Your Pitch Is Too Clever - and It’s Costing You Sales

Ever walk out of a sales meeting thinking, “That went great!” - only to never hear from the prospect again?

You probably think it’s a follow-up issue. Or maybe it’s your pricing (?)  Or bad timing.

But... Let’s be honest: sometimes it’s you that’s the problem.

Most MSPs think the key to closing is proving how smart they are in the world of IT. They talk at length about their amazing services, features, and advantages until the client has a lot to chew on. But when you overload the pitch, you don’t make it clearer - you make it harder to buy.

This is the problem with being “too clever.” You’re trying to showcase everything, when all the buyer really needs is clarity.

If your prospect walks away saying they’ve got “a lot to think about,” that’s not a win - that’s a sign of impending doom.

What they’re really telling you is, “I don’t know what to do next.”

The answer? It’s a method I call Narrative Tunneling.

Narrative tunneling is the art of simplifying your message to focus on the single pain and outcome your client cares about most. Not what you think they should care about. Not what your competitor is talking about. What they need - right now.

This is where most pitches go off the rails. Instead of finding that one point of connection and diving deep, they go wide - hoping that something they say sticks. 

But remember: When everything is important, nothing is.

You’re not giving a TED Talk. You’re not teaching a class. You’re here to build a bridge between a client’s problem and your solution. A specific solution.

Imagine a customer walks into a store looking for rope. The salesperson launches into a lecture about tensile strength, maritime knots, and survival applications. It’s technically accurate - but the customer just wanted to hang a tire swing for their kids.

The same thing happens in your MSP pitch. You throw in 24/7 support, patch management, VoIP integrations, cybersecurity frameworks, and you forget to ask what they actually want help with.

🔴  If they only care about uptime, talk about uptime.

🔴  If they only care about protecting client data, talk about that.

🔴  Make the pitch relevant. Then shut up.

Here’s what prospects really want: to feel understood.

They want to believe you “get” them, not that you’re trying to impress them.

So stop trying to outsmart the room. Instead, build rapport by narrowing your focus and guiding the conversation like a Sherpa on Everest. You’re not just showing the mountain - you’re walking them to the summit.

A Few Tips You Can Start Using Today:

• 🔍 Identify one problem they care about. Build the pitch around that.
   
• ❓Ask more questions than you answer.
   
• ✂️ Skip the fluff. Keep it human.
   
• 🗣️ Use real language, not sales jargon.
   
• 🦸‍♂️ Always remember -> The customer is the hero. You’re just the guide.

If you feel like you're losing deals you should be winning, it's probably not because you're saying the wrong things. It's because you're saying too much.

So here’s something I want you to think about: 
What’s the one thing your next prospect really needs to hear from you?

Strip the pitch down to that and watch how fast they start saying yes.