Every sales trainer has an opinion as to whether you should go first or last when you are making formal presentations to a prospect. Hubspot blog has quoted two psychologists who typically agree with both depending on the situation. This is a very important finding. The determining factor is time between presentations. The quote below is self-explanatory. Just remember to ask about the timing of the presentations and don’t be afraid to ask for the position that will favor you. I have never had a prospect refuse to honor my request.
Whether you should go first or last depends on one primary factor: The time between the presentations. If you and a competitor are presenting back to back, you should go first because you will shape your potential customer’s perception and create biases that will put your competitor at a disadvantage. Researchers refer to this as the primacy effect, which describes the brain’s tendency to be more influenced by what is presented first than by what is presented later. This is why first impressions are so highly influential. However, if there is some time between the presentations (more than a week), you should go last. This is because the memory of your competitor will fade with the passing of time, while your presentation will be fresh in the buyers’ minds. This increases the likelihood that you’ll be chosen.
