What makes
one demo a raging success and another a boring failure? What can be
done to ensure successful demonstrations and outcomes? The answer is
simple: Do the last thing first!
How can
this be done? Let's start by examining why many demonstrations fail.
Here's
a short list of reasons for failed demonstrations - collected from hundreds
of demos: too long; too boring; failed to identify the customer's key
needs; too little time; too much time; a feature failed; too many features;
software bugs or crashes; lack of clear objectives…
Clearly,
there are many reasons why things can go wrong. What is the impact of
a poor or inconclusive demonstration?
Every year,
software companies lose millions of dollars due to failed demos. Most
companies don't even know that the money is being lost!
How many
technical visits and demonstrations does it take to close the sale?
If the answer is more than one demo for any individual, then you are
throwing away money, in terms of operating costs and in the form of
the most valuable resource of all: time.
Further,
what is the impact of a failed demo on you, on your sales team, product
development, marketing, finance, administration…on everyone in your
company?
The impact
of a failed demo is equal to the value of the sale, plus all potential
future projects at that customer. It is the value of immediate sale,
plus additional services including consulting, installation, implementation,
ongoing support, plus the value of future products, add-on modules and
other new offerings.
All of
these are at risk when a demo fails. The cost can be hundreds of thousands
or even millions of dollars. The success or failure of your demo impacts
the pending success of your entire company.
So, what
can you do to increase the probability of success? Turn your demo upside-down!
The essence
of this strategy is in executing two things. First, show your audience
the end of the demo right at the very beginning. Second, focus and only
show the specific capabilities needed to address the customer's problem.
This concept
of turning the demo upside down may seem confusing. Aren't we expected
to put together a "story" and follow that story until we reach
the end? And typically, the end shows the solution, the big "payoff"
screen, which is what we've been working towards.
Consider
this: why force your customer to wait? Or worse, why force your customer
to pay attention and remember your story for 30 or 40 minutes to finally
get to the end - only to find that it is not what they have in mind?!
These are
the two key reasons why many, perhaps most, demos fail. In the minds
of the audience…
1. "They
never showed what I really needed to see."
2. "It took forever and I lost track."
Both outcomes
are deadly. And expensive.
The successful
strategy focuses on engaging the audience right from the beginning by
showing them the solution they need, right away. Once they have seen
that what they need is a real possibility, they get interested very
rapidly.
You show
your audience a solution in two ways. The first is a very rapid description
of what the solution is. The second is a more thorough exploration of
how the solution works.
Focus on
showing the audience exactly what they need - and leave out everything
else that might distract. Show only the specific capabilities your audience
needs to solve their problem.
Here's
a pathway that achieves the desired successful results:
1. Provide
the Illustration
2. Do it
3. Do it again
4. Questions & Answers
5. Summarize
Your Illustration
is the single most important visual tool for your demonstration. Humans
are visual creatures. We often hear but don't really listen to words
coming from a salesperson. We do, however, evaluate images rapidly and
carefully.
An Illustration
is a concise, visual method of communicating the reality of a solution.
Often, an Illustration is a desired report, which is generated via a
series of steps.
During
qualification, the sales team identifies reports that either represent
the customer's desired solution or enable decisions that are the solution.
These reports can be documents, presentations, summaries, spreadsheets,
web printouts, or combinations.
Your Illustration
mimics a report and includes the components and information desired.
Your software products will either enable these reports to be created
"cheaper-better-faster" or provide the ability to create reports
that were previously not possible.
Next, develop
the "Do It". This is the most concise pathway from the beginning
to the Illustration. It is the fewest number of mouse clicks required
to go from launching your software to generating the Illustration screen.
No extra explanations, no additional talking, no side trips. Just do
it.
Your second
pass through the software, the "Do It Again", follows the
"Do It" pathway, but enables exploring more options and explaining
what you are doing more fully. The "Do It Again" pathway still
focuses on the specific capabilities needed by the customer. Don't get
distracted; don't show capabilities that aren't relevant.
With both
the "Do It" and the "Do It Again" segments, make
sure to end each section with the strongest, most compelling Illustration.
Leave the Illustration up while you answer questions and summarize.
Your audience
will say, "Wow! That was a Great Demo!"