How To Deliver A Great Sales Pitch: 19 Expert Tips For Solopreneurs
- Dumitru Matei
- May 22
- 6 min read
For solopreneurs trying to perfect their sales pitches, it’s often not the big mistakes that trip them up—it’s the small ones they don’t even notice. Subtle issues in tone, pacing, phrasing, body language or focus can quietly erode trust and make pitches feel less convincing, even when the offer itself is strong.
Below, 19 Forbes Coaches Council members share a few common delivery missteps that can weaken a pitch, offering practical ways to correct them. Follow their recommendations to communicate with the kind of confidence and clarity that moves prospects to action.
1. Shift Focus From Yourself To Your Prospect
One of the first issues that may surface with a new solopreneur is the perceived need to convince prospects that they are extremely qualified and possess many varied competencies. Up to a point, that may be helpful. However, the prospect wants and needs to hear answers to the following: “How can you help me?” and, “Will you be able to deliver the outcomes that I seek?” Focus on them, not on you. - Peter Accettura, Accettura Consulting LLC
2. Clarify Your Value Quickly And Directly
I was doing a pitch to a prospect in my early years when she broke in and said, “Stop, just tell me what you do.” Oooh, chills. This was a great learning moment for me. Who is in the room, and who are you? Making the connection between why those two entities need to come together is critical. The focus then needs to become solely positioned on WIIFM—“What’s in it for me?”—or in this case, them! - David Yudis, DavidYudis.com
3. Position Your Client As The Hero Of The Story
Be confident, but don’t be the hero of your own pitch or story. It’s ultimately about everything you do to have an impact on your audience and clients. Make them care by knowing what most matters to them—speak to how you can support them in slaying their dragons, achieving their goals and solving their problems—make them the hero so that they can create the impact and change they need. - Suzanne Weller, Weller Collaboration
4. Lead With Their Problem, Not Your Credentials
Most people begin with what they offer and why they are qualified. But prospects listen when you talk directly to the problem they are facing. Start with their needs, not your credentials. When you spend too much time discussing yourself, you lose their interest. Get to the point. Address the issue first. Then explain why you are the right person to solve it. - Rachana Adyanthaya, Cr8mychange
5. Master Timing And Pacing For Maximum Impact
Timing and pacing can be challenging in high-stakes situations like pitching for funding. I’ve noticed people often underestimate their timing. They’re given five minutes, but the pitch is easily seven to ten minutes long, which impacts their pacing. They try to rush through, rather than ruthlessly editing it down to the “must-knows.” Make the message easy to follow, and stick to the essence of the outcomes you want. - Susan Sadler, Sadler Communications LLC
6. Ask Open-Ended Questions Before Meetings
Many solopreneurs approach sales pitches so eager to close deals that they overlook their prospects’ actual needs. Asking open-ended questions before meetings prompts prospects to specify their unique challenges. With this intel, solopreneurs can tailor discussions to address specific pain points and position offerings as the exact solutions their prospects are actively seeking. - Isabelita Castilho, Executive Power FZE
7. Build Trust By Listening First
Solopreneurs, eager to sell, often skim on building relationships. Asking about the client first establishes a connection. The quality of this interaction, the emotional engagement, is crucial. When a client feels heard and valued, trust forms. This trust creates a receptive foundation, allowing the sales pitch to be fully understood and accepted. - Donna Grego-Heintz, UpWords
8. Eliminate Desperation From Your Delivery
Desperation is the subtle problem new founders need to overcome. Potential clients can sense the desperation of new founders eager to get business and established founders panicking about payroll. Desperation can lead to being too accommodating to win clients, which can backfire. You could overpromise and underdeliver, which reduces the likelihood of repeat clients. Desperation also can lead to diminishing your value. Desperation stinks! - Kelly Byrnes, Voyage Consulting Group
9. Align Your Identity With Your Client’s Aspirations
New solopreneurs often miss that a great pitch isn’t just about the offer—it’s about identity alignment. If your words don’t reflect who you truly are and who your client aspires to be, they won’t feel the connection. When your message resonates with their values and self-image, you stop pitching and start attracting. - Carlos Hoyos, Elite Leader Institute
10. Project Confidence And Embrace The ‘No’
Many solopreneurs lack authority and confidence in their delivery. Instead of positioning themselves as the solution to a real problem, they sound unsure or overly apologetic when what prospects need is certainty, clarity and conviction. Founders must develop thick skin and embrace the “no,” staying grounded in the knowledge that each one gets them closer to a “yes.” Confidence and resilience convert. - Dr. Marita Kinney, BCC, Msc.D, Pure Thoughts Publishing and Wellness
11. Curate Information Instead Of Overexplaining
Avoid overexplaining. New founders often drown prospects in features, not value. Practice curating versus cataloging. Try clarifying with, “Here’s how this solves [specific pain point],” instead of saying, “Here’s everything it does.” Clarity is greater than complexity. - Maryam Daryabegi, Innovation Bazar
12. Link Features To Tangible Stakeholder Benefits
I coach a lot of new founders, and they have a tendency to take an inside-out perspective. Founders talk about what is great about their product or service. Yes, they should indeed. But the necessary step beyond that is to make the explicit link to how users will benefit, how investors will gain and how employees will thrive. A more holistic answer is required than just “the product or service works”. - Katy MacKinnon Hansell, Katy Hansell Impact Partners
13. End Every Pitch With A Clear Call To Action
Create a call to action. When working with solopreneurs, I find that they can be passionate about their cause and tell their story effectively. However, one area where they seem to be lacking is having a call to action at the end of their presentation. Focus on building your confidence and communication style to engage your audience at the end to be clear on how they can work with you and your process. - Bryan Powell, Executive Coaching Space
14. Provide Proof With Your Portfolio
Show the prospective buyer how your product or service has worked for other clients with statistics, testimonials and case studies. Your portfolio matters. Shine a spotlight on how you’ve been able to drive success, and they will know it’s possible for them, too. - Brittney Van Matre, Rewild Work Strategies
15. Own Your Space And Deliver With Authority
I have noticed many founders tend to be overly grateful about being in the room to pitch and their language throughout the presentation reflects that. Remember, you were vetted and earned your place. Thus, focus on showing how your solution uniquely solves the client’s problem to motivate them to further interact with you without creating a sense of doubt about why you are there pitching. - Arthi Rabikrisson, Prerna Advisory
16. Show Up Authentically To Build True Connection
Be authentic about yourself and your offer when you give the speech. People buy from people. So if you show up as truly, authentically you—not a version of you that you think you’re supposed to be or that you think the world wants you to be—only then will your pitch, speech and delivery connect better and convert prospects into sales. It needs to be done with a focus on helping and serving others authentically. - Shikha Bajaj, Own Your Color
17. Develop A Steady, Confident Voice Through Practice
Content definitely matters when delivering a pitch, but how it is presented matters even more. I would suggest spending more time on “how” than on “what.” Practice especially the use of your voice. A calm, steady and confident voice builds credibility and makes people feel safe saying “yes.” - Dorota Klop-Sowinska, DoSo! Coaching
18. Slow Down To Spark Trust
New solopreneurs often rush their pitch. That dopamine-fueled speed? It kills clarity. Great delivery demands control. Slow down. Let each word land. Precision and pause don’t just signal confidence—they spark trust. When your delivery rides the rhythm like a surfer rides a wave, you stop selling and start converting. Curiosity becomes commitment fast. - Adam Levine, InnerXLab
19. Embrace Serving Over Selling As Your Strategy
Sales is the entry point of service, yet so many solopreneurs struggle to understand the importance of implementing a strategy around their sales approach. It is not about proving your worth but providing value. Those meant to align with your value proposition, will! - Jenna D’Annunzio
