Demos are a fundamental part of the sales process. Not only are they a great way to engage prospects, they frequently open the door to a deeper conversation about how you can collaborate to solve the prospect's most pressing business challenges.
That said, the demo can definitely sabotage sales -- particularly for anyone selling complex offerings with long sales cycles. Specifically, the number one mistake I see is showing the demo too early in the buying cycle. Sometimes it’s the sales professional who pushes too soon for a demo. Other times, the prospect asks to see the demo, and the salesperson takes the request as a good sign and leaps at the request. Based on my experience, however, you always want to pace yourself when it comes to the demo. Here are two reasons why.
1) You might not be dealing with a decision maker.
Generally, decision-makers tend to care less about demos and more about how you can solve a business problem. In many cases (particularly in the software world), the person who wants to see the demo is the person who will actually be using your offering. If that’s the case, they’re just curious to see how it works and whether they like it.
2) You become trapped by objections about features or superficial aspects of your offering.
When prospects watch demos, you want them to be in the right frame of mind. Show them a demo too early, and they’re highly likely to focus on the aspects of your offering that they don’t like or perceive as imperfections. This is how you get caught in a web of such silly objections as, “This tool won’t work for us because that button is green and our standard is blue.”
Before you do the demo, you want to be sure you’ve laid the proper groundwork for a collaborative mindset. That means waiting until prospects are 1) aware of their business problem and how much it’s costing them and 2) are committed to solving that business problem. At this stage, they’re much more likely to focus on why your tool is a compelling solution to help them solve their challenges.
One metric I favor looking at is the demo-to-close ratio. The desired value varies quite a bit by industry but you can always measure it against other salespeople in your organization. I’d bet that top performers have lower ratios. Salespeople who throw demos around like candy at a parade are wasting their time and maybe even turning prospects off.
So, when is the right time to show a demo? Obviously it depends a bit on the nature of your solution and the sophistication of the buyer. For complex sales, I generally say that anyone who asks for a demo is likely not a decision maker and should be treated accordingly. The right time to show a demo is when you know you’re talking with someone who is interested in business outcomes rather than the features of your offering. If that’s not the case, use the right questions (e.g,, “Who will be involved in the decision to move forward with this? Can we set up a meeting with the team?”) to bump the conversation up the decision food chain.
What are your thoughts on the right time to show a prospect your demo? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
[Image via Flickr / ykanazawa1999]
