Bringing More Marketing Into Sales Calls

Why do most sales tools underperform?

Salespeople rely on tools like flyers, catalogues, slide decks, proposals, quotations, and invoices. But these materials are often created without enough real-world sales input.

Sales teams usually accept what they’re given. They may not request changes, either because they’re too busy or because they assume marketing isn’t interested in field feedback. Marketing, meanwhile, produces clean materials but may not know what buyers actually care about most.

The result? A lot of improvement opportunities get ignored — even though small layout and content tweaks could increase impact immediately.

Mini-summary: Sales materials often underperform because marketing lacks field insight and sales doesn’t ask for improvements.

Many sales brochures and decks are arranged evenly, page by page, with every product treated equally. But salespeople know that some products or services are naturally more popular or strategically important.

Those high-demand items should appear earlier — up front, not buried in a sectional structure where everything is divided neatly but without sales logic. This can mean breaking out of the “all categories separated equally” layout and instead prioritizing what buyers most want to see.

Mini-summary: Put best-selling or highest-value products first, even if it disrupts a neat category structure.

On your most valuable product or service pages, there are always certain phrases, data points, diagrams, or photos that matter more to clients. Over time, salespeople learn exactly which sections buyers respond to.

So why not design the page to reflect that reality? Marketing can easily:

• enlarge critical text

• add bold emphasis

• highlight key areas with colour

• visually frame the important tables or images

These are small layout adjustments that can be implemented in the next print run or updated soft copy.

Mini-summary: Highlight the few sections buyers care about most using size, bold, colour, and layout focus.

What’s the right way to present materials during a meeting?

You generally don’t want to hand materials to the buyer immediately. Instead:

1. Spin the document toward them so they can read it clearly.

2. Use a pen to point out what matters.

3. Walk them through the highlighted sections in real time.

Not every part of a page has equal value. The buyer can read everything later, but while you’re there guiding them, your goal is to control their focus. When you leave materials behind, the highlighted parts will naturally draw their attention again.

Mini-summary: Don’t just give materials — use them actively to direct attention, then leave them with clear highlights.

Why do sales materials still look flat and undifferentiated?

Because everyone stays in their lane.

• Marketing designs materials but doesn’t know which parts sales needs emphasized.

• Sales uses materials but doesn’t ask marketing to change them.

So everything stays “flat” — equally presented, with no visual hierarchy, and no deliberate reader guidance.

Mini-summary: Flat materials persist because marketing doesn’t know what to emphasize and sales doesn’t request updates.

What about buyers with different interests?

Yes, buyers vary. But it’s also true that a small core of information appeals to most prospects. Think of the 80/20 principle:

• about 20% of your content will be relevant to roughly 80% of buyers

So you highlight that core first. Anything else can be handled verbally in the meeting or customized later.

Mini-summary: Highlight the universal 20% that fits most buyers; customize the rest live.

These documents are not just administrative tools — they are marketing opportunities. Senior decision-makers often see quotations and invoices, even if they weren’t in the meeting. So these documents should include subtle promotion, such as:

• short service/product reminders

• links to your website in soft copies

• QR codes that connect to more detailed content

Every time a buyer opens a quotation or invoice, it’s a new chance to reinforce value.

Mini-summary: Use quotations and invoices as quiet advertising tools with links and QR codes.

What is the best design style for proposals?

Proposals can fail in two ways:

• too florid (design overwhelms message)

• too flat (no engagement or clarity)

A balanced middle is best. You want a clean, professional structure that supports the message without drowning it.

Also, do not rely on text alone. Visual stimulation is powerful, and people-focused photos are especially engaging. This is where marketing’s layout expertise becomes essential. Sales knows the message; marketing knows how to make it visually compelling.

Mini-summary: Proposals should be visually engaging but not over-designed — clear structure plus strong visuals.

• Sales materials improve fastest when sales and marketing collaborate.

• Reorder brochures and decks based on real buyer demand, not category neatness.

• Visually highlight the most persuasive sections to guide attention.

• Use materials actively during meetings instead of handing them over passively.

• Turn quotations, invoices, and proposals into subtle marketing channels.

• Aim for proposal design that’s balanced, clear, and visually stimulating.

Founded in the U.S. in 1912, Dale Carnegie Training has supported individuals and companies worldwide for over a century in leadership, sales, presentation, executive coaching, and DEI. Our Tokyo office, established in 1963, has been empowering both Japanese and multinational corporate clients ever since.