: Introduce what is being presented, why you’re presenting, and what the client should expect when working together
• Middle: Add visuals to your story and create aesthetic value 
• End: Tell the customer about the next steps and add a relevant call to action

Use the premade ClickUp Presentation template and customize it according to your liking.

This template enables you to:

• Organize sections of your presentation easily, with a clear structure from beginning to end
• Gather feedback from key stakeholders before the final presentation
• Keep track of all tasks related to the presentation in one place

Too much text on your slides makes them dull and will overwhelm your audience.

So, when presenting, consider visual aids like infographics, pie charts, bar graphs, images, hand-drawn illustrations, etc., as your trusted friend.

These visuals offer advantages such as:

• Catching and keeping your client’s attention
• Aligning the client’s needs to the brand’s product/service—visually
• Breaking up text-heavy slides for better focus 
• Converting complex information into easy-to-digest data

Use ClickUp Whiteboards as a canvas to create a visual presentation for your meeting and show your clients your value.

Whether it’s a sales pitch or an onboarding meeting, it is necessary to keep your audience engaged. In other words, your presentation cannot be a monologue.

So, when the presentation is done, it is vital to encourage two-way interaction.

Here’s how you can do this:

• Avoid small talk and instead iterate why the client’s account is important to you
• Do you have any questions for us?
• Do you see our product/service as a satisfactory solution for your needs?
• How do we work together as partners and move this project forward?
• Motivate your audience to ask questions and provide support for their queries—whether it’s related to scope, costs, timelines, and so on

Effective client management is about establishing clear next steps at the end of the meeting. 

If you leave the meeting open-ended, you might not hear back from your audience.

Here’s how to set the right expectations for your client while closing the presentation:

• Outline what you want them to do next 
• Be upfront and direct about how and when you’ll be making follow-up calls
• Give the client a defined deadline and keep them in the loop always

Key Elements to Include in a Client Presentation

Brush up your client presentation skills and set your presentation up for success with these must-have elements:

Use primary and secondary research methods to gather information about your client’s pain points.

Get answers to these questions during your research:

• What are the client’s short-term and long-term goals?
• What problems are they currently facing within their industry?
• How does the client measure success?

Pro tip: Leverage sources like company websites, annual reports, industry publications, and social media platforms to get granular details. 

Invest in client onboarding software to efficiently organize and present your research.

Addressing your client’s current challenges demonstrates your understanding of their immediate needs and, by extension, establishes your relevance.

Do your homework about your client’s recent activities to identify current challenges they might be grappling with. Also, engage in discussions with your key stakeholders to get their opinions. In addition, you can use project kickoff templates to capture information about your clients from the get-go.

Your proof points validate your claims and build credibility by highlighting your track record and success stories. To showcase them:

• Gather case studies, testimonials, and performance data that demonstrate the effectiveness of your solutions within the industry
• Structure your presentation to strategically incorporate these proof points, highlighting them at key moments to reinforce credibility
• Use visuals, such as charts or graphs, to represent your proof points and make them more impactful

A clear call to action directs your client to the next steps they should take after the presentation and guides them toward a decision.

To make this process easier for them:

• Clearly outline the desired outcome, whether it’s scheduling a meeting, signing a contract, or starting a trial
• Provide multiple channels for the client to take the desired action and make it as convenient as possible for them to move forward
• Connect with them promptly afterward to reinforce the call to action and provide additional support as needed

Present a detailed breakdown of the investment required for your solutions, including costs, payment terms, and potential ROI.

To get an accurate estimate of your client’s budgetary and timeline requirements, ask these questions:

• What’s the maximum budget for the project?
• Are there any specific budgetary constraints to be aware of?
• How flexible is the client’s budget? Are they open to discussions about cost adjustments?
• What timeline do they have to get the project up and running?
• What will happen to the deadline and costs in case of a scope creep?

4 Common Mistakes to Avoid During a Client Presentation

Find the sweet spot with your presentation skills by avoiding these common mistakes:

Failing to establish the proper context at the beginning of your presentation leads to misunderstandings and a lack of engagement from your client. Manage client expectations and clarify what the audience should expect.

If your clients feel confused about the purpose of the presentation, they’ll never be able to grasp the value of your offerings fully.

To set the stage properly , follow these few tips:

• Understand your audience’s background and align your introduction to resonate with their needs
• Clearly state the objectives of your presentation and let your clients know what they stand to gain from your pitch
• Start with a compelling hook that captures their attention and sets the tone for the rest of the presentation

Displaying defensive body language, such as crossing arms, avoiding eye contact, or appearing tense, signals discomfort to your clients.

This can immediately undermine your credibility and rapport with them.

Plus, your defensiveness may seem more like a lack of confidence in your customer’s eyes, leading to a breakdown in communication and trust.

To sharpen your non-verbal communication skills , follow these tips:

• Pay attention to your body language during practice sessions. Also, practice maintaining an open posture and making eye contact to convey confidence and openness
• If a challenging question is asked, remain calm and open-minded
• Demonstrate active listening by nodding, smiling, and using affirming gestures. This shows your clients that you value their input and are engaged in the conversation
• If you’re unsure about something or need clarification, ask questions politely and respectfully. This demonstrates a willingness to understand and address your client’s concerns

Irrelevant details during a pitch are a waste of your client’s time. If there is no clear benefit of adding additional information about the company services, don’t.

For example, if your presentation is about account management, don’t talk about your company’s history unless it directly relates to the success of your account management strategies.

Instead, focus on showcasing account results as the main takeaway. This will keep your presentation focused and ensure you’re providing valuable information that directly addresses your client’s interests and needs.

Here are some strategies to effectively incorporate relevant data within your presentation:

• Add data that directly addresses your customer’s specific pain points and interests
• Identify the most important metrics that align with your audience’s goals and tie these metrics to the impact of your solutions
• Use charts, graphs, and visuals to present data in a clear and compelling manner
• Provide context of the data you’re presenting—help your audience understand why these numbers matter and how they relate to the overall story you’re telling
• Use real-life examples and case studies to illustrate how your solutions have delivered tangible results for similar clients

Finishing a solid presentation is not where your work should end. Keep tabs on your audience’s needs, starting with a follow-up call.

Use a free project management software like ClickUp and arm your company with real time client feedback into what’s working for them and what isn’t. A good client management platform can also automate many of these tasks. 

With ClickUp Forms you can capture your client’s responses and route work to the right team at the right time. Additionally, you can convert Clickup Form responses into trackable tasks, which can be plugged directly into your workflows

Read More: Strategies for Client Project Management

When it comes to a presentation, sticking to the basics makes sense. However, deliver the Big Idea in a way that wows your clients and wins them firmly over. 

So, incorporate research and storytelling and maintain a client-first approach to make your presentation stand out .

Use presentation software like ClickUp to deliver pitch-perfect pitches!

1. How can I improve an audience presentation?

Here are a few key takeaways on how to deliver a successful presentation:

• Spend time and effort researching and planning your pitch
• Convert your presentation into a well-defined marketing funnel
• Leverage visuals and images to highlight the USPs of your product or services
• Close the presentation with a two-way dialogue and clear next steps

2. What should I include in a client presentation?

You can include the following in a client presentation:

• Detailed client research
• The client’s pain points
• Strategic proof points for your presentation content
• A relevant call to action for your audience
• Essential details such as the expected investment and timelines

3. How can ClickUp help in optimizing a client presentation?

ClickUp saves you time and effort in creating effective presentations through its various tools as:

• ClickUp Presentation template, which helps you create effective and engaging presentations for your audience
• ClickUp AI, which allows you to generate a presentation outline within seconds; for example, creating a sales presentation for your sales process
• ClickUp’s Presentation Executive Summary Template, which helps you make a killer first impression with your presentation

Use these features and save the time that goes into creating presentations.

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How to deliver a successful client presentation.

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Our compass for how to constantly deliver value to customers is none other than the desired outcome . In more practical terms, our client presentations are the first step in navigating our client towards the road to success.

This is one of your most important assets you will have as a CSM . A structured, well-built presentation for any customer lifecycle stage is the enabler of showcasing clear value to your customers.

In this article, I share best practices and tips on how to build killer client presentations for any stage in the customer lifecycle.

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Build a Client Presentation Checklist

When I build a presentation, I always make sure to go over the following items — to guarantee that its content is complete and comprehensive.

• Know your audience & stakeholders - This is one of the most important things to keep in mind when building a presentation. Effective presentations can’t be built without knowing which people will be in the room, and who the ultimate decision-makers are.  Mapping out the people attending the meeting — both on the clients’ side and on the vendor side clarifies your understanding of the material you should include. This should cover important subject matters for the stakeholders so that you can captivate your customers with a clear and powerful presentation.
• Identify the presentation goal - Every presentation will serve a different purpose within the customer lifecycle, so identifying your presentation’s goal is imperative to its successful delivery. For example, a kickoff meeting’s main goal could be to “showcase the first perception of value”. A QBR/EBR goal, however, would be to “showcase milestones & goals achieved using your product”, and so on. Pinpointing your presentation’s main goal lets you dig deeper into the details and key items that will fulfill the presentation’s goal in the clearest and most impactful way.
• Identifying the Key Items - These items will be included in the presentation’s agenda. Same as the presentation, the purpose of your chosen key items is to exhibit your product’s added value and help you achieve the presentation goal. Let’s say you are building your product’s basic training presentation with the goal to teach the customers how to use its basic features. The key items in the presentation would then include those exact features; their added value per use case, which you can even show using your customer’s real data or dashboard. This conclusive list of key presentation items facilitates the next step: building your presentation template and slowly compiling its parts. You can now start connecting the dots that create an impressive narrative; delivering a clear message whose value permeates each presentation slide.  Each slide should tell a brief story (in a few words alone) that helps your value proposition resonate among your audience by the meeting conclusion.  The more value your customers derive from each presentation or meeting, the stronger the CSM-to-customer relationship becomes. Ultimately, you’ll be considered a key part of their success: the strategic advisor within your company.

Build your story

You’ve now mapped out your audience, with a clear definition of the meeting goal and your presentation’s key items. The last step is to design a presentation sequence and flow that will maintain audience interest during the meeting, each slide telling its own story. 

By the time you’ve finished presenting, you’ll have achieved the presentation’s goal and by presenting valuable insights to your customers that will keep them eagerly waiting for your next presentation and the information you’ll provide.

Create client presentation templates

Presentation templates are a key part of scaling your customer success capabilities. Templates are more than a time-saver: they also allow you to focus more on improving presentation deliverables, based on your customers’ feedback, industry, and feature preference. 

Some templates vary according to product needs (for example, product training & setup). However, for kickoff meetings, ongoing meetings, and QBR/EBRs, I maintain the same structure and tailor it according to customer background and the product at hand.

Here are some templates you can use:

Kickoff Meeting

This is one of the customer lifecycle’s most important stages; where your customers see your product differentiation and value. 

Here you will present the project scope and timeline, and work with your customer to identify their desired outcome and success plan.

• Agenda - Always have an agenda in place, preferably share this agenda the moment you send the calendar invite
• Your Team - Who will be the key stakeholders within your company (CSM, support, sales, etc.)? Make sure to add the contact details and explain the best communication method for each stakeholder
• About Your Compan - This part of the presentation is your opportunity to ask key questions to your customer in order to better understand their expectations, objectives, and desired outcome
• Onboarding Overview - In this section, you will present your onboarding plan to the customer, make sure you give important context on what does each stage mean and what will they achieve as they progress, and how much more value they will get from your product once they have been fully onboarded
• Key Opportunities - If you did your due diligence, you might have a few examples of how your product can add immediate value to your customer. The best approach is to present use-cases that have a direct impact on your customer’s business outcomes
• Q&A - Leave a few minutes to answer any questions they have about the product/onboarding/anything else
• "Next Steps" - Momentum is key, so make sure the next steps are clear action items that will get your customer closer to the next milestone

Ongoing Meeting

Now that you’ve completed customer onboarding , your focus shifts towards the desired outcome and executing the defined action items within the success plan. 

Depending on the client, you may want to have this type of meeting on a bi-weekly/monthly basis.

• Open Items - This is intended for a status update for any open items related to your customer, show that you’re on top of things and that you’ll make sure these items are completed
• Account Review - What progress has been made so far? Are we getting closer to important milestones? This is in context to the desired outcome and success plan
• Opportunities - Are we using the product to its full potential or are there any available features that can help us get closer to the desired outcome.
• Key Takeaways - This slide can be used to share your key recommendations and also emphasize key achievements, this will further position you as a strategic consultant to your customer. The key achievements can be anything that gets the customer closer to their desired outcome and closer to achieving the main objectives in their success plan. ‍

• Executive Overview - The executive overview gives a quick picture and clear report of what has been achieved since the past QBR/EBR, so the rest of the presentation should tell the story of each individual achievement. In a few words, underscore the work set in place that led us to successful results.
• Account Review - If the executive overview includes all of the achievements, this is where you can tell the story of how you obtained them and what the progress looked like.
• Engagement Heat Map  - I personally like this one since it’s your opportunity to showcase your added value as an account CSM; emphasize how working together helped the customer reach their objectives. The idea is to account not only for the product’s added value, but for our knowledge and expertise as well.
• Your Success Plan (Milestones) - This is probably the most important presentation slide. There’s no clearer way of proving value than by fulfilling your customer’s expectations and objectives. This is why defining your success plan with your customer is crucial, so that you’re both aligned on the plan’s key objectives, goals, milestones, etc.
• “Looking Ahead” - This slide focuses on future plans: planning for the next Q and opportunities available for exploration. If there’s a renewal coming up, this is also the perfect time to discuss it and discuss their point of view. Don’t forget to update the success plan accordingly.

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Killer client presentations spell out added value

At the end of the day, like everything else in life, the more you practice, the better you’ll be. Building and delivering successful client presentations is all about that. Once you’ve found your secret sauce for delivering value through your presentations — take it up a notch and see how you can improve every deliverable.

Work closely with your customers, making sure you understand their challenges, objectives, and business goals. This empowers you to continuously provide added value to your customers and help them achieve their desired outcome.

Enrique Roth

Enrique has spent 7+ years in CS, account management and sales roles. Enrique is a staunch advocate of the value CSMs bring to organizations, and dedicates his content to sharing inspirational knowledge and experience with budding CSMs.

Leverage EverAfter to create a self-serve hub for your low-ARR customers - Just like Gong!

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Client management

How to run the perfect client presentation

Pitching your agency as the perfect fit during a client presentation is daunting.

You have to remember product positioning, messaging, client goals, and most importantly, selling your service. Most of all, a client presentation must add value.

The aim is for clients to envision what it’ll look like if they work with you and how you’ll help them reach their goals. The failure of most client presentations is how they land.

Some are full of text-heavy slide decks.

Others are all about the agency – not the client and their specific goals.

Finding the sweet spot with a client presentation is possible if you stick to the basics and put the client first by answering their biggest needs, uncovering any issues, and confidently explaining why they're worse off without your services.

Let's dive in a little deeper and help you get ready for the big presentation:

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Step 1: Do your research and carefully plan your pitch

Any client presentation starts with a who: who is it for?

The answer is your client.

You should know everything about them before you step into the meeting with them. Go into the room with a good understanding of their business, their industry, and how your services fit into the picture. 

Prepare by researching their past projects, understanding their goals, and even studying business presentation examples to ensure your communication is effective.

Start by researching the basics:

What industry are they in?

How big is their company and how big is their team?

What are the main goals they want to hit?

What roadblocks are stopping them?

How can product/service help them?

Look at their website and LinkedIn pages to see what services or products they’re selling. If you’ve done work for similar clients in their industry, check back at past projects and pitches, and see the pain points were you spent the most time. 

Then you need to understand the company’s size and more importantly, how they plan to grow and scale their business.

Your client should have plenty of information about them online and a simple about us – like our video below – can help direct your presentation topics and tone of voice.

If you're stuck when making your presentation you can even use prompts to easily generate an AI presentation , which will streamline the process and save you valuable time that would otherwise be spent on slide creation.

Teamwork.com Overview

Once you know a little bit about the company, focus on why your solution is right for them.

How you sell your why depends on who you are selling to. A CEO with 200 employees has different challenges to a scrappy startup owner with a couple of employees on the books. Either way, explain your why by: 

Acknowledging their pain points. Talk about the client's problems and what they need to do to reach their goals. Show them that you understand their issues and build trust from the start of the presentation.

Asking questions. Presentations shouldn't be a one-sided affair. Asking the client questions makes them feel comfortable and helps you understand their needs.

Introducing your brand as the solution. Tie the client's problems to your product/service. If they need a new website , talk about how you can make that happen and what the process looks like. If they have hit a brick wall with their marketing, explain why they may be struggling and what they can do to change it.

Pro-tip: Researching potential clients can take a lot of energy. You need to ensure that they're a good fit before stepping into a presentation. Get a headstart with presentation research and start using detailed intake forms. Use a tool like Teamwork.com to build customized intake forms and get as much information as possible about a client before sitting down for a meeting. 

Step 2: Take care of some housekeeping

Your clients are busy—that’s a given.

But so are you. 

Make sure you set some ground rules before the presentation starts so that it runs smoothly. These can be basic rules like: 

Always get to the meeting first. Whether the meeting is in the client's office or on Zoom – get there first and early. Give yourself enough time to organize your slide deck and get comfortable with the pitch before the client arrives (or logs in.)

Test your tech. Open your presentation, check that it's working, and test each slide. If you're using a laptop or projector, have it open to the first slide at the start of your presentation, ready for when the client arrives.

Practice your pitch. Is it just you presenting to the client? Do you have a team joining you? Don’t show up to the meeting without a game plan. Rehearse what you’re going to say and how you’ll answer client questions before the presentation.  

Cut to the chase. Your client isn’t your friend. Don’t waste too much time with small talk. If the pitch goes well – they'll move forward – not always on your small talk skills.

These steps are so basic that it almost seems like they don't need to be mentioned. But walking into a presentation with a poorly prepared pitch or a slide deck that takes 15 minutes to fix is the fastest way for it to fall flat.

Step 3: Turn the presentation into a marketing funnel

Your presentation should have one goal—getting the client to agree to the next steps or sign a contract.

So, why not design your slide deck like a marketing funnel—with a beginning, middle, and end?

You must tread a fine line between a lecture and a negotiation with client presentations. If the slide deck is too information-heavy, clients can feel like you're speaking at them instead of talking to them.

And if you don't take charge of the meeting, it can go off track and makes it harder to get your client focused on the next steps.

Aim for somewhere in the middle and tell a story where your slides convince the client that your solution is a good fit. Your presentation deck should include these sections:

Beginning: Set the stage and tell the client what the presentation is about, why you’re there, and how you plan on working together.

Middle: The meat of the presentation. Don’t overload the slides with text. They should be a visual background to back up what you’re saying.

End: Use this as your call to action and outlines the next steps. Here, you give the client a reason to book another meeting or sign a contract with you.

Here’s a great example of LeadCrunch turning a presentation into a compelling story. The presentation kicks off by talking about common problems that B2B sales companies experience: 

This helps hook the audience.

The presenter understands their frustrations with trying to get more leads. Next, LeadCrunch takes the three frustrations and turns them into opportunities for the client: 

The text on the slide mirrors the issues in the industry so the client can connect the dots between the problems and LeadCrunch's solution.

Finally, the presentation winds up by using a pricing chart as its CTA. Don't overthink how you tie in your CTA to the client – you know your value and what you can bring to the table – so just clearly say it.

Step 4: Use visuals to tell and sell the story

Visuals are your friend during a client presentation. 

They have obvious benefits—they grab your client’s attention, break up text-heavy slides and make complex data easier to digest. 

But there are other reasons why adding visuals to your presentation is a good move.

The SEO software company SEMRush asked over 200 agency and brand reps what made their presentations successful and found 74% of brands said it was tailoring the proposal to the client. They recommended using images to help clients understand concepts that usually end up on a spreadsheet or hidden under a mountain of text. This is easy to do.

Don’t explain how your agency’s complex strategic marketing will work — show the client instead.

Step 5: Open the pitch up into a two-way conversation

Once the presentation is done, don’t just pack up and leave—start a conversation with the client instead. 

Getting feedback as soon as the pitch is over is crucial. You need to know if your presentation resonated with them and iron out any concerns or questions they have.

Kickstart the feedback process by asking the client:

Did you have any questions about anything we mentioned in the presentation? 

Do you see our solution solving your problems?

What can we do to move this forward and start working together?

Now, the client may give you some feedback you don’t like. Or ask more pressing questions around project cost estimations , deadline management , or how you handle scope creep .

Make your value clear. But also show how you'll promote a straight road to client collaboration , so you make their values your own. Want more insights into collaboration tips? Download our guide to creating a collaborative culture with your clients.

5 tips for fostering collaboration with your clients: CTA

Download our guide to get essential communication tips and insights into how to foster collaboration with your clients.

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Step 6: Close strongly with clear next steps

Don’t leave the meeting in limbo.

Be clear about what you want to do next with the client moving forward. Don’t say that you’ll follow up in a couple of days—it’s too vague. Be more direct. 

Make sure you and your client agree on a defined deadline for when the deal should move forward. If the follow-up call goes well and the client wants to go ahead, send a contract over to seal the deal. 

Pro-tip: If you want to build a strong relationship with your client, be transparent from the beginning. Invite clients to the project to keep them updated on progress. Using a tool like Teamwork.com makes this part easy.

And they’ll get access to visual project timelines , Kanban board views , and Gantt charts as well as ways to simply reply to messages, so you can both speed up feedback loops.

If you're worried about the client getting too involved, there's a solution – and it's permissions. Simply add permissions to client accounts so they can only access the things that move projects forward – not backward.

Ready to deliver a pitch-perfect client presentation?

A pitch that wows your clients begins way before walking into the meeting room. 

Successful presentations hinge on knowing your client's pain points. The more research you do, the more you'll be able to identify the barriers they face and how you can help. 

From there, it’s just a matter of showing up, targeting your messaging to their problems, and starting a conversation. 

See how Teamwork.com helps teams manage client work more successfully to impress everyone beyond the initial conversation. Get a 30-day trial for free to get in the driver's seat.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

6 steps to build the ultimate client presentation

• Do your research and carefully plan your pitch
• Take care of some housekeeping
• Turn the presentation into a marketing funnel
• Use visuals to tell and sell the story
• Open the pitch up into a two-way conversation
• Close strongly with clear next steps

Síle is a Senior Content Marketing Manager at Teamwork.com. She has been working in the project management software space for over 7 years, exclusively serving the agency sector. She loves providing agencies with actionable insights and captivating content to help navigate the ever-evolving landscape of project management.

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Presenting your web design portfolio: The complete guide for winning new clients

When presenting your portfolio to a potential web design client, focus on sharing your goals, ideas, and thought processes as you worked through the projects.

Design and build a custom portfolio website, visually, within 21 days.

Navigating client pitches can be intimidating, particularly when it comes to presenting your portfolio. However, with the right preparation, it’s a powerful platform to showcase your value and expertise as a designer.

Client meetings — whether they’re with large corporations or small businesses — often require web design portfolio presentations. While you might already have an online portfolio or personal website that showcases completed work, these demonstrations require walking prospective clients through your design process to express how the parts fit together.

Succeeding in these interviews requires strategic selection, curation, and exhibition of your work. If you’re giving a UX design portfolio presentation, you can use these same strategies, considering that some of your solutions may be on a smaller scale.

What is a portfolio presentation?

In a portfolio presentation, you present a small selection of design projects and explain your design decisions when creating them.

While you might end up presenting to just one person or doing a mini-presentation as part of a series of questions, most portfolio showcases are dedicated panel sessions. These last anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes, and while you might be presenting to a single decision-maker, you’ll often find yourself in front of a team that may include a project manager and other designers at the company.

From the client’s perspective, the purpose of a portfolio presentation isn’t just to evaluate the quality of your design work. They’re also scrutinizing:

• Your design process: Your overall approach to solving design problems, how you generate ideas, what you do when an idea doesn’t work, and how good you are at listening to and incorporating feedback
• Your communication skills: If you can clearly express your design intentions and findings to the committee, you’ll also be able to communicate well with people on your team and across the organization
• Your professional integrity: How you demonstrate respect for collaborators, acknowledge team contributions, and showcase reliability

How to organize a digital portfolio

As with any job application, you must align your portfolio to resonate with your audience. You can also use your existing web design portfolio to provide a deeper exposition of your chosen projects.

How many projects should you include?

The number of case studies you present depends on the length of your presentation. Plan on one or two projects for a 30-minute session and two or three for a 60-minute one. Including a spare project is prudent if you get through the material more quickly than expected.

Which projects should you choose?

Think about your past projects and decide which fit best in your showcase. Consider factors such as:

• The job requirements and technical skills mentioned in the position description
• The client’s industry and specific needs
• Projects that resonate with the client’s graphic design style or ethos
• Success stories where your design significantly impacted a client’s business
• Designs you’re proud of and enjoyed working on
• Recency (you want to illustrate you’re continually improving, so avoid older projects unless there’s a solid reason to include them)

How should you order the projects?

Once you know which projects to include, think about how to arrange them for the best logical flow. Consider beginning with a smaller self-contained project that introduces your design process and style. Then, after you’ve gained momentum, you can dive into more complex projects.

What’s the best format for a web design portfolio presentation?

Some designers flesh out their existing online portfolio and use that in the presentation. However, most create a dedicated slide deck for better manageability and logical flow.

If you’re seeking a straightforward approach to crafting slides, Google Slides and PowerPoint offer intuitive interfaces for quick and effective deck creation. You could also try Canva’s presentation tool for easy data visualizations or Haiku Deck for responsive presentations. Keep a PDF copy of the slides on a USB drive to allow for in-person displays.

You’re applying for a design position, so you should pay attention to how your portfolio looks and use consistent visual language throughout. But you can also customize the presentation of the deck for your audience.

If you’re pitching to a budding startup, highlight your willingness to experiment with bold color schemes or playful typography and showcase collaborative projects where your ideas contributed to an innovative outcome. For larger or corporate clients, display a professional look by prioritizing projects that balance aesthetics with usability or designs that improve business metrics, such as conversion or click-through rates. Avoid imitating the company’s aesthetic too closely, as this can come across as amateurish.

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How to present a portfolio

When you start your portfolio exposition, avoid launching into the first project immediately. Instead, open by giving your audience a broad sense of who you are and how you approach design. Take one to three minutes to briefly touch on the following:

• How long you’ve been designing
• Where you’re currently working
• Your overall approach to design (for example, maybe you incorporate principles of user-centered design or human-centered design)
• Unique qualities your designs have (perhaps you’re an expert in typographic design , color psychology , or UX design ) 
• Which projects you’ve chosen to present and why

Presenting the individual projects: 10 steps

Here’s a general framework you can adapt to suit each project. Depending on the length of your demonstration and specific features of the designs, it may make sense to combine or skip some steps.

1. Set the scene

Give a broad overview of the project, including:

• Who the design was for
• Who you were working with
• Project duration
• Any other constraints and stakeholders

2. Describe the problem

Clearly describe the problem you solved. Include the purpose of the design (for example, redesigning a website to increase online sales) and the intended downstream effects for the client or company (for example, increased revenue and company growth). Include “before” pictures if the project was a redesign.

3. Show how you broke down the problem 

Explain your initial investigation of the problem, including:

• User research you conducted
• Metrics you examined
• Root causes you found
• Additional information you sought from the client

4. State your objectives

Specify any goals you set for the design solution . If you include quantitative metrics (for example, if the client wanted to increase online sales through an ecommerce site or reduce their website’s bounce rate ), state the target you set for the improved version.

5. Present some of the initial design ideas

Give the panel a window into the ideation phase by revealing how you came up with and explored possible solutions. Include sketches, prototypes, or wireframes you developed as part of this process.

6. Present the solution you settled on and explain why you chose it

Include attractive pictures of the solution you decided on. Point out key elements and explain why you designed them this way.

7. Describe the implementation and validation phase

Illustrate how you iterated and tested the design based on different types of feedback, including website performance metrics , user feedback, and client feedback.

8. Explain how your solution solved the initial problem

Linking your solution back to the original problem demonstrates to the panel that you’re good at staying on track during the design process and communicating your ideas. Bring the audience full circle by referring to the problem you described in Step 2, the detailed analysis you conducted in Step 3, and the goals you set in Step 4.

9. Reflect on the solution

Explain what you think about the solution. If you have up-to-date information about the project’s current status, share it. Report on final client feedback and any developments that have occurred since you delivered the final design.

10. Ask for questions

Ask the panel if they have questions for you. Expect some of the following:

• What did you learn from the project?
• What was the most significant design challenge in this project, and why?
• Would you take a different approach to any of your projects?

Practicing the presentation

Align your rehearsal with the actual presentation settings as closely as possible. For an in-person presentation, try to practice in the same environment with the same equipment, such as a tablet or laptop, that you’ll use during the actual interview. Enlist the help of a knowledgeable friend or trusted colleague to act as your audience if possible. You can also approach recruiters to give you some pointers.

If the interview is online, check which video conferencing software the company will use and practice with the same — you don’t want to be off your game when you can’t find the screen-share button.

Show off your designs everywhere you can

If any clients or interviewers research your designs beforehand, you want to ensure they like what they see. To make a great first impression, consider taking Webflow’s 21-day design portfolio course to create a beautiful new portfolio or upgrade your current one. You could also browse some of the design portfolios created in Webflow for ideas.

Selecting your best work and laying bare your creative process for prospective clients can be a surprisingly rewarding experience. We wish you all the best in your job search, and we can’t wait to see what you design in your new role.

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Pitch Like A Pro in 2022: Create An Engaging Client Presentation To Win Contracts

Table of contents, start getting more business with our client presentation tips, what is a client presentation.

Any good sales process will include a client presentation. Whether you’re pitching a prospect for new business, showcasing account results for an existing client or presenting new business offerings to help grow your clients’ business, crafting engaging and relevant presentations is crucial. Creating presentations shouldn’t be a task. Think of them as your one opportunity to impress your audience.

Similar to an RFP presentation , a client presentation allows you, the vendor, to prove the value of your work to the client in a digestible and persuasive way. The presentation is the main takeaway and could very well determine if you two work together.

How Do You Start A Client Presentation?

You might be tempted to jump right in and start compiling a sales deck but structuring the flow of the story is crucial to engage your potential client. Here are a few tips we recommend before you even begin creating the presentation slides.

Research Prospective Client & Outline Sales Process

A good starting point is to collect as many details about your prospective client as possible . This will help you outline how you’re going to craft your client presentation as well as outlining the sales process. Even though you may have an effective sales pipeline in place, understanding your potential clients will help you mitigate objections.

Determine Pain Points

Next, you should focus on determining the client’s pain points . Most of the time, the client either doesn’t 100% know what their pain points are, or they have a misunderstanding of what their struggles are.

As a professional, you should be able to present with confidence the real challenges you determined the client to have as well as the tailored services your company can provide to support them and help them achieve success.

You want to be able to present your idea in a way that makes sense. Do not try and get too fancy or over-complicate the answer.

Begin Crafting The Sales Presentation

Now that you know who your client is and the challenges they’re facing, you’re now ready to begin creating the sales presentation. You should already have a good structure and foundation in place thanks to the preliminary research you’ve conducted. Now, it’s time to craft a persuasive message to get your client from consideration to conversion.

What Should Client Presentations Include?

You want to avoid having too much text on your slides. Prioritize creative visuals that help tell the story and bring your point across. Having your potential customer digest visuals is less cognitively demanding than having them read a bunch of text. In fact, the human brain can process visual information 60,000 times faster than text .

You want to ensure your client is still listening to what you have to say. By using more visuals than text, you’ll still have your client engaged in the presentation while you’re presenting.

If you do need to use text, avoid using full sentences. Bullet points are a great way to reduce the amount of text you use while still highlighting the key takeaways .

Opening Slide

First impressions are everything and your presentation matters too. The opening slide should be the hook of the presentation that draws your audience in and makes them want to listen to what you have to say.

Some might think the opening slide should be an agenda that outlines the structure of how the presentation will flow. Although this may work in some circumstances, an agenda might not always be necessary.

Proof Points

You should always have proof points to back up your claims. It’s one thing to say you’ll do something or to say you’re the best at what you do, but results are the most important part. Proof points make customers feel confident they are choosing the right person to work with and that they’ll be getting the most helpful information from them.

Call To Action

Finally, your client presentation should include a call to action . This is where you ask for the business. Often times, people are afraid to input a call to action because it seems too forward and they’re afraid of rejection. Don’t be afraid of rejection and don’t be afraid to sell! At the end of the day, you’re not losing a client because they aren’t your client, to begin with. Until you have them sign a contract, they’re still a prospective client.

How Do You Structure A Client Presentation – Our Proven Client Presentation Template

Creating a persuasive message is an art. It gets your audience to either act, think, or feel in a certain way. By structuring client presentations similar to a story – with a clear beginning, middle and end, you’ll be able to convert more clients with less difficulty.

What you know about your client

First, take inventory of what you know about your client and prepare one quick slide deck outlining your research. This proves to the client you took the time to research them and their market and it will help build their confidence in you.

This doesn’t need to take too long either. An hour-long discovery call with the client and a quick search on their website should provide you with enough information on who they are, what business they’re in and the target audience they’re trying to reach.

Who your company is

Now, it’s time to talk about yourself. But remember, the presentation is about the prospective clients, not all about you. So keep this slide brief and simple. Just like this.

Stats related to your successes

It’s one thing to say you’re the best. It’s another thing to prove it. Provide examples of past clients you worked with – especially if the scope of work is similar to what the prospective client would request. Use data points and key performance indicators (KPIs) to help support the narrative.

Social proof such as testimonials and case studies

There is no stronger marketing tool than word of mouth. Obviously, you won’t bring past clients into the meeting but you can bring their positive remarks.

Testimonials or a case study of a past project are great elements to incorporate into a sales presentation. They help speak to the quality of work or service you provide from someone who has already experienced working with you.

More often than not, a company would object to working with you because they’re afraid of the unknown. Having a testimonial eases the tension since someone has already walked the path and had great results. It serves as a great example of success.

What your client’s pain points are

Next, present the pain points you have found. This is a great opportunity to see if you’re aligned with the client. The worst thing that can happen is both sides think the other knows what the problem is when reality there is a disconnect. You’ll then begin finding a solution to a problem that isn’t the problem, to begin with.

How your company can solve their problems

Presenting your ideas and solutions is where your hard work pays off and where your sales skills really shine. Now you can present the deliverables you’d propose to the client to help them solve their problem.

Expected Investment (Optional)

Depending on your business strategy and how you conduct a sales presentation, a slide outlining the expected investment gives the prospective customer a clear understanding of what they can expect to pay for the proposed service.

A timeline is another great slide to include which highlights the next steps. The reason you want to have a timeline in the deck is that it gets the prospective customer to put themselves in the mindset that they’re already working with you.

If they’re able to clearly see what the future touchpoints will be, when they can expect to follow up and when they can expect deliverables, it will be easier to close the deal.

Don’t forget the call to action ! This point is so important we had to put it in the blog twice. Don’t be afraid to ask for their business and have a call to action to close off the presentation.

Client Presentation Skills You Should Know

Virtual presentation skills.

With more businesses turning to a virtual model, you’ll be presented with more opportunities to present virtually. This means you’ll need to begin familiarizing yourself with online presentation tools such as Google Meets, Zoom and Pigeonhole to facilitate your presentation.

Luckily, there are great resources available online that go into detail on how to ace your virtual presentation so when the time comes to present virtually, you’ll nail it.

Body Language

Whether you’re presenting in-person or virtually, body language still plays a role . Body language will help you engage with your audience and enhances the way you speak.

Body language also helps you emphasize key points. Want to bring attention to a key fact or piece of data? Use body language to help convey the message.

Public Speaking

The skill of public speaking allows you to deliver a message with confidence. Whether it’s in-person or done virtually, public speaking allows you to speak at a proper cadence.

With practice, public speaking also helps you think quickly on your feet. So when you potential customer starts asking questions about the services you offer and your recommended solutions, you’ll be able to respond effectively.

Designing Presentations

If you don’t have a professionally designed presentation, all the work you put into your pitch will be for nothing. A professionally designed presentation is the vehicle that helps deliver the message.

Even if you decide to use templates, you should have the skills to customize PowerPoint slides or Google Slide. But, this can be time-consuming and tricky.

If you rather focus your time more on research than the creative aspect of presentation design, consider using a presentation design service such as Presentation Geeks who offer e-learning solutions, PowerPoint design, Google Slide design, sizzle reels, motion graphics and much more!

Author:  Ryan

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Cheat Sheet For Presenting Your Website Designs

Written by: Tyler Morian - Nov 22nd, 2021 - 6 minute read

The process of creating a new website for your clients involves several different benchmarks. First, you conduct your research of the client and their target audience. Next, you present wireframes. Once wireframes are approved, you come to the stage of designing your client’s new website.

It’s easy for a presentation to become daunting if you don’t feel prepared to explain design choices or features. Clients may fixate on a trivial detail, and thus, slow down the web project (meaning more time and less profit for you).

This post is a how-to guide on ways to make a successful website presentation by adding context and annotations to help your client better understand the design elements and design decisions. Whether you are a designer about to share your designs or an account manager getting ready to present, this post will guide your discussion and help you present with confidence.

How to Make A Website Presentation

One of the most important first steps in the presentation process is determining how you plan to present your work to your client. Knowing beforehand how your client will be viewing the presentation is necessary to guide how you will create annotations.

There are a few different ways to go about presenting. You may choose in-person if your client is local or over the phone/video conference. Either way you decide to present, follow these few steps to make your meeting run as smoothly as possible.

1. Create an Annotated Presentation

In previous posts, we discussed the importance of annotating wireframes for your clients. Wireframes are tricky to present, because they are the bare bones of a site structure. Clients don’t always visualize what you have in mind for them and it leaves room for too much feedback on their end.

Website design presentations are a whole different challenge. At this point, your design team (or you, if you’re the designer) has likely spent weeks working on these designs. They feel personal to you. Presenting the new designs can often feel nerve-wracking because you don’t know how your client will perceive the designs.

The best way to prepare yourself (and your client) for your design presentation is to annotate. What do we mean? 

Back when design feedback software didn’t exist, we would simply send our design files via email and hop on a call ASAP. We’d avoid allowing the client to sit with the designs too long before we tried to give our best explanation for how and why the designs look the way they do.

Nowadays, we can send design files via design feedback software, such as SimpleStage , to create a guided presentation for web projects. Send multiple designs with annotations on every page to help your clients understand the user flow, see what content you are using as placeholder, what features are designed to increase sales, etc.

Sending files with no context whatsoever leaves your designs up to their interpretation. Annotating designs allows for a more seamless client experience, especially when you use a design feedback software to collect their thoughts.

Pro Tip: If the website you’re designing has more than 15 unique pages, it may be worth setting multiple design meetings to break up the presentations. 

2. Show Examples of Website Features

Your website designs will likely include features that are difficult for your client to conceptualize from a flat design file. Include examples from other websites to demonstrate these types of features to paint a clear picture for your client, helping them imagine how the features might fit in and benefit their website.

Curate a custom list of websites that include the key features or animations that you are proposing, and whether conducting the presentation virtually or in-person, be prepared to visit these websites as you go.

3. Document User Flow

Walk the client through the user flow focusing on the customer perspective. Annotating features like scrolling down to see the CTA or using headers to break up content demonstrates thoughtful documentation of user flow.

Highlighting how your designs improve the user experience for your client’s customers can be a big win for your presentation. This is particularly true if your proposed user flow solves a problem in the existing site or otherwise greatly enhances the overall experience. Be sure to call out these features and explain them clearly.

4. Ask Clients for Feedback with Guided Questions

In an ideal world, clients offer timely and useful feedback. Unfortunately, real world client feedback can be vague, insignificant, and needless. Knowing the right questions to ask during your new website presentation will encourage your client to give clear context to their feedback.

It can be meaningful to know how your client feels about the website and why. For instance, asking them to describe how they feel about specific design elements and what elements they feel are missing will shorten the amount of sharing back and forth. Using the word “feel” also offers an empathetic point of view, making your questions less likely to come off as defensive. This disarming tactic helps your clients to receive your questions more positively.

Clients typically only spend a set amount of time giving feedback, so breaking up your requests is a great way to receive more timely and targeted feedback, rather than asking open-ended questions, such as what they think about the site in general.

Asking “Why?” goes a long way . When a client fails to give precise feedback on your designs, asking them why gives them the chance to expand on their comments.

Reminding your client to consider their customer is also important to include in your questions. The target audience is an essential part of their goal for the site, so encourage clients to view the site from the perspective of their ideal customer to help them offer constructive feedback.

5. Use A Design Feedback Software

The days before design feedback software meant emailing design files to waiting for your client to meet you for an in-person presentation. Both have their own sets of challenges and if you aren’t prepared for a presentation, you may feel overwhelmed walking your client through several pages of designs.

Design feedback software allows digital agencies and freelancers to share their design files online, while providing context and annotations for their clients. So regardless if your meeting is in-person or virtual, your clients have all the information they need to give feedback on their designs.

Design Feedback Software exists to:

• Showcase your own annotations to explain how a feature will look once live, what is placeholder, and how the user experience is taken into consideration
• Collect client feedback directly on the designs
• Give multiple stakeholders the opportunity to give feedback without their notes being redundant

6. Anticipate Answering “Why?”

Negative feedback from a client is inevitable. Occasionally, your client may struggle to comprehend why you designed something the way you did. You want them to understand and be confident in your choices, so back up your explanation with logic and reason to support and validate your work.

• Have onboarding notes readily available to refer to
• Show your research on their current brand, competitors, and target customers
• Include designers in the presentation to give more context

Looking for a way to improve the way your agency collects design and website feedback?

SimpleStage is the only platform that unifies the client experience by providing tools to help agencies collect content, feedback and track bugs.

Purposeful Context For a Successful New Website Presentation

By incorporating these strategies and tools into your design process, your team is more likely to maintain clear context, making your website presentation a success. Whether you are face-to-face or sharing a screen, you and your client can better remain on the same page from start to finish.

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How to Present Web Design to Clients Like a Pro

Table of Contents

In the previous four articles we discussed how professional web design process looks like and how you can use it to create high quality work every time. Your next step is to present web design to your client in a professional way. This will be the main subject of this article. Today, you will learn the best practices to present web design. You will also learn how to work with client’s feedback and do required adjustments. Are you ready to learn how to present web design like a pro?

One challenge everybody knows

Your web design process will not be complete nor sustainable without knowing how to present web design to your client. There are many great and hard-working web designers delivering amazing results. These guys and girls know how to work with colors. They know the psychology  behind it and how to is. They can tell you the whole history of graphic even if you wake them up in the middle of the night. The same thing applies to design theory. These people are walking reservoirs of knowledge.

Unfortunately, the amount of skill these people have is not everything. The reality is that it doesn’t matter how great web designer your are. You also must be able to present web design to your client, employer or anyone else. This one of the issues many professional web designers have to deal with. The ability to present web design is often also that one thing that keeps them from taking their craft on another level, not to mention make more money.

Delivery is just beginning

Let’s suppose you just finished the first iteration of the website. You also discussed the web design with your colleagues or another web designers and did user testing  to get valuable feedback. Now it’s time to present the web design to your client. This is the place where some web designers are doing first mistake – they send the prototype of the website by e-mail. If you want to retain at least some control over the process of presentation, always present web design to your client in person. This doesn’t mean that you have to fly at the other end of the world.

Simple Skype call or hangout will work great. The key is to present web design in the real time. Personal presentation gives you every advantage you can get. First, personal contact will improve your relationship with your client. As a result, he will be more likely to remember you and hire you in the future. Second, personal presentation will allow you to frame your work in wider context. Third, you will have a chance to answer client’s questions right on the spot. In other words, say good-bye to e-mails about nonsensical remarks and comments.

Fourth, your client will gain confidence in you. There is only handful of web designers willing to take the time and present web design in person. Good preparation requires certain level of professionalism and preparation. The fifth, and last, advantage of presentation done in person is obtaining valuable feedback by watching clients reaction. Your client can tell or write you one thing. However, the reaction you can see on your own eyes is irreplaceable. What’s more, if you are good at body language , you can spot sign your client might not even know about.

Present web design like a pro

You know about the biggest challenge the majority of web designers have to handle. You also know the greatest advantages you can gain by learning how to present web design like a pro. Now, I will give you six-step process to master this softer part of your work.

The first step is to describe the problem. You need to present to your client the assignment you worked with. As someone well-versed in web design and also someone who went through all phases of web design process, it’s quite easy for you understand it. You still have everything in your memory – all assumptions, hypothesis, users’ feedback. Unfortunately, this is not true for your clients. For this reason, the first step is to familiarize your client with the problem.

Second step, is to “go” through the business of your client and his customers. This step is more about describing what you were building the website on. Your goal is not directly to present web design. It is showing your client that you understood his business. Otherwise, you could end up with a house built on the wrong meadow. Third step is to describe your  four-phase web design process  you used. Briefly describe individual phases and information you obtained. You should also talk about how you used these information to design the website.

Fourth step is presenting your prototype of the website. This is your chance to show the fruits of your labor in the best light. Just for case, I suggest that you test all features of the prototype before the presentation. Otherwise, if something went wrong it would jeopardize the entire project. While you will present web design, make sure to comment everything your client may not understand. Also, encourage your client to ask questions. Presenting the prototype is not the only thing to do. You should also explain how the website fits the whole picture.

Meaning, describe how the website will support and complete your client’s branding and how it will help his business. Remember, focus on benefits instead of features. The fifth step is to answer any questions. Even if your client doesn’t look like he has any questions, it is still better to ask him directly. There might be things your client may not be completely sure about, but he will hesitate to ask about. If you want to test client’s comprehension, you can ask him for a quick summary (don’t do that).

The sixth and last step is to give your client some time for feedback. This last step will typically take about a week, sometimes longer. The time it will take depends mostly on two factors. The first is your client. Some people will need only couple hours after you present web design to summarize their thoughts and give you feedback. Others will need days or weeks. That’s normal. So, if your client is not responding in the first five days, don’t panic. Remember that the website you designed is part of his business. Your client has to make sure to think about it properly.

The second factor that will have an impact is the size of the project. Large projects will require more time for your client to review than smaller ones. In case of bigger projects, there will be also more people involved. In other words, your client may not be the only person reviewing your work. The more people will be involved in the project, the longer it will take before you may get any reaction on your presentation. Still, there is something you can use to navigate through this.

If you are working on a smaller project – small business website or personal website – and your client didn’t get in touch with you for more than two weeks, take the initiative and write him first. In case of bigger project – website for bigger company – give it three or four weeks. Then, again, take the initiative and get in touch with your client. In all situations, always contact your client in polite and calm way. Another condition you can use is the time it took from the first phase of your web design to the moment you had to present web design to your client.

Adjustments and iterations

The moment you were hearing about is here. Your client wants you to change, add or remove something. As you will see, this change will be mostly related to the desktop “version” of the homepage. When your client has a concrete requirement, your job is to read between the lines. You have to understand the reason behind it. What your client wants to achieve by making this change? This also means that you will not blindly follow the orders and agree with everything.

Your clients are intelligent people who want their web to be successful. This is the number one reason they are working with you. Client’s change requests are often based on a good reason. All you have to do is only adjust its form, metaphorically speaking. In situation such as this one, you have two pros. First, your client is not just some middleman delivering information from higher levels of hierarchy. He is probably decision-maker. This means that every change from the side of your client is “approved” in advanced.

Second, you went through the whole web design process. You have information and arguments for why to do something and why not. It is possible that client’s request will create something new you will have to process, analyze and assign specific priority to it and implement it. Then, you will probably have to present web design to your client again. Where is that second benefit? If the change is bigger, your client will be more likely to increase the budget.

Generally speaking, it can also be useful to make one trade-off for your client. This can, in the future, lead to trade-off from the side of your client. It is also nonsense to fight with your client about whom will define the content of the website. Both of you will lose. You will not get hired again by this client in the future for another project. Your client will have angry and demotivated web designer, and probably malfunctioning website. Also, remember that your client has always one ace in his sleeve – money to pay your invoice.

Dealing with harsh feedback

There will be times in your career when you will get feedback that will be similar to punch in the stomach. The more attached to your work you are, the hard the punch will be. Unfortunately, there is no way to avoid harsh feedback. Even if your work is flawless, you can still encounter client who will crush it. Thorough your career, you will stumble different types of clients. You can’t control them or their thoughts. Trying to do so is like fighting windmills. What you can change is your reaction. So, how can you change your reaction to your benefit?

No.1: Take a deep breath

The first tip for dealing with tough feedback is to take a deep breath and detach yourself from the situation. It doesn’t matter how crushing the feedback is. Never react defensively or aggressively. It can hurt, you may feel disappointed, but you have to keep your head calm and act like a professional. Taking a deep breath and gaining some distance are great first steps. If you are communicating over email, it is also useful to write the e-mail and save it for at least 30 minutes. Then, when you get back to it, you will have calm mind.

No.2: Seek first to understand

The second tip is to always try to clarify the feedback. You need to understand exactly what is the thing your client doesn’t like. This must be done before trying to explain or defend your position. Your ability to read between the lines is essential. Your goal is to understand what are client’s criteria for judgment. Then, you need to find why and how the web design fails to meet these criteria. Ask for specific things your client doesn’t like. Ask for specific examples. Go as deep and be as specific as you can. Remember, you need to get through the semantics straight to the core.

No.3: Direct the conversation

The third tip is to always direct the conversation to some solution. This can be basically done in two ways. First, you and your client will agree on the current form and shape. Meaning, you will not have to make any changes. Second, you and your client will agree on what changes you will make, and you make them. Offer solution for every issue or request your client has and ask if the solution is acceptable.

No.4: Solution-focused mindset

The fourth tip is to always present web design with solution-focused mindset. Your client is not your enemy. So, don’t try to turn the presentation into battle. Your goal is to end the presentation with agreement, both of you will benefit from. Present web design as a win-win. Show your client that you care about his business and you want to help him improve it. When your client will see genuine interest from your side, he will be more willing to consider different ideas and solutions.

Tips for getting better feedback

Feedback from our clients is a cornerstone of our work. It is also a crucial part of any collaboration between a client and a designer (you). The problem arises when you are unable to manage this feedback. Then, even if you get some feedback from your client, this feedback can be completely useless and your work will suffer. Can you somehow avoid this situation?

No.1: Plan ahead

For every project you will work on, you should agree with your client on a specific date he will provide you with feedback. You and your client has to take this date seriously. I also suggest that you notify your client about the feedback couple days in advance. You should also agree in advance with your client on the form of feedback. Some clients will want to give you their feedback over the call or in person. Others may prefer written form such as e-mail. Resolve these questions before getting in touch for the feedback.

No.2: Clarify vague feedback

One of the problems with feedback is that it is often vague. Vague feedback gives you close to nothing to work with. One thing to avoid this situation is to clarify what kind of feedback are you looking for. This is not about trying to manipulate your client to tell you only what you want to hear. That would be not helpful at all. Instead, provide your client with guidelines for giving constructive feedback. The most important aspect of actionable feedback is being specific.

Your client should tell you what exactly he doesn’t like along with specific reasons. Make it clear that feedback such as plain “I don’t like that green color” is not constructive . I suggest that you take the risk and tell your client you will ignore any objections lacking reasons. Otherwise, your client can tell your that “that blue button is ugly” and you’ll waste the next hour trying to figure out how to “fix it”. This is also waste of your client’s time and money.

The best way to change the quality of feedback your client gives you is to make him see the website from the point-of-view of the visitors and users. Tell your client that when they’re reviewing the project, they should put themselves in the shoes of the people visiting the website. They should think about what their wants and needs are. Keep in mind that it is easy to fall back into personal taste. When this happens, gently nudge your client into the right direction.

Also remember that our clients often don’t know how to provide constructive and actionable feedback. Why should they? They may have no prior experience with it. In many cases, you will be the first web designer they worked with. It is up to you to help your client understand how constructive feedback looks like. I know … Another responsibility on your shoulders.

No.3: Explain the design process

My third tip is to help your client understand your design process. Give your client a quick run-through on individual phases of your design process and what each phase includes. Also, tell your client that when you present web design, it is just another piece of the puzzle, another cog in the wheel. Your client will also know what adjustments will be more expensive. He will also understand that some changes will get more difficult with time.

Lastly, when your client understands all different phases of your design process, the project and your mutual cooperation will be much easier. He will know what to expect and when to expect it.

No.4: Problems first

Some of the clients you will work with will want to help by offering solutions instead of referring to problems. Unfortunately, this can make your work rather harder. Your client may really think that he is helping you, but he is not. For example, your client may suggest that you make the button bigger or font smaller. This is one of the possible solutions for certain issue, with button or font. The problem is that it doesn’t addresses the problem.

Tell your client that you need to understand the problem first, before you can find the best solution. So, when your client will start to give you solutions, ask them to re-frame their feedback. Ask them to frame it as problem or challenge. However, that doesn’t mean that you should conceive hatred for your client’s solution. All you want is to go a little bit deeper. You want to see under the surface because there can be some bigger problem that you may not see.

Looking back at the web design process

One of the main goals of every web designer should be understanding the difference between two things. The first one is well thought website design. Second is mockup for homepage. Someone who is not a web designer by trade can see these two things in the same way. This person will also see the homepage as the most important part of the website. This is what leads to his obsession with having pixel-perfect homepage (and good looking rest of the website).

As a professional web designer, you have to resist designing only polished homepage, even if your client is willing to pay you for that. If this was the first time you encountered web design process, give it some time. Everything is hard when you do it for the first time. The more will you practice web design process and how to present web design, the better you will get at it.

Depending on your work you may use faster, cheaper and more agile tools and methods. This will be mostly true for web designers working with or in design agencies. Web designers working with teams in bigger corporations will incline to slower pace and higher number of iterations. Another thing important for successful presentation and completing whole web design process is to never be afraid dead-ends. It is exploring these dead-ends what moves you closer to the finish. In other words, web design process is never linear.

The same thing can be said about budget and investments into the website. Skipping any of the four phases of the process can cost as much money as doing them, if not more. Sure, you can present web design with prototype based on your own assumptions instead of user research. However, the ROI of the web design will go down while the risk of failure will go up. Trying to estimate the price of web design by the number of wireframes, mockups and pages that you give to your client, is just nonsense.

Closing thoughts on how to present web design to clients like a pro

Last words? The only sure way to learn how to present web design like a professional is through trial and error. You have to try different tips and concepts and see which works for you and which not. The good news is that nobody was born with this ability. Just think about Steve Jobs. Many people would say that he was one of the greatest presenters (and sellers). Sure, he wasn’t interested in how to present web design to clients.

Anyway, what I want to say is that he spent hundreds of hours training and improving his presentations. He was still trying new ideas. He was willing to fail again and again and learn from these failures. This is what helped him brought his presentations to perfection. So, don’t worry. It doesn’t matter where your presentation skills are right now. With time and practice, you too, will present web design like a pro.

Do you have any questions, recommendations, thoughts, advice or tip you would like to share with other readers of this blog, and me? Please share it in a comment. You can also send me a mail . I would love to hear from you.

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By Alex Devero

I'm Founder/CEO of DEVERO Corporation. Entrepreneur, designer, developer. My mission and MTP is to accelerate the development of humankind through technology.

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Client Presentations: 6 Tips for Better Results

The right presentation can help your company establish familiarity with potential clients and demonstrate authority in your area of business. As an entrepreneur and best-selling writer Seth Godin points out on his blog, “The topic of the talk isn’t you, the topic of the talk is the audience, and specifically, how they can use your experience and knowledge to achieve their objectives.”

Looking for a few actionable ways to boost your client presentations ? Take a look at these tips:

1. Start in the details

One of the easiest ways to better understand a potential client is to visit their company website. But you’re not just there to read the “About” page and see what services they offer. Studying a new client’s site design is a great strategy for understanding a company’s vibe.

For example, if your prospective client is active on Instagram and Pinterest, your presentation should include high-quality photos. If they have a YouTube channel, go ahead and use a video in your pitch. Knowing how the company presents itself to the world can keep you a step ahead of the competition.

2. Create a preference design

• Tailored to the prospective client

You’ll want your company’s voice to have a chance to shine through—after all, you’re trying to sell your services, too—but ultimately, the presentation should be tailored to the prospective client. This is a perfect opportunity to show how this partnership can be a success.

• Certain design choices

Although every company is different, there can be similarities in tone within specific industries. Lucy Alexander at HubSpot points out that the type of information you’re including in your presentation can help to determine your design. Knowing this, there are certain design choices you can make to help get you started.

• Create a sample workflow chart

With a data-driven client, recent studies and news items could be especially helpful in enhancing your presentation. Support your claims with evidence and list your resources. You could even create a sample workflow chart to demonstrate how you typically complete a project.

• Tools assistant presentation more interactive

To keep things interesting, consider ways to make the presentation more interactive. Go beyond a standard Q&A by integrating important websites, documents, and other components into your pitch. A digital whiteboard with app integration makes this easy to do. (Vibe even lets you make notes directly on the presentation with the easy-to-use stylus.) Microsoft Powerpoint, Google Drive, and Asana could add a lot of interest here.

3. Focus on what matters to the client

A great presentation can get bogged down when it fails to engage with the audience. You could focus on your company, with a background and other information. However, your client is there to find a solution to their problem (sales, product development, etc.). It is vital to turn that attention away from you, and put the spotlight on those important issues of the client .

Remember that you don’t want to lose them with useless filler. Take all of that out of your presentation and add some content with value. If they are having trouble selling a product, come up with a few ideas to increase those sales. When they don’t know how to market a specific service, offer a couple of ways to showcase their company. The possibilities are endless , but you must always keep that focus on your client during a presentation . 

4. Set a vision and help them see how to get there

Why is your client there? In most cases, they have a problem that needs a solution. Along with exciting your clients, you need to establish a clear vision for their company . While you can throw out all types of ideas, it is vital to help your clients see this vision. With a few visual aids or detailed language, boost their excitement for your help . 

Place yourself in the clients’ shoes. What would make them excited about your services? Once you have some sort of point in mind, create your presentation around that idea. With that, your vision will be clear for your client. Once they have established a clear vision, they will be more likely to hire you and follow your advice .

Related: How to Make PowerPoint Presentations That Impress

5. Explain the process and let them know where they are

Along with establishing a vision, you need to clearly and concisely explain the entire process for your clients . In some cases, it might be a long road to the final result. On the other hand, it may only take a few tweaks to get them on the right path. As the presenter, it is your responsibility to explain the process to your client. 

Once you have outlined it, you also want to let the client know where they are in the process. Are they close to the beginning or finish line? Clients don’t want to be left in the dark . When you explain it to them, it is another way that you can establish yourself as an authority figure that can offer solutions for their problems. 

6. Confirm they understand, and remember to ask questions

• Make your audience are on board with you

If you have finished a heavy presentation with plenty of facts and figures, you want to make sure that your audience is still on board with you . Before you end, ask if one section needs a little more explanation from you. It never hurts to reiterate those complicated points. If you’re using a digital whiteboard , you can revise and make notes at various points in the presentation. Go back through the slides and easily review any unclear points with the client, making notes for clarity.

• Ask audiences to submit questions

At this stage, you might want to ask the audience to submit additional questions about the presentation. While you may have thought you covered all the bases, there could be a few things that the audience has not grasped. Take this time to help them fully understand your concepts and other parts of the presentation . This could be your last chance to fully connect with the audience and make sure you are on the same page as them.

It can be frustrating to answer a question about a point that believe you have fully covered. However, t he presentation is not geared towards you . As Paul Viio states, you want to stay “customer-focused.” If your audience has questions, take the time to fully explain any of those points. You want them to feel fully educated about your service, product, or another part of your company. 

Presentation mistakes to avoid

Now that you know what to do, you also need to avoid some mistakes in your presentation.

For starters, you need a strong start to your presentation. With a poor beginning, your audience will tune out and figure out your message . Along with that, without addressing your clients’ concerns, your audience can struggle to figure out your message, and they are less likely to choose your solutions to their problems.

Finally, don’t rush through your ending . You want to follow through with a call to action. Without it, your audience might be wondering why they sat through your presentation.

It would be easy to throw a couple of slides together and give a standard sales pitch to every prospective client out there. But going a few extra steps to customize your pitch shows a willingness to take initiative and make things happen.

[ Editor’s note: this post was originally published March 16, 2020 and was updated September 9, 2021. ]

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Client Presentations 101: How to Give a Client Presentation

Think of the word “present- ing” and consider your clients: they want you, the expert, to provide them with the information they want and need. If you think of your presentation as if you’re giving them a “present” (literally, your expertise), you can re-frame the meeting in a way that fills you with the confidence you need to communicate effectively.

What Is a Client Presentation?

A client presentation allows you to explain the importance of your work in a compelling way. It’s key for articulating your value, if it’s in the proposal stage , or your progress if you’re in the middle of a project.

Of course, you may give a wrap-up client presentation as well, where you’ll want to review what went well and what went wrong for your project.

Related: Ultimate Guide to Project Status Reports

Why Is a Client Presentation Important?

A client presentation is all about communicating . You’re the expert, and your job is to convey to your client everything that’s important. There is a lot of information that you have that your client doesn’t have. They’re not as well-versed in the project as you are. So, give them the gift of communication.

This is key for them to understand everything that went into the project. If your client presentation doesn’t effectively communicate, it’s failed.

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Project Proposal Template

Use this free Project Proposal Template for Word to manage your projects better.

How to Deliver a Client Presentation

• Simplify, simplify, simplify : A good client presentation always emphasizes clarity and simplicity. If your client doesn’t understand your presentation, then you’ve wasted your time.
• Speak their language:  The best way to communicate effectively is to consider your audience. Don’t get caught up in jargon they might not understand. Speak plainly and honestly.
• Focus on what matters to them: Remember the goals of the project to begin with. Stay focused on what matters and don’t get lost in the details.
• Make your point clearly, concisely and quickly: People tend to have short attention spans. The sooner you can convey your meaning, the likelier it is that they will be able to process it and ask questions afterwards.
• Confirm they understand, and remember to ask questions: Don’t just assume they understand your points in your client presentation. It’s key to check in with them and be proactive by asking questions at the tail end of your presentation, or even the halfway point.
• Be respectful: Be respectful and be patient. These are your business partners. You don’t want to sour any relationships by how you respond to their reaction to your client presentation.
• Avoid shaming their questions: They don’t know what you know! Not everyone understands things quickly. That’s ok. It’s your job to make sure that your client presentation gets them to a place of understanding. Sometimes that doesn’t happen right away: keep at it.
• Excite them:   Be enthusiastic about the project! People don’t respond to cold facts by themselves. Supercharge your client presentation with emotion and enthusiasm. But always stay professional.
• Set a vision for them and help them see how to get there: Be the expert and the visionary . You can’t do everything for them, but you can lay out a roadmap for them to reach their goals.
• Explain the process and let them know where they are:  It’s key to be honest here. Sugarcoating reality isn’t going to help anyway, but try to pepper in good news with any bad news. Clients can be sensitive, but you’ll still need a good relationship to get anything done.

If you apply these simple tips to your presentations they will become not only more productive, but you’ll find that people will be eager to attend and engage and, most importantly, leave with a feeling of success.

Pro tip : Another tip when leading a presentation is the use of the royal “we”—not in an elitist way, but in such a fashion that you include yourself and everyone in the room in the discussion. This is a team effort, and even clients are part of the team!

To reinforce these points and learn even more, watch the video below about how to give a client presentation.

Client Presentation Video

In this leadership training video, Jennifer Bridges, discusses the art and skill of communicating during client presentations.

Here’s a shot of the whiteboard for your reference!

Transcription

Today we’re talking about how to give a client presentation. I’m not sure why we get so nervous about this. I mean think about it. If you have a present, aren’t you excited to give it to other person? So a reminder I have for myself is I think of literally giving my client of gift. Also, think of if you present something, that’s the giving of something and the presentation is the way in which you give. So when we’re giving something, a presentation to our client, well, they’re seeking your professional advice.

So let’s look at the information they want. So when we give a client presentation, they really wanna know how long is something going to take and how much is it going to cost. They also want to know how many is going to be produced and how much they’re going to cost. They may want to know how many and how long is it going to take. Basically, they’re talking about items of the Triple Constraint as identified by PMI. It’s the time, the cost, the scope, and the quality.

So there are 10 tips that we found that are really helpful in giving a client presentation.

First of all, simplify what you give them. Right? Don’t overwhelm them, make it simple. Speak their language, something they can understand and relate to their world. Focus on what matters to them. Make your point clearly, concisely, and quickly. I mean they do not want to be there all day, like taking forever. They want you to get to the point. Get them to point A to point B quickly.

Confirm they understand what you’re talking about and stop and ask. Do you have any questions? Is this what you expected? Is this helpful? So give them pause and give them time to think about it, to make sure they follow you, and give them an opportunity to ask questions. We also want to be respectful. I mean, after all, they’re the client so they don’t know what you know. So we want to be respectful if they have questions and they may not get it yet. We also want to avoid shaming them for their questions. I mean they may have questions that for you are immature, but they don’t know.

So it’s important to give them the space and honor what they’re asking. Excite them, get them excited about what you’re presenting, something about their project, or their status or where they’re going or what they can obtain from this. And also it helps to set a vision for them and help them see how to get there. If you set a vision and they can’t even conceptualize how in the world we’re going to pull that off then they’re going to be left dazed and confused or they’re not gonna believe that it’s possible. And you also want to explain the process and let them know where they are in the process of the project.

So again there are some bonus phrases that we feel like we call “The Phrase that Pays.” Number one let them know and tell them we will take care of you. That’s really comforting to know. You are in great hands. Let them know that you and your team are there in great hands. And also let them know we are excited to work with you. That really gets people to know that you’re engaged and use the phrase, “We.”

If you need help presenting to your client, then sign up for our software now at ProjectManager.

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Demo Presentation Template

Captivate your audience by delivering a professional product demonstration. Show customers or investors how your product or service will benefit them.

Trusted by 65M+ users and leading companies

About the Demo Presentation Template  

This Demo Presentation Template helps you get your flow of ideas across easily and professionally. With this template, you can show potential and existing customers what your product or service can do.

When you have a visual presentation showing how your product works, customers can better understand how it solves their pain points. Use a demo presentation to enhance your sales presentation and stimulate interest in your product.

What’s a demo presentation?

A demo presentation is a meeting between your business and a client (or potential client) in which you showcase and present a product or service. It typically includes a full run-down of the product’s key selling points, uses, target audience , and other relevant features. 

The aim of a product demo is to demonstrate your product’s selling power and hopefully win over the client in question with a deal. It’s all about showing your product in the best possible light and answering any questions the client may have. 

An amazing demo presentation should inform, enlighten, and excite your client. 

While it’s important to be vocal about your product’s highlights and potential, a big part of any product demonstration should include a fair degree of listening. The essence of a demo presentation is to bring life to your business’ product or service and inspire clients to take action. 

What should a demo presentation include?

Miro is the perfect online presentation creator . When putting together a demo presentation, the following several boxes need to be ticked: 

Excellent product/services knowledge

If you don’t know your product inside and out, clients will be able to tell, and they’ll be put off as a result. Make sure to conduct a thorough analysis of your product well before the presentation starts. You need to be able to clearly communicate the product’s attributes and confidently answer any questions.

Real-life examples and scenarios

Clients will gain a much stronger impression of your product if they feel they can apply it to their own lives or businesses. Providing real-life examples of how they can benefit from your product is a crucial aspect of any demo or prototype presentation.

Effective visual aids

Make it even easier for clients to fall in love with your product by providing effective, well-designed visual aids. From infographics and images to demo videos, visual aids can make your presentation more impactful and increase the client’s likelihood of conversion. 

When to use a demo presentation

A demo presentation is helpful for connecting with clients. Just about every product and service can benefit from a strong presentation, such as: 

A sprint demo presentation. Within the Scrum framework , a demo presentation comes at the end of a sprint. Sprint demos are needed to showcase progress and project status to stakeholders who are invested in the outcome.

An app demo presentation. This type of presentation is especially useful if you’re trying to find investors for the development of an app. It sheds light on the potential app’s revenue and social impact.

A prototype presentation. A prototype presentation is also useful for gaining support from investors for a still-developing product. By presenting a prototype, you can summarize the problems your product is trying to solve and improve investors’ overall understanding of your product.

How to use the Demo Presentation Template  

If you’ve never created a demo presentation before, using a template can be tremendously helpful. Follow these simple instructions to make the most out of Miro’s Demo Presentation Template: 

Step 1: Fill in your template

You’ll need to fill in your template with information for each slide. You might include the following information in your slide deck:

the product’s identity

the target market

the revenue potential

key selling points 

potential risks along the way 

Step 2: Edit and customize 

Whether you’re creating an app demo or prototype presentation, this customizable template can suit your needs. Edit, refine, and polish the order, layout, visuals, and structure of your Demo Presentation Template to suit your business and what it offers. 

Step 3: Brainstorm ideas and collaborate

With Miro’s presentation mode , you can preview your entire presentation as a team. With an easy-to-navigate structure and flexible framework, your demo presentation plan can evolve and be improved with ease. When you’re ready for your final presentation, simply select this mode and use the forward and back arrows to move smoothly through your presentation.

Tips for a great demo presentation

Whether you’re delivering a sprint demo presentation, an app demo presentation, or a prototype presentation, here are a few helpful tips to bear in mind: 

Know your product well. Uncertainty and lack of knowledge aren’t going to win over clients. You want to demonstrate confidence, diligence, and professionalism. Make sure to do your research well and have answers prepped for questions you might be asked.

Have a clear intro, middle, and conclusion. Using a storyteller structure in your presentation can make it more digestible to clients. Use visuals and clear communication to break down your product’s features into distinctive, cohesive sections.

Listen well. Even though this presentation is about your product, it’s important to leave some room for others to speak. This will make the presentation more conversational and allow clients to flesh out your product from their perspectives.

Don’t be distracted. When delivering a professional demo presentation, you want to emulate reliability, uniformity, and expertise. Maintain strong eye contact and stay focused on the presentation’s goals. Make sure your connection is strong, especially if the presentation is virtual .

How do you start a demo presentation?

Your demo presentation should start with a brief description of its agenda. Then, dive into your intro, work your way into the main points, and end with a conclusion or call to action. An open Q&A session can be held at the end.

How do you prepare for a demo?

Prepare for your demo with lots of research on your product/service and the clients you will be presenting it to. The more you know about these things, the more influential your presentation will be.

What makes a good demo presentation?

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How to Present a Project to a Client

April 21, 2022 - 10 min read

Knowing how to present a project plan to a client is an essential skill for project managers in any industry. When it’s done right, it can land your agency new long term clients. When done wrong it can pour cold water on your client retention or acquisition goals. 

Acquiring new clients is a massive headache for over half of all agencies , so it’s vital that your initial project presentations go off without a hitch. Presenting a project plan to a client is one of the first critical steps of any project or campaign, and poorly presented projects can cause a client to lose faith and walk away before you can prove your worth. 

Read on for our top tips on how to present a project proposal to your clients — plus advice on how to present a project without being nervous. 

How to present a project proposal to a prospective client

A project plan is a formal document with a consistent structure and flow . For the best results, your presentation should mimic this flow. 

Here are the seven steps you should cover when presenting a project plan :

• Provide an overview. Briefly describe the project, including the required outcomes and why the project is being undertaken. 
• Review the OKRs (objectives and key results). Discuss major deliverables and expected milestones. What essential information should you get from a client before you begin a project ? Consider this before you dive into discussions.
• Cover expectations and exclusions. Clarify assumptions and reiterate items that are out of scope for the project. You may wonder when do you show the client the price of a project — now is the time to make sure expectations are clear between you both.
• Present a high-level schedule. Use a Gantt chart to illustrate key steps and dependencies in the project schedule . 
• Introduce your team. Introduce the client to any teammates they will be directly interacting with, and anyone whose background can add weight to your credibility (such as an experienced subject matter expert.)
• Define communications. Ensure your client understands how you will collaborate. Include how they will receive updates and how to reach out with questions and concerns.
• Discuss the unexpected. Review the process of how you’ll handle change requests and issues when they arise.   
• Q&A. Wrap up with a question and answer session to ensure nothing was overlooked. (Read on for more info on questions to ask and expect.) 

Best practices and effective ways to present a project virtually

Due to the COVID pandemic, in-person meetings may be out of the question in the near future. Fortunately, virtual project plan presentations are an excellent alternative. 

Here are some tips on how to present a project proposal by video conference :

• Choose a well-lit, quiet area and place your camera at face level.
• Dress professionally and treat the meeting with the same formality as you would if it were in-person.
• Use a headset with a microphone for the best audio quality.
• Practice using the software in advance, so you’re comfortable with navigation and options, such as muting and unmuting participants.
• Send out a copy of your agenda and presentation beforehand in case you have issues sharing your screen.
• Outline any technical expectations at the beginning of the conference (i.e., don’t use chat, leave questions to the end, etc.)
• Ask for approval to record the meeting, so you can share it with participants who couldn’t attend or go back and review questions.

What essential information should you get from a client before you begin a project? Top questions to ask a client 

Generally, before you’ve created and presented your project plan, you will have already discussed key project expectations and requirements with your client. Objectives, milestones, acceptance criteria, etc., are all typically communicated in advance, which leads to what is client project focus — ensuring that your client’s business goals are adequately addressed and transparency is maintained throughout the project.

But, there are some questions you may still need to ask during the presentation; Here are the top five:

• Who in your organization are the project stakeholders ? Who plans to be involved with the project and what is their level of authority and interest? 
• Have you contracted similar projects in the past? If so, what hurdles did you face? 
• What are the most important features, deliverables, or requirements that we should always focus on?
• Is there anything about this project that keeps you up at night? If so, what?
• Are there any risks, obstacles, or other aspects of the project we haven’t discussed that you would like to review? 

Questions clients might ask during a project presentation (and how to answer them)

The Q&A is often a huge concern for inexperienced presenters. This is the hardest section to prepare for, as you never know what questions a client might ask. 

Client questions will often center on their concerns about what may go wrong. The more you understand their priorities, the better you can predict what they may ask. Let’s assume your client has a strict deadline for when the project must be completed. Some questions they may ask are:

• How will you ensure the project is finished on schedule?
• What steps will you take if deadlines start to slip?
• What risks do you see that could delay the project?

By considering their priorities and potential concerns in advance, you can prepare solid answers to their queries. But what about those questions from left-field that you can never predict? 

Here are three tips on how to answer unexpected client questions during a project presentation:

• First, thank them for raising the question. You want to encourage your client to communicate and voice concerns upfront. 
• Ask what’s driving the question. If a question seems trivial or bizarre, ask what the concern is behind it. Maybe the client has information you’re not aware of. This also gives you more time to think through your answer.
• Table it for later. If you’re not sure of an answer, tell the client you’ll look into it and get back to them. Make sure to give your client a timeline for when they can expect you to get back to them with an answer.  

How to present a project without being nervous: top tips!

Client presentations can be nerve-wracking, even for experienced project managers. Here are our top tips for eliminating nerves during your next project plan presentation:

• Be concise. Try to make your presentation as brief as possible while covering all the key topics. The less you talk, the less likely you are to ramble, get off-topic, or otherwise let your nerves get the best of you. 
• Pause when you need to. Don’t be afraid to pause, take a breath, and gather your thoughts. Consciously slowing your breathing can help calm your nerves.
• Have a clear agenda. Plan out what you will cover. Having a clear outline will make you feel and appear more confident.  
• Practice. The more you rehearse before the meeting, the less nervous you’ll feel. For best results, practice in front of an audience. Request that your volunteers ask questions you think the client may ask. 
• Attend other presentations. Watching other project presentations can help you feel more comfortable with the process, the flow, and the questions that may be asked. You can also pick up tips on what to do and not do. This experience will help combat nerves. 
• Get comfortable with the setup. Spend time in the meeting room and use the presentation tools before the meeting. The more you become used to the surroundings and tools, the more confident you’ll feel. 
• Take care of yourself. Exercise, a good night’s sleep, and drinking plenty of water can all help combat nerves. 

If you still feel nervous after incorporating these tips, consider joining a public speaking club such as Toastmasters . These clubs can help you practice speeches in front of an audience, improve your skills, and find even more ways to overcome nerves. 

What to do if your project presentation goes wrong

It's a possibility that we never want to think about when preparing to speak publicly, but there are lots of ways that your presentation may go wrong on the day. Technical difficulties, absent attendees, questions you weren't prepared for — these are scary prospects, but there is a formula for how to handle things if they go south.

• Stay calm: The worst thing you can do when faced with a hiccup in your presentation is panic. Remember that this is not the end of the world — your teammates will understand that some things are beyond your control and that you're doing your best. Take a deep breath, focus your mind on what you can control, and find a way to move on with your presentation. 
• Have a backup: It's always a good idea to have backups for when things go awry. Make sure your presentation is stored on the cloud as well as on your personal device, so you can access it if something goes wrong with your own. Invest in a power bank to avoid unfortunate outages, and consider printing some paper copies of your most important points, so attendees can still view your takeaways. 
• Crack a joke: It can be awkward when things aren't going the way you'd planned but try not to take yourself too seriously. A presentation, while important, is not the be-all and end-all of your career, and getting too wrapped up in things going perfectly will have your attendees tense up in no time. When things go wrong, smile and take the opportunity to laugh at yourself — it will endear you to your teammates and put everyone at ease. 
• Be honest: If you don't know the answer to a question, don't waste time scrambling. A good way to answer is: "I'm not sure of that right now, but I will absolutely find out and come back to you with more information". This shows that you're not someone who tries to spoof their way out of a sticky situation: you're mature and eager to learn. 

How to plan a project presentation with Wrike

Wrike can help you create and present your project plan in a way that exceeds your client’s expectations every time. Our templates will save you time and ensure each plan and presentation is always set up using the same framework. Wrike Gantt charts make sharing your project schedule a piece of cake. Plus, our collaboration software allows you to store and share agendas, slide decks, project documentation, previous communications, and more, so everything you need to wow your client is always at your fingertips. Sign up for a free trial today !

Jessica Everitt

Jessica is a former contributor of Wrike, specializing in project management topics.

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The Art of the Client Presentation

By Danine Alati

Be prepared. Be thoughtful. Be specific. And be careful to not get your ideas swiped! When approaching a client presentation, it’s essential to do your homework and present your ideas in a way that suits the job at hand and conveys your passion and expertise clearly and concisely—all without giving away too much. Though there’s no one-size-fits-all solution or general script to follow, using the simple strategies suggested by these three seasoned design professionals can help you deliver a winning presentation.

Know your stuff

It’s worth stressing the fact that preparation is key to any successful client presentation. All of the designers AD PRO consulted agree that there is no such thing as being too prepared. “If you are organized during your presentation, you are exhibiting the way their project will be managed,” says Victoria Sanchez, principal designer and owner of the Santa Fe and Washington, D.C.–based firm Victoria at Home. “A designer should be able to walk a client through their project,” she adds. “Starting with a floor plan, presentation board, or other presentation materials, a designer should know their design inside and out. Be ready to answer questions related to the product you are presenting, pricing, lead times. A potential client will want to know more than just the visual aspects.”

“Your presentation should be flawless, detail-oriented, and professional,” urges Richard Ouellette, president of Canadian design firm Les Ensembliers . “The packaging is as important as the product. It is your entry ticket to making [the client] feel important and at ease and that they have chosen the right person even before you have presented any ideas.”

Ouellette offers additional tips: “Understand and organize your presentation. You want to inspire them, so make sure you have a clear idea of what you are proposing. Present your portfolio or body of work first. If it’s a full design presentation, start with layouts, then inspiration. Explain what you feel works for their space with your images, move to hard surfaces, then soft, and lastly product.”

Curate the material

“The goal is to present a cohesive idea and give plenty of options without overwhelming the client,” says Mark Cunningham , founder of his 15-year-old namesake New York design firm. Outlining how to offer the information in a digestible format, he says:

“Everything you’re showing should be for something specific—shapes for the furniture in each room on your floor plan, fabrics for pillows or drapery, lighting fixtures for specific locations.”

“Show a range of options so your client can rule out what they don’t like. Negative comments are just as productive to you as positive ones.”

“Put care into how you present. It should be neatly organized. And fresh flowers and natural light never hurt.”

Show, don’t tell…

“The more a client can see and feel before buying, the more successful you will be in designing a space they love,” Cunningham explains. “I use mood boards to convey my concepts. I find they’re a great tool to begin the conversation about how the client envisions their home.” He also suggests getting samples of everything you’re proposing—from fabrics and finishes to hardware and plumbing. “Even get furniture prototypes if you can,” he adds.

Ouellette suggests that the components of a winning presentation include the following: the perfect layout, with options; inspiring reference images that can be translated to their home; detailed drawings and designs that function; and aspirational and accessible materials and finishes.

…But don’t reveal all your cards

How do you share your vision with potential clients without having it stolen? “Skill and practice,” advises Sanchez. “You don’t show all your cards when you are playing poker. So why would you share your shopping list without a contract and payment? Share enough to make sure they are asking for more.” She adds, “A presentation is meant to propose your vision, not your product numbers. I don’t share vendor information during initial presentations.”

Ouellette admits that he trusts in karma when it comes to stealing ideas. “I believe it starts with the screening process of the potential client: If you establish a good and trustworthy connection, you have a better chance to get to the end,” he says. “But believe me, the ones that take your idea and run are usually the ones that you are better off running from, and it’s much better to know at the beginning than at the end.”

Exude confidence—to a degree

But don’t be smug, urges Ouellette. “Feel great about what you’re presenting. Believe in the design concept and that the products you are sharing are the right ones for the job,” offers Sanchez. “If you don’t believe in yourself and your ability to execute the project you are proposing, your potential client will see right through you.”

Ouellette says, “Go in with passion and an open heart. Be real. You start from a stronger place. Be humbled. Remember it’s their home and money, not yours. No one wants to work with a diva.”

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Web Project Proposal

Web project proposal presentation, free google slides theme, powerpoint template, and canva presentation template.

We live in the internet era, which means that web design is currently one of the most demanded skills. This free template is perfect for those designers who want to present their web project proposal to their clients and see a preview of the final work.

Impressing your audience is always important, so the graphic elements included in the design of the slides are all about technology and interface elements, giving consistency to your project plan. The colors are also meaningful, using a palette that combines dark blue and very light green. This gives contrast and provides a trustworthy message to your clients, while also contributing to the professional look of this business presentation. We’ve decided to include some illustrations and infographics that can help you make your proposal more interesting. They're also a nice visual aid to better explain what you have in mind, so make good use of them. Don’t forget that everything in this template is editable and customizable, so you have as much freedom as possible at your disposal. Download it and get started!

Features of this template

• 100% editable and easy to modify
• 19 different slides to impress your audience
• Available in five colors: blue, pink, orange, yellow, and green
• Contains easy-to-edit graphics and maps
• Includes 1000+ icons and Flaticon's extension for customizing your slides
• Designed to be used in Google Slides, Canva, and Microsoft PowerPoint
• 16:9 widescreen format suitable for all types of screens
• Includes information about fonts, colors, and credits of the free resources used

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How-To Geek

6 ways to create more interactive powerpoint presentations.

Engage your audience with cool, actionable features.

Quick Links

• Add a QR code
• Embed Microsoft Forms (Education or Business Only)
• Embed a Live Web Page
• Add Links and Menus
• Add Clickable Images to Give More Info
• Add a Countdown Timer

We've all been to a presentation where the speaker bores you to death with a mundane PowerPoint presentation. Actually, the speaker could have kept you much more engaged by adding some interactive features to their slideshow. Let's look into some of these options.

1. Add a QR code

Adding a QR code can be particularly useful if you want to direct your audience to an online form, website, or video.

Some websites have in-built ways to create a QR code. For example, on Microsoft Forms , when you click "Collect Responses," you'll see the QR code option via the icon highlighted in the screenshot below. You can either right-click the QR code to copy and paste it into your presentation, or click "Download" to add it to your device gallery to insert the QR code as a picture.

In fact, you can easily add a QR code to take your viewer to any website. On Microsoft Edge, right-click anywhere on a web page where there isn't already a link, and left-click "Create QR Code For This Page."

You can also create QR codes in other browsers, such as Chrome.

You can then copy or download the QR code to use wherever you like in your presentation.

2. Embed Microsoft Forms (Education or Business Only)

If you plan to send your PPT presentation to others—for example, if you're a trainer sending step-by-step instruction presentation, a teacher sending an independent learning task to your students, or a campaigner for your local councilor sending a persuasive PPT to constituents—you might want to embed a quiz, questionnaire, pole, or feedback survey in your presentation.

In PowerPoint, open the "Insert" tab on the ribbon, and in the Forms group, click "Forms". If you cannot see this option, you can add new buttons to the ribbon .

As at April 2024, this feature is only available for those using their work or school account. We're using a Microsoft 365 Personal account in the screenshot below, which is why the Forms icon is grayed out.

Then, a sidebar will appear on the right-hand side of your screen, where you can either choose a form you have already created or opt to craft a new form.

Now, you can share your PPT presentation with others , who can click the fields and submit their responses when they view the presentation.

3. Embed a Live Web Page

You could always screenshot a web page and paste that into your PPT, but that's not a very interactive addition to your presentation. Instead, you can embed a live web page into your PPT so that people with access to your presentation can interact actively with its contents.

To do this, we will need to add an add-in to our PPT account .

Add-ins are not always reliable or secure. Before installing an add-in to your Microsoft account, check that the author is a reputable company, and type the add-in's name into a search engine to read reviews and other users' experiences.

To embed a web page, add the Web Viewer add-in ( this is an add-in created by Microsoft ).

Go to the relevant slide and open the Web Viewer add-in. Then, copy and paste the secure URL into the field box, and remove https:// from the start of the address. In our example, we will add a selector wheel to our slide. Click "Preview" to see a sample of the web page's appearance in your presentation.

This is how ours will look.

When you or someone with access to your presentation views the slideshow, this web page will be live and interactive.

4. Add Links and Menus

As well as moving from one slide to the next through a keyboard action or mouse click, you can create links within your presentation to direct the audience to specific locations.

To create a link, right-click the outline of the clickable object, and click "Link."

In the Insert Hyperlink dialog box, click "Place In This Document," choose the landing destination, and click "OK."

What's more, to make it clear that an object is clickable, you can use action buttons. Open the "Insert" tab on the ribbon, click "Shape," and then choose an appropriate action button. Usefully, PPT will automatically prompt you to add a link to these shapes.

You might also want a menu that displays on every slide. Once you have created the menu, add the links using the method outlined above. Then, select all the items, press Ctrl+C (copy), and then use Ctrl+V to paste them in your other slides.

5. Add Clickable Images to Give More Info

Through PowerPoint's animations, you can give your viewer the power to choose what they see and when they see it. This works nicely whether you're planning to send your presentation to others to run through independently or whether you're presenting in front of a group and want your audience to decide which action they want to take.

Start by creating the objects that will be clickable (trigger) and the items that will appear (pop-up).

Then, select all the pop-ups together. When you click "Animations" on the ribbon and choose an appropriate animation for the effect you want to achieve, this will be applied to all objects you have selected.

The next step is to rename the triggers in your presentation. To do this, open the "Home" tab, and in the Editing group, click "Select", and then "Selection Pane."

With the Selection Pane open, select each trigger on your slide individually, and rename them in the Selection Pane, so that they can be easily linked to in the next step.

Finally, go back to the first pop-up. Open the "Animations" tab, and in the Advanced Animation group, click the "Trigger" drop-down arrow. Then, you can set the item to appear when a trigger is clicked in your presentation.

If you want your item to disappear when the trigger is clicked again, select the pop-up, click "Add Animation" in the Advanced Animation group, choose an Exit animation, and follow the same step to link that animation to the trigger button.

6. Add a Countdown Timer

A great way to get your audience to engage with your PPT presentation is to keep them on edge by adding a countdown timer. Whether you're leading a presentation and want to let your audience stop to discuss a topic, or running an online quiz with time-limit questions, having a countdown timer means your audience will keep their eye on your slide throughout.

To do this, you need to animate text boxes or shapes containing your countdown numbers. Choose and format a shape and type the highest number that your countdown clock will need. In our case, we're creating a 10-second timer.

Now, with your shape selected, open the "Animations" tab on the ribbon and click the animation drop-down arrow. Then, in the Exit menu, click "Disappear."

Open the Animation Pane, and click the drop-down arrow next to the animation you've just added. From there, choose "Timing."

Make sure "On Click" is selected in the Start menu, and change the Delay option to "1 second," before clicking "OK."

Then, with this shape still selected, press Ctrl+C (copy), and then Ctrl+V (paste). In the second box, type 9 . With the Animation Pane still open and this second shape selected, click the drop-down arrow and choose "Timing" again. Change the Start option to "After Previous," and make sure the Delay option is 1 second. Then, click "OK."

We can now use this second shape as our template, as when we copy and paste it again, the animations will also duplicate. With this second shape selected, press Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V, type 8 into the box, and continue to do the same until you get to 0 .

Next, remove the animations from the "0" box, as you don't want this to disappear. To do this, click the shape, and in the Animation Pane drop-down, click "Remove."

You now need to layer them in order. Right-click the box containing number 1, and click "Bring To Front." You will now see that box on the top. Do the same with the other numbers in ascending order.

Finally, you need to align the objects together. Click anywhere on your slide and press Ctrl+A. Then, in the Home tab on the ribbon, click "Arrange." First click "Align Center," and then bring the menu up again, so that you can click "Align Middle."

Press Ctrl+A again to select your timer, and you can then move your timer or copy and paste it elsewhere.

Press F5 to see the presentation in action, and when you get to the slide containing the timer, click anywhere on the slide to see your countdown timer in action!

Now that your PPT presentation is more interactive, make sure you've avoided these eight common presentational mistakes before you present your slides.

7 Secrets of a Winning Capabilities Presentation

Published: October 12, 2020

As a B2B sales pro or account executive, you know how important it is to make a good first impression with a potential client. However, in today’s competitive business environment when buyers are experiencing Zoom fatigue and information overload, making a good first impression and standing out from the competition is no easy feat.

Endless pitch decks that focus more on the seller’s desire to land the deal than the needs of the customer are disengaging and tiresome for buyers who are overwhelmed with options. Set your company apart from the rest by keeping your prospect’s needs front-and-center in a well thought-out capabilities presentation that is more about the client than your desire to sell to them.

Capabilities Presentation

The purpose of a capabilities presentation is to demonstrate your organization’s ability to meet the customer’s needs, or to support the customer in solving a business-related problem.

Capabilities presentations usually aren’t necessary for low-value or direct-to-consumer deals. However, for those selling services within an agency model, or B2B, a thorough presentation on the specific ways your company can provide value for the potential customer can create a sense of demand, encouraging them to sign with you.

When delivered properly, a capabilities presentation can provide a valuable competitive advantage. When not done correctly, a capabilities presentation can feel like a long, drawn out sales pitch that is easy to ignore.

Here’s how to create a winning capabilities presentation to win over your ideal clients.

Capabilities Deck

Having a solid capabilities deck is a must. While you will be presenting the information, the quality of the visuals along with their ability to support the verbal statements you make during the presentation can make all the difference in winning over a new client or account.

Here are the elements you’ll want to include in your capabilities deck to make a stellar first impression.

1. A (very) brief agency or company overview.

The keyword here is brief. Many companies start their capabilities neck on an uninspiring note by making the presentation all about them. But the presentation should actually be all about the customer .

Provide a brief introduction of who you are, and what services your agency provides to begin building necessary rapport. Don’t make yourself or your agency the sole focus of the presentation. Give the potential client just enough information to understand who you are and what you are about.

2. A clear understanding of the client’s business and current challenge.

Once your potential client has a basic understanding of who you are and what your agency offers at a high level, begin shifting your focus to the needs of the client.

If you are already familiar with the client’s challenge, reiterate your understanding and engage in dialogue with them to ask follow-up questions about their current state and ideal future state. If you are not familiar with the client’s challenge, use this time for an open discussion. Ask the potential client what their pain points are, and what kind of support they are looking for.

Use active listening skills to demonstrate your interest in helping the client solve their problem, and to confirm your understanding of what they need help with.

3. Why your company can deliver the ideal solution to the client’s challenge.

Now that you have heard the client explain their challenge in their own words, convey why your agency is capable of helping them solve their problem.

Again, make sure you focus on why your agency is well-equipped to help your client solve the problem previously shared with you. Avoid making this part of the conversation all about your agency. Instead, make sure the potential client understands what your agency can do for them .

4. Case studies showing results for the bottom-line.

While you are sharing why your company is the best fit for meeting the client’s needs, provide testimonials and case studies from former clients who had similar needs. Share clear, easy-to-understand data that demonstrates your value to your former client’s bottom line.

The goal here is to communicate the results your company can provide, positioning your partnership as a worthwhile investment for the potential client. Providing data demonstrating the results you’ve accomplished also helps build trust with your new contact.

5. What support from your company entails.

If you haven’t already, outline what your agency’s support and service practices look like. Detail what the client can expect once they sign with you, and use this time to answer any additional questions they have regarding what level of support your agency is able to provide.

6. Time and space to engage.

The entire presentation should feel conversational, not like the potential client is receiving a never-ending pitch. Throughout the deck, make sure you leave ample time and space for the potential client to ask questions, give feedback, and share their experiences.

Doing so will keep them engaged, help them feel heard and understood, and will provide valuable insight into how you can better support them if they choose to work with you.

7. Next steps for working together.

Finally, share what the next steps are for working together. This can include providing necessary details of your onboarding process, or outlining what the decision-making process looks like on their end. Make sure everyone involved in the meeting is clear on what the next steps are to keep the deal moving, and create an actionable timeline for all stakeholders.

Capabilities Presentation Examples

Now that you know what your capabilities deck should entail, let’s review a few examples of strong capabilities presentations.

In this capabilities deck , Oktopost keeps their services and offerings that would likely excite potential clients front and center. While going through this presentation, the potential client can learn exactly why using this tool would make their life easier, which should be the goal of the presentation.

Malik Media Agency

Creative agency Malik Media shares valuable case studies and demonstrated results from past projects in this capabilities deck. Doing so can help build confidence in your business for the potential client.

Capabilities Presentation Templates

No need to recreate the wheel while creating your capabilities presentation. Use one of these templates to get you started.

1. Agency Deck Template

Image Source

This pitch deck template from Sprout Social is a solid option for agency partners who are pitching their services to new accounts. The template is fully customizable in Google Slides, and has over 80 slides that can be tailored to your needs.

2. Content-Focused Pitch Deck

If your agency focuses on content marketing or other strategic support, this client marketing pitch deck could be a good fit. It’s visual, easy to customize, and can help you speak to the needs of your potential client.

3. Classic Pitch Deck

This clean, well-designed presentation template from Creative Market has everything you need to craft a winning pitch. It features over 113 slides that you can suit to your unique talking points, and is compatible with both PowerPoint and Google Slides for easy access.

When you engage with your potential clients in a way that puts their needs at the forefront, they are more likely to trust and want to work with you. For more advice on creating a winning pitch for potential clients and customers, check out this post .

Don't forget to share this post!

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May 10, 2024

IRS statement to taxpayers receiving Letter 6613 alerting them to the unauthorized disclosure of tax return information by an IRS contractor. The contractor, Charles Edward Littlejohn, pled guilty to the unauthorized disclosure of return information in October 2023 and was sentenced to five years in prison earlier this year.

To begin with, it should be stressed that this incident was unacceptable. Any improper access or disclosure of confidential taxpayer information is unacceptable, and it is completely at odds with the IRS’s values and the agency’s commitment to taxpayers.

We recognize that this incident has created a difficult situation for many taxpayers, including individuals as well as business entities. We also recognize that it is incumbent on the IRS not only to protect confidential taxpayer information, but also to address matters to the fullest extent possible when any such information is unlawfully disclosed.

We write to you today to update you on our efforts in this regard, and to provide to you what information we can regarding this incident, within the confines of the law. We will update you periodically as additional information becomes available.

We note that responding to this incident presents a number of challenges for the IRS. First, because much of the relevant information was uncovered in a criminal investigation, there are legal limitations on what the IRS can disclose. The criminal investigation was conducted by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) and resulted in Mr. Littlejohn being charged by DOJ with unauthorized disclosure of tax information, pleading guilty, and being sentenced to a prison term. In deference to these criminal proceedings, it was only after Mr. Littlejohn was sentenced, in February 2024, that the IRS was able to access information regarding all affected taxpayers. The data set that the IRS received at that point is voluminous and complex, and the IRS has been working with TIGTA to process and analyze this data, including to more fully understand what information, pertaining to what taxpayers, was unlawfully disclosed by Mr. Littlejohn. We are doing this so that we can provide taxpayers with notice of the incident as Section 7431 of the Internal Revenue Code requires, and so that we can take whatever additional steps are warranted to address taxpayer inquiries, interests, and concerns. This has taken some time, which is why we may need to follow up with you through additional correspondence. But there is some factual information that we can provide to you at this stage, which may help you to better assess and manage any risks presented to you by this incident:

• First, you should note that this incident occurred several years ago. In particular, Mr. Littlejohn admitted that he collected taxpayer information between 2018 and 2020, which he subsequently unlawfully disclosed to two news organizations. Mr. Littlejohn has stated details regarding these disclosures in the court filings in his criminal case.
• If you are receiving this letter, it is our understanding that Mr. Littlejohn unlawfully disclosed information corresponding to your taxpayer identification number maintained on an IRS database. We do not know – at least not at this point – the full scope of the specific information that Mr. Littlejohn unlawfully disclosed. However, a broad set of taxpayer information is maintained in this database.
• We have seen no indication thus far that any of this information has been disclosed by Mr. Littlejohn to any persons outside of the two news organizations referenced above, or that these news organizations have disclosed this information to any additional persons (beyond the information that they publicly reported). As may be of particular concern to individual taxpayers, we have not seen any indication that this taxpayer information was used in any way for identity theft or any related type of fraud.
• We understand from TIGTA and DOJ that the government has recovered the taxpayer information that was in Mr. Littlejohn’s possession.

As noted above, the IRS is continuing to work with TIGTA to better understand this incident, analyze the relevant data, and take appropriate next steps. Among other things, we are continuing to contact any additional impacted taxpayers that we identify, including Form K-1 recipients that may have had their information disclosed. Of particular relevance for individual taxpayers, the IRS has in place screening and review procedures to identify and address potential identity theft and/or tax refund fraud. We also encourage taxpayers and/or their tax professional to review the resources regarding identity theft referenced in our prior letter, and to check IRS transcripts to ensure that taxpayer IRS account(s) do not reflect any unusual activity. [1]

Apart from the measures specific to this incident discussed above, it bears noting that the IRS has taken aggressive action more generally to enhance data security – to ensure, to the fullest extent feasible, that nothing like the Littlejohn incident can happen in the future. We recognize that this does not address the most immediate concerns of taxpayers whose information has already been unlawfully disclosed. Still, in the hope that this conveys to you our commitment to safeguard tax and financial information and to protect taxpayers’ rights, we note that we have developed a number of the protocols and protections that the IRS has put in place in recent years using Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding resources and industry and government best practices to better protect taxpayers.

These improvements include further restricting user access for the most sensitive taxpayer data sets; more robust protective security controls; more frequent data reviews; improved firewalls; stronger around the clock data monitoring; new security tools; less use of removable media; tighter email controls; new printer controls and improved retention of data access logs. More information is available here.

Please be assured that this matter in particular – and safeguarding taxpayer information in general – are among the highest priorities of the Internal Revenue Service.

[1] For information on how to request tax account records, please refer to Get Transcript .

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