The 5 Presentation Habits That Are Losing You B2B Deals (and How to Fix Them Today

Because yes, your virtual pitch still matters. And no, turning your camera on isn’t a strategy. Lessons from William Arruda’s show-and-close playbook.

You know the drill: You spend weeks courting the client, inching your way toward a decision-maker, finally land the all-important presentation slot… and then somehow, inexplicably, crickets. No follow-up. No deal. Just polite thanks and a calendar that suddenly forgot you exist.

Now, if your first instinct is to blame the price, the timing, or the fact that Mercury is in retrograde - fine, but let’s be honest. Sometimes it’s the presentation. Specifically, your presentation habits. And no, simply “having slides” doesn’t count as preparation. Neither does “winging it because you know your stuff.”

B2B pitches aren’t TED Talks. They’re more like gladiator matches held in Slack threads, with buyers whispering things like “can we just build this in-house?” or “can we get it for cheaper from that LinkedIn guy?” while you’re still mid-sentence.

Let’s fix that. Here are five pitch habits that are quietly murdering your close rate - and how to swap them for tactics that actually work.

1.Death by Deck

Let’s start with the classic: Too many slides. Not enough story.

You’ve seen it. A 43-slide pitch deck where every slide looks like a quarterly earnings call mated with a design sprint whiteboard. Graphs. Acronyms. That weird slide that says “Customer Journey” but looks like an M.C. Escher staircase.

The fix: Trim your deck like it's going on holiday. Then ask yourself:

• What’s the one thing they should remember after the call?
• Can I say it in 10 slides or fewer?
• Is each slide pulling its weight or just loitering like a PowerPoint tourist?

Oh, and if your “About Us” slide comes before the client’s problem slide? That’s like proposing on the first date before even asking their name.

Do this instead: Structure your deck like a good thriller. Set the stakes. Introduce the villain (the real problem). Show your hero (your solution). Reveal the twist (why competitors fail). Then walk them to the happy ending - ideally, featuring your logo.

2. Talking at Them, Not With Them

We get it - you’re passionate. But rattling off every feature, stat, and client logo in a breathless 20-minute monologue isn’t impressive. It’s exhausting.

The fix: Ask questions. Create pauses. Engage their brains, not just their ears.

Instead of saying, “We offer end-to-end cloud-native scalable data orchestration pipelines”, try:
“How are you currently managing your data workflows? What’s been the bottleneck?”

William Arruda calls this the ‘Show-and-Close’ approach. You don’t just say you understand their problem - you show that you’ve thought about it deeply, then close by inviting them into the solution.

This isn't a lecture. It's a two-way audition, and you're not the only one being evaluated.

Pro tip: Leave space for questions after every major section. It makes you look confident and collaborative - even if you secretly need that pause to catch your breath.

3. The Confidence Flatline

You’ve made it to the pitch stage. You’ve got something valuable. So why do you sound like you're apologizing to Siri?

It’s not about being a showman. It’s about being present, energized, and unmistakably human. People don’t buy from robots - they buy from people who make them feel like they matter.

The fix: Practice how you say things, not just what you say.

• Record yourself. (Yes, it’s cringe. Do it anyway.)
• Use emphasis, modulation, and silence. (Silence is power.)
• Ditch filler words. If you say “kind of like” one more time, we’re staging an intervention.

Oh, and smile. Not in a creepy Zoom-filter way - just enough to lift your voice. It’s science. Smiling literally changes the tone of your speech.

Need help? William Arruda’s advice: Think of it as executive presence through the lens. Even if you're in sweatpants.

4. lgnoring Real Objections

Here’s the rookie move: prepping generic rebuttals like it’s a high school debate club. “Objection handling” doesn’t mean memorizing lines. It means listening well enough to know what’s really being asked.

Client: “This seems expensive.”
You: “Let me show you the ROI projection we’ve modeled for teams just like yours.”

Client: “We’ve never worked with an agency before.”
You: “Totally fair. Want to hear how one of our first-time clients got comfortable?”

The fix: Use “What I hear you saying is…” to reflect and validate. Then respond with empathy, not ego.

This isn’t the time to win arguments. It’s the time to win trust.

5. No Clear Next Step

You’ve just finished your pitch. The energy is good. Smiles all around. And then… you vanish like a magician who forgot the reveal.

No follow-up. No recap. Just a vague “We’ll be in touch.” Which, in B2B, is Latin for “we probably won’t.”

The fix: Make the next step ridiculously clear - and easy.

Try this:
“I'll send you a quick summary of our conversation with a proposed pilot plan and timeline. Let’s hop on a follow-up next Thursday - what time works best?”

Or:
“Would it be helpful if we shared a case study from a similar client before your team reviews this internally?”

And for heaven’s sake - send the follow-up email before they’ve finished their coffee. Speed signals intent. It also keeps you top of mind while they’re still in the “maybe we should” phase, not the “who were those guys again?” phase.

The Stats Behind the Slides

Let’s pause for some fun (read: mildly terrifying) data from Prezi:

• 91% of professionals admit to daydreaming during presentations.
• 39% have actually fallen asleep.
• Only 4% say most presentations are engaging.

Translation? If your pitch doesn’t spark, it gets swallowed in a sea of Zoom fatigue and forgotten decks.

Here’s what actually does cut through:

The “Tidy Five” Checklist

Feeling attacked? Good. Here’s a redemption arc.

Before your next pitch, run through this quick checklist:

✅ Does your deck tell a story or just dump facts?
✅ Have you planned intentional pauses and questions?
✅ Do you sound like yourself - on your best day?
✅ Are you prepared to address real objections, not straw men?
✅ Is your follow-up message already half-drafted?

If you can’t tick off at least four, cancel the pitch and fix it. Otherwise, enjoy another round of “just circling back” emails that get ignored.

Presentation Is Persuasion

The truth is, your pitch isn’t just about the product or service - it’s about confidence, clarity, and connection. You’re not selling slides. You’re selling a better future. And if the people on the other side of the screen can’t feel that, they won’t buy it.

So let’s stop treating presentations like glorified webinars. They’re high-stakes conversations. With decision-makers. Who need to believe you get them.

Want to start closing like a pro? Give William Arruda’s “show-and-close” mindset a whirl - and toss those bad habits in the digital bin.

Need help revamping your pitch deck or story structure? Drop us a line. We’ve seen enough awkward Zooms for a lifetime, and we’d rather yours wasn’t one of them.

1. What’s the biggest mistake people make in virtual B2B presentations? The most common sin? Treating it like a webinar. When you default to a one-sided monologue stuffed with dense slides and zero engagement, you lose the room before you’ve even finished your intro. A sales pitch isn’t a content dump - it’s a trust-building exercise with an audience that’s halfway to disinterest the moment you say “Let me share my screen.”

2. How long should a good B2B pitch deck be? Ideally under 10 slides. The goal isn’t to cover everything - it’s to spark a conversation. Each slide should carry one core idea, and the narrative should move like a good story: problem, tension, solution, outcome. If your deck needs a table of contents, it’s too long.

3. Should I turn on my camera during a virtual pitch? Yes, but not just for the sake of it. Turning on your camera shows presence, but it’s not a strategy in itself. What matters more is how you show up - eye contact, vocal tone, and energy all matter more than your background blur settings.

4. What’s a good way to make a presentation feel more conversational? Ask real questions early and often. Try: “How familiar are you with this problem?” or “What’s been your team’s biggest blocker here?” Use their answers to shape your delivery on the fly. If you're doing all the talking, you're doing it wrong.

5. How do I handle objections without sounding defensive? Reflect, reframe, and relate. Start with “What I hear you saying is…” to show you’ve listened. Then acknowledge the concern and offer a relevant example or data point. Objection-handling isn’t about winning - it’s about co-creating clarity.

6. What if my audience looks bored or distracted? First, assume it’s not personal - Zoom fatigue is real. Second, inject energy. Pause unexpectedly. Ask for a gut reaction. Say something they’re not expecting, even if it’s just, “You’ve probably seen 100 versions of this slide - I promise this one’s different.” Disrupt their autopilot.

7. Should I rehearse my pitch or wing it? Rehearse the structure, not the script. Know your flow inside out, but stay flexible in how you deliver. Practice aloud until it feels conversational. If you sound like you're reading cue cards, they'll start reading their inbox.

8. What’s a smart way to end a presentation? Always, always have a next step. Whether it’s booking a follow-up, sending a proposal, or sharing a case study, end with clarity. Try: “Here’s what happens next if we’re aligned” and lay out the decision path. Vagueness kills momentum.

9. How soon should I follow up after the pitch? Within 24 hours - ideally the same day. Send a short, friendly summary with action items and links to anything you promised. Speed signals professionalism. Waiting three days to follow up just makes you look disorganized or disinterested.

10. Can storytelling really make that much of a difference? Absolutely. Storytelling is how humans remember, relate, and decide. Instead of listing features, show how someone like them overcame a challenge using your solution. Narratives anchor your pitch in reality - and buyers remember stories, not spec sheets.