Have you ever heard a child sing so off-key you can’t help but feel embarrassed for the kid? Of course the parents have no issue with their daughter’s tone. It’s their baby and she can do no wrong. But the dreadful screeching scratches away at your innards no matter how cute she looks in her brand new outfit.
Fancy this. The shrieking abruptly stops. Astoundingly, it is replaced by a gentle melody, sweet as summer honey. You give your eyes a few rubs and notice that the same once tone-deaf girl is still singing. Is the awful first half of her tune forgotten? Probably not, but the sheer awesomeness of the child being able to recognize the error of her voice and recover so well might move you to forgive her.
Bad pitches happen. They just do. The important thing is that you recognize when one is taking place as soon as you can and make a hasty comeback. Here are a few methods you can try to get past a sour pitch.
Honesty Is Key
For starters, acknowledge the error. Making an open, sincere apology to people who are willing to forgive you is the just the sliver of hope you need to carry on. An honest mistake is precisely that – a mistake. You’re human, and so are your clients.
Attempting the opposite and trying to cover up your slip-up is most likely going to resolve nothing. You might even be digging yourself a deeper hole. You’ve already been humbled at this point, so let go of any residual pride, say sorry, and prepare yourself for the second act.
Fool Me Once
Do not repeat the same mistake. If your pitch just tanked, try focusing on the components of the pitch you haven’t already covered. Stick to the plan, but alter it to avoid any chance of duplicating a blatant blunder. You’ve invested so much time in the initial pitch that there must be some worthwhile points to help drag you back onto solid ground.
In the worst case scenario, start fresh. Let go of the silly error and do what you do best – sell. You are a marketer, after all. Don’t let your nerves get the best of you. Flex your PR muscles and regain control of the situation.
Take a Chill Pill
In scenarios where the pitch has really flown the coop, take a step back (literally, if necessary) and give yourself a mental break. Sometimes the best way to recover from a PR setback is to give it time. It’s not the end of the world, and even if it was, there isn’t much you can do to change that fact. So breathe deeply, think about what went wrong, and take it from there.
Ask for Feedback
When the nightmare is over, do everything you can to learn from your mistake. Use a survey for feedback, ask a friend for advice, or directly talk to clients about what they did or did not like. Seek out suggestions on how to improve. Then try those recommendations out.
In some special cases, a bad pitch can be the best way for you to learn how to develop a really good pitch. Learning from your mistakes is absolutely critical for you to move forward. Focus on the future so that you’ll be able to sing your heart out the next time around.

Stand Out King


You’re Tom Cruise in Top Gun. Your customer is the uptight piloting instructor who’s been giving you a hard time all week. You spot her at the local bar after class. What do you do? You sing her a Righteous Brothers ballad of course.
















