Wednesday, December 30, 2020

Success-Ready Leads: A Provocative Definition of "Qualified Lead" Based on Customer Success Parameters – and Its Impact on Presales, Sales and Customer Success


Here’s a novel idea:  Front-load your pipeline with prospects that are most likely to succeed!

How?  Consider filtering and qualifying prospects based on expected outcomes – how closely do prospects compare with existing customers who are happy, referenceable, and renew and expand?  


Why should we contemplate this change?  Ask yourself,

  • How many overview demos are presented to prospects who are a bad fit for your software?
  • How many deep-dive demos are prepared and delivered to poor fit prospects – even after the initial demo/Discovery conversation reveals the risks?
  • How many POCs have been run with these prospects as well?  
  • How many poor fit prospects convert into paying customers who then struggle with implementation and adoption, and fail to achieve their desired value gains?
  • How many customers purchase, but never expand?  If “Land and Expand” is a key sales strategy, this means you’ve expended all of the customer acquisition costs but never capitalized on the higher-leverage Expand part of the equation.
  • How often are presales and customer success staff brought in to try to “save” a customer who doesn’t plan to renew?
  • How much of this time and energy could be been applied to prospects with a better fit – yielding happy, referenceable customers who sing your praises, renew and expand your footprint?

BANT and Similar


Many organizations define a “Qualified Lead” in terms of BANT or similar assessment:


B = Budget – does the prospect have budget allocated for this?

A = Authority – is this person making the buying decision (or is a member of the buying committee)?

N = Needs – are there defined needs (that we can address)?

T = Timeline – is there a defined timeline for this project?


While there are other qualification acronyms and methods employed by vendors today, most are similar to BANT and focus on similar parameters designed to “rule-in” or “rule-out” prospects.  See this link for a good definition of BANT and a slightly better alternative, as examples.


[What do you use in your organization as the definition of a Sales-Ready Lead?]  


These are traditional methods of defining a Qualified Lead or Sales-Ready Lead.  They seek to avoid “wasting” salespeople’s time with prospects who aren’t in an active buying process – but they don’t differentiate between prospects who will be likely to succeed with your offerings vs. those who will struggle, consuming sales, presales, implementation, support and customer success resources – and are less likely to expand your footprint.  


In the worst cases these customers may end up unhappy, poisoning your reputation as actively negative references.  


[Has this ever happened at your company?]


Better Than BANT


In the ongoing quest to improve the quality of leads as they move through the sales “funnel” we proposed and tested the idea of a Demo-Qualified Lead or Demo-Ready Lead as a superior method of filtering prospects – particularly prior to investing sales and presales resources in preparing and presenting any substantive demo.  (See our article on Vision Generation Demos for an elegant method of satisfying prospects’ desires to see a demo, while moving prospects into a Discovery conversation).


For Great Demo! practitioners, a Demo-Ready Lead is measured by having a complete (or reasonably complete) Situation Slide.  Studies with two Great Demo! customers showed success ratios of 6:1 in one case and 10:1 in another – where the ratio is “Closed Business with Complete Situation Slides : Closed Business Based on BANT”.  Pretty impressive!


Further, the Great Demo! Situation Slides definition of a Demo-Ready Lead also includes one key customer success element:  Value Realization Events.  These are small or early “wins” accomplished by the customer after Go Live and represent a conscious effort on the part of the vendor to understand and ensure that customer success criteria are identified in the Discovery stage.


This is a major move in the right direction – but we believe we can do better…!


[What do you use in your organization as the definition of a Demo-Ready Lead?]


A Provocative Alternative – a Success-Ready Lead


Here’s an alternative perspective:  Base your definition of “Qualified Lead” or “Sales-Ready Lead” on customer success parameters.  After all, that’s what you should be aiming for:  happy, successful customers who love you, love your software, and sing your praises (to other, similar customers)!  


Think about your current successful, happy customers.  What are the common attributes that could lead to a good definition of a Success-Ready Lead?  Here are some parameters to consider:


Is the prospect’s size, market or vertical one that is well-served by you?  

  • Is it one of your success “lanes”?
  • Is it an adjacent lane?  And if so, is this a lane you want to pursue?
  • What level of Churn does this lane typically exhibit (vs. other lanes)?

Revenue (or margin) per customer – how profitable are customers in this lane (vs. other lanes)?

  • Will more of these customers improve your margins substantially or not?
  • Is there an opportunity cost in servicing these customers vs customers in other lanes?
  • Do you have an understanding of the lifetime value of customers in this lane vs. other lanes?
  • Customer retention cost – how much are you spending to retain current customers in this lane vs. other lanes?
  • Product cost – how much are you investing in product development to support this lane vs. other lanes?  How does the ROI compare?

Expansion expectation – along similar lines, do customers in this lane tend to grow and expand your footprint?


Is the problem/solution set articulated by the prospect a good fit for your software solutions?  

  • To what degree?  “Percent Fit” might be a good measure, for example.
  • Have other customers with similar problem/solution sets been successful?  Again, to what degree?  “Percent success” might similarly be a good measure.
  • Churn in association with Percent Fit could be another measurement as well.

Success Criteria fit – has the prospect defined their own success criteria and how well do they match your track record?

  • Again, a Percent Fit measurement might be appropriate.
  • Churn again, ditto.

Customer culture – are they an Early Adopter, Technology Adopter, Early Majority, Late Majority or Laggard?  

  • Which of these have enjoyed successful implementation with your software?
  • Which of these have not – and what has been the result (and the impact on consumption of your resources, your reputation, the ability to engage other prospects, serve other customers, etc.)?

Time-to-value and implementation timeline – how long do customers in this lane take to “go live” and to begin to gain value vs. other lanes?


Referencing – do customers with these attributes agree to serve as references?  Do they present their work at your Users’ Group Meetings?


Discovery Conversations Provide Insights – and Many of the Answers


Think about your Discovery calls with prospects:  what questions and answers tell you that this prospect is a good fit or not?  For example:


  • Is the contact a member of the prospect’s executive leadership?  This may indicate that their assessment of the importance of the project is high – and suggests an improved likelihood that this executive may drive the project through to success.
  • Did the contact use your software successfully at a previous company and now wants to implement it at their new organization?  This suggests that many of the criteria in the previous section may already have been met…
  • Did the prospect indicate that another company (one of your current customers) recommended your offering to them?  While not nearly as strong as a first-hand reference, this is also a good starting point.
  • Does the prospect have a defined buying team – how many players are on the team and what are their responsibilities?  The larger the team, the more possibility for distractions, diversions, derailing, delays and disaster…!
  • Does the prospect have experience – and success – in implementing similar software?  Again, this would be a good indicator.
  • Is the prospect’s culture consistent with your customer success profile?  Size?  Market or vertical?  Other lane parameters?
  • How closely does the prospect’s articulated needs (and wants) align with your offering?  50%?  Not so good…  70%?  OK, maybe…  80%?  Better.  90% or above?  Nice…!
  • How do the prospect’s expectations of implementation timeline and time-to-value compare with your typical, successful customers?

Defining Your Success-Ready Lead


A great way to accomplish this is to gather some of your senior sales, presales, implementation and customer success team members to:

  1. Identify the key parameters of successful customers, along the lines in the previous two sections.
  2. Choose a method of quantifying or scoring these parameters – a profile approach can be very useful.
  3. Identify thresholds for qualification levels – e.g., “Great”, “Good”, “Risky”, and “Nope” based on the aggregate scores.  
  4. Frame qualification and Discovery questions to enable this information to be gathered from prospects early in the engagement process.
  5. Implement and refine.

For Great Demo! practitioners, an excellent starting point is to review Situation Slides (and associated Value Realization Event elements) for your most successful customers and compare them with those that have not expanded, struggled, or failed.  This will help you rapidly kick-start this process.


Rule-In the Best; Rule-Out the Worst


These criteria enable you to assess and qualify prospects based on prospects’ likelihood of achieving success.  Additionally, with a Success-Ready Lead approach you don’t risk “disqualifying” serious prospects who don’t meet one or more of the BANT criteria:

  • Do they really need to have budget allocated for all projects?  Many projects are funded without ever being budgeted – if they are deemed sufficiently important.
  • If the prospect contact has been delegated to “explore solutions” by the decision-maker or buying committee, he or she may not have the “authority” required by BANT, but still represents a real opportunity.  
  • The prospect’s understanding of their needs may be incomplete – they are often unaware of the full range of problems they face or the breadth of solutions available.  
  • The timeline may also be in an early stage – too early to satisfy BANT, but it could mature into an active buying process through Vision Generation and Discovery conversations.

Prospects that have poor fit with your Success-Ready Lead criteria can be disqualified – or nurture-marketed until either they change or your success criteria and/or acceptable lanes change.


GIGO – “Garbage In Garbage Out”


GIGO:  The quality of output is determined by the quality of the input.


This old saying is (sadly) directly aligned with current qualification methods in many companies.  In the quest to generate leads (by marketing), move those leads to Sales-Ready status (by SDRs and BDRs), and transition those prospects through Discovery, demos, and POCs, (by sales and presales), there has traditionally been a focus on quantity first, quality second. 


The customary sales “funnel” is the evidence of this thinking – more leads at the top should yield more closed business at the bottom.  And while this is (partly) true, the real picture shouldn’t be perceived as a funnel, but perhaps as a series of pipes.  Prospects with good “fit” will move more smoothly through the pipes, but prospects with poor fit clog the plumbing, requiring more effort to clear the blockages – while holding back the good fit prospects.


In the world of moving liquids through channels, we avoid clogs by placing filters ahead of the channel entrances – filtering your prospects by Success-Ready parameters should enable a steady flow of good fit prospects through your sales and implementation conduits into pools of happy, successful customers.



Copyright © 2020 The Second Derivative – All Rights Reserved.

Monday, December 28, 2020

Refract/Gong/etc. Studies of Teams Doing Demos?


Has anyone conducted studies of best practices for vendor teams when presenting demos, using Refract or Gong or similar tools?  It would be very interesting to collect data on the following scenarios:

  • Sales and presales as a two-person team (the most likely combination).
  • Salesperson with two or more presales folks – I often see a presales “generalist” accompanied by a SME (for a particular product or vertical).
  • An overarching account manager with two or more sub-teams (often by product, with a product-salesperson and presales person as a sub-team).

Questions to consider:

  • Who should speak at which times during the demo?
  • Who (and how) should customer questions be managed?
  • Who (and when) should offer summaries?
  • How often should there be speaker changes between the vendor players – and how should this cadence compare with vendor-customer speaker switches?  (I can’t tell you how many times I hear salespeople “piling on” after a presales person answers a question or makes a point…!)

In Great Demo!, we offer explicit guidance on these practices, but it would be delightful to have hard data that supports our positions or suggests alternative approaches.


Has anyone run the experiment?

Thursday, December 17, 2020

“Thank You for Your Time…” Alternative


Many vendors offer the phrase, “Thank you for your time…” when starting or completing a meeting with a customer, often adding “I know
your time is valuable…”  This is courteous, but positions the vendor beneath the customer, in terms of relative importance.

A very successful salesperson (thanks, Carol!) once shared the following advice that I continue to apply today:


She asked me, “Isn’t your time just as valuable as the customer’s?”  I responded, “Of course it is…”


She then offered a better way starting and closing meetings.  She suggested saying, “I’m glad we are [or were] able to invest this time together today…”  


This positions both parties as equals – regardless of whether you are speaking with an executive, middle manager, staff member or system administrator.  What a delightful idea!

Friday, December 11, 2020

Demo-Ready Lead?

 

Many organizations have a definition of a “Sales Ready Lead” to differentiate from comparatively unqualified leads – and to help streamline sales processes.  How many of you have generated a clear definition of a “Demo-Ready Lead” – and if so, what are the criteria you use for this?


For example, a number of Great Demo! practitioners require a completed (or reasonably completed) Situation Slide before moving forward with a Technical Proof Demo.


What criteria, if any, does your organization use for a Demo-Ready Lead?

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Podcast Recording: A Perfect Demo Environment


How do you suspend disbelief?

Peter Cohan, founder of Great Demo!, chatted with the fine folks at SalesExcellence about “the perfect demo environment”.  In this episode they review some of Peter's tips on how you can create more compelling demos, with a focus on your demo environment.


There are surprisingly simple things that you can easily incorporate into your daily routine that can have a huge impact on your audiences.


Care for a teaser? Don’t call it a “demo”!


Why?  Because prospects unconsciously translate the word “demo” to mean “fake”.  Want more?  Tune into this intriguing and fun episode.  You can find recording here.


The podcast is also available on:


Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2JAYzJp 

Google: https://bit.ly/3lVGyT5 

Apple: https://apple.co/3qFWb4s


Enjoy!

Friday, December 4, 2020

Use Chat for Your Demo Questions “Parking Lot” in Zoom (and Possibly WebEx and GoToMeeting)


In addition to the possibility of using a Word or Google document as a “parking lot” for managing questions in your web-delivered demonstrations, another elegant option is to use the Chat dialog in Zoom.  Chat has the added advantage that the customer can type the question (or add clarifying info) as well!  Chat is saved automatically at the close of the session (assuming current Zoom default settings).  

 

You can use Chat in WebEx and GoToMeeting as well, but you may need to proactively save it yourself – I’m not certain if the current settings in these tools automatically save your Chat dialog.  Does anyone know?

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

The Great Demo! 2020 Articles Index


There are currently well over 75 articles in our articles page – here’s a handy index to help you find specific topics and explore others.  Enjoy!

If you have ideas or suggestions for new articles, please let us know.  We’ll list a few candidates at the bottom – you can vote for the ones you’d like to see!



Great Demo! Methodology Basics


Title

Abstract/Topic

Stunningly Awful Demos – The 2020 Great Demo! Top Ten List of What NOT to Do

Exactly that!

The Great Demo! Top Ten List

The less amusing version of the above.

Seven Habits for Stunningly Successful Demos

Key Great Demo! concepts outlined – along with the studies that validate these ideas.

Why Structure a Demo Like a News Article?

An exploration of Inverted Pyramid – a key Great Demo! concept (validated above).

Stunningly Awful Demos – Two Words to Avoid

How your use of “If” and “or” cases can derail your demos…

Too Complex – A Demo Disaster Story

A real-life disaster story told and examined – so you don’t do the same!

Death By Corporate Overview

How much to present (or how little) – and an alternative approach.

Let’s Talk About Value – Uncovering the Delta

Uncovering and communicating value – and the importance of tangible value vs. platitudes.

Stunningly Successful Great Demo! Implementation – A Practitioner’s Perspective

Guidelines and steps for implementing the Great Demo! methodology.

The Role of Sales in Great Demos

Partnering with your sales colleagues – team tactics for successful demos, with a focus on Great Demo! specifics.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Lost in the Weeds

Managing questions and time elegantly and professionally.

When is the Best Time To Do a Demo?

Hint:  Morning is MUCH better than afternoon!

Rescue – From the Tyranny of Traditional Demos

Why traditional demos aren’t getting the job done – and some Great Demo! approaches to apply instead.

We Are Programmed to Forget – And Its Impact on Our Demos

Methods to improve your audience’s ability to remember your message.

Stunningly Awful Demos Team Practices – Where 1 + 1 = 0

Classic cautions and rescues for both members of the team – sales and presales.

Disasters Neatly Averted – Dealing with Day-In-the-Life Demos

Methods to avoid painful “day in the life” demos – and associated painful outcomes.

Stunningly Awful Demos – The Relative Irrelevance of Set-Up Mode

When and when not to present “Set-up Mode” vs. “Daily-use Mode” capabilities.

Stunningly Awful Demos:  Waaay Out of Alignment

Do’s and don’ts when working with a customer’s multiple players at multiple levels – executives, middle managers, staffers and administrators.

Stunningly Awful On-Boarding Demos – The Trouble Begins

Deconstructing traditional demos – and reconstructing with Great Demo! approaches.

Transition Vision – “We Love It – But How Are We Going To Get There?”

A very effective “next steps” conversation with the customer.

Attention Retention in Demonstrations

Why “Do the Last Thing First” is so important – and the importance of summaries.


Advanced Great Demo! Methodology Topics


Title

Abstract/Topic

The Menu Approach – A Truly Terrific Demo Self-Rescue Technique

Trying to pack 2-3 hours of “overview” into 60 minutes?  Try the Menu Approach to enable smoother, more effective engagement.

Vision Generation Demos – The Crisp Cure for Stunningly Awful Harbor Tours

How to present just enough to satisfy customers’ desire to “see a demo” and move into Discovery.

Surprisingly Successful Complex Situation Demos

Extending the methodology to handle situations with multiple players and multiple solutions – this could be one of the most useful articles for you!

Stunningly Awful Sales Tactics – The Future-Sales Prevention Team

Traditional vs. good vs. great account management – and an exploration of Transition Vision concepts to help customers achieve success in a managed process.

Stunningly Awful Demo Outcomes – Why Objections Shouldn’t Need To Be Overcome

How richer Discovery conversations and the Great Demo! approach reduce objections later in the sales process.

Stunningly Awful vs. Truly Terrific Competitive Differentiation – What, When and How

Managing and outflanking competition – when and how to do it elegantly and effectively.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Insufficient Discovery

Why doing Discovery is so important and an introduction to successful tips and methods.

Expansion and Renewal Demos

Strategy, positioning and demo tactics to secure renewals and expansion sales.

The Advantages of Being the Incumbent Vendor – And Its Impact on Managing Competition, Renewals and Expansion Sales

Exactly that!

Lunch and Learn Demos

When and how to use “Lunch and Learn” sessions.

Why DID They Buy – Fabulous Fuel for Sales, Presales and Customer Success

The process for uncovering the capabilities your customers are consuming – and the value they are gaining from using your software.

Demo “Storylines”: The Journey, The Destination, or Both

When to use “Journeys” as demo storylines – and when not!

Ignition Demos – A Rather Huge Unmet Need and Opportunity

An opportunity to reduce “wasted” demos and prime the sales pipeline.

The Surprising Road(s) to Demo and Presales Mastery

An exploration of demo and presales skills, roles and personal development.

Using Analogies and Metaphors (and More) in Demos

When and how to use metaphors and analogies in your demos.

A Perfect Demo Environment…

Guidelines and some surprising best practices in establishing and maintaining your organization’s demo environment.

A Story of LEGO Bricks, Software Demos, and Vision Generation

A real-life story and example of how to present demos of “toolkit” software.

What’s the Value of Better Demos

Ideas that can help justify Great Demo! training – as well as insights to guide your personal development.

Stunningly Successful Methodology Implementation

A mini-book on methodology implementation –largely for managers – identifying do’s and don’ts, with examples for Great Demo!

What Makes a Demo Truly Remarkable?

Some proven methods to take your demos to a higher level of performance.

Stand Away From The Mouse! – Letting Your Champion Drive

Another terrific tip to make your demos more engaging and remarkably successful!


Pursuing and Justifying Great Demo! Training


Title

Abstract/Topic

What’s the Value of Better Demos

Ideas that can help justify Great Demo! training – as well as insights to guide your personal development.

Seven Habits for Stunningly Successful Demos

Key Great Demo! concepts outlined – along with the studies that validate these ideas.

Stunningly Awful Web “Overview” Demos – The Gruesome Anatomy of a Traditional 1-Hour Web Overview Demonstration – And Some Solutions

Exactly that!

Rescue – From the Tyranny of Traditional Demos

Why traditional demos aren’t getting the job done – and some Great Demo! approaches to apply instead.

What Can We Learn by Analyzing 67,149 Software Demos?  Some Surprising New Insights

The original study delightfully validating Great Demo! methodology.


Remote Demos – Operating Over the Web


Title

Abstract/Topic

Stunningly Awful Remote Demos – The Top Ten List of Inflicting Pain at a Distance

What NOT to do over the web.

Stunningly Awful Web “Overview” Demos – The Gruesome Anatomy of a Traditional 1-Hour Web Overview Demonstration – And Some Solutions

Exactly that!

Great Demo! Remote Demos Best Practices

A great starter set of ideas that can be applied right away.

The Zoom Scan – What It Is, Why It Is Important, and How to Do It

Getting more comfortable with operating over the web – some advanced tips and methods.

Remote Demos – The Role of the Active Conduit

Using a colleague to help prepare for and manage demos delivered over the web – an under-used best practice!

Remote Demonstrations – What Can We Do Better?

A terrific summary of the basics!

Demos to Mixed Local and Remote Audiences – Tips to Handle Combination Situations

Exactly that!


Doing Discovery


Title

Abstract/Topic

Stunningly Awful Demos – Insufficient Discovery

Why doing Discovery is so important and an introduction to successful tips and methods.

Stunningly Awful vs. Truly Terrific Competitive Differentiation – What, When and How

Managing and outflanking competition – when and how to do it elegantly and effectively.  Hint:  do it during Discovery!


Vision Generation, The Menu Approach and Other Self-Rescue Topics


Title

Abstract/Topic

The Menu Approach – A Truly Terrific Demo Self-Rescue Technique

Trying to pack 2-3 hours of “overview” into 60 minutes?  Try the Menu Approach to enable smoother, more effective engagement.

Vision Generation Demos – The Crisp Cure for Stunningly Awful Harbor Tours

How to present just enough to satisfy customers’ desire to “see a demo” and move into Discovery.

A Story of LEGO Bricks, Software Demos, and Vision Generation

A real-life story and example of how to present demos of “toolkit” software.

Surprisingly Delectable Demos – Delightful Dining Analogies

How restaurant practices can be delightfully applied to Great Demos – menus, vision generation and more.

Why Don’t They Get It – Are They Stupid Or What?

Demos, the Technology Adoption Curve, and Vision Generation.


Storytelling and Demos


Title

Abstract/Topic

Storytelling in Demos

Exactly that!

Demo “Storylines”: The Journey, The Destination, or Both

When to use “Journeys” as demo storylines – and when not!

Using Analogies and Metaphors (and More) in Demos

When and how to use metaphors and analogies in your demos.

Disasters Neatly Averted – Dealing with Day-In-the-Life Demos

Methods to avoid painful “day in the life” demos – and associated painful outcomes.


For Managers (But Individual Contributors Are Also Welcome!)


Title

Abstract/Topic

Stunningly Awful On-Boarding Demos – The Trouble Begins

Deconstructing traditional demos – and reconstructing with Great Demo! approaches.

Stunningly Successful Methodology Implementation

A mini-book on methodology implementation –largely for managers – identifying do’s and don’ts, with examples for Great Demo!

Stunningly Awful Sales Tactics – The Future-Sales Prevention Team

Traditional vs. good vs. great account management – and an exploration of Transition Vision concepts to help customers achieve success in a managed process.

Demo Capital – Underutilized, Undervalued and Often Insufficient

Identifying, assessing and leveraging your tangible and intangible demo assets.


The “Stunningly Awful Demos” Series (a perennial favorite!)


Title

Abstract/Topic

Stunningly Awful Demos – The 2020 Great Demo! Top Ten List of What NOT to Do

Exactly that!

Stunningly Awful Web “Overview” Demos – The Gruesome Anatomy of a Traditional 1-Hour Web Overview Demonstration – And Some Solutions

Exactly that!

Stunningly Awful Remote Demos – The Top Ten List of Inflicting Pain at a Distance

What NOT to do over the web.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Lost in the Weeds

Managing questions and time elegantly and professionally.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Insufficient Discovery

Why doing Discovery is so important and an introduction to successful tips and methods.

Stunningly Awful Demo Evolution- Have You Ever Seen Demos Get Shorter?

Recognizing and dealing with the demo challenges associated with evolving software and new releases.

Stunningly Awful Demos – The Relative Irrelevance of Set-Up Mode

When and when to present “Set-up Mode” vs. “Daily-use Mode” capabilities.

Stunningly Awful Demo Phrases

Fun, but thought provoking – when “Vendor says xxx”, “customer thinks yyy…”

Stunningly Awful Demos Team Practices – Where 1 + 1 = 0

Classic cautions and rescues for both members of the team – sales and presales.

Stunningly Awful Sales Tactics – The Future-Sales Prevention Team

Traditional vs. good vs. great account management – and an exploration of Transition Vision concepts to help customers achieve success in a managed process.

Stunningly Awful Demo Communication – Unencrispening the Demo

More on crisp and clear vs. ineffective and confusing communication.

Stunningly Awful Sales Kickoff Demos:  Selling to Your Sales Force – the Toughest Customer of All!

Successful methods to fire-up your sales team with your new product and new releases.

Stunningly Awful Demo Outcomes – Why Objections Shouldn’t Need To Be Overcome

How richer Discovery conversations and the Great Demo! approach reduce objections later in the sales process.

Stunningly Awful vs. Truly Terrific Competitive Differentiation – What, When and How

Managing and outflanking competition – when and how to do it elegantly and effectively.

Stunningly Awful SaaS Demos – Lost in the Clouds

SaaS-specific demo risks, challenges and mistakes – and how to address.

Stunningly Awful Sales Prevention Demos

An amusing (yet painful) series of typical errors and mistakes in demo delivery.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Debilitating Demo Diseases

Symptoms, examples and cures for common demo diseases.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Debilitating Demo Diseases Additional Afflictions

More symptoms, examples and cures for common demo diseases.

Stunningly Awful Demo Situations – The Horror of Scripted Demos

Strategies and tactics to manage RFP responses and scripted demo situations.

Stunningly Awful Software Evaluations – A Strategy of Hope?

Guidance on managing successful POCs, POVs, and other evaluations.

Stunningly Awful Demos – The Great Demo! Top Ten List of What NOT to Do

Older (but still valid) version…


Humor – With a Bite!


Title

Abstract/Topic

Stunningly Awful Web “Overview” Demos – The Gruesome Anatomy of a Traditional 1-Hour Web Overview Demonstration – And Some Solutions

Exactly that!

Stunningly Awful Demo Phrases

Fun, but thought provoking – when “Vendor says xxx”, “customer thinks yyy…”

Stunningly Awful Demo Communication – Unencrispening the Demo

More on crisp and clear vs. ineffective and confusing communication.

Stunningly Awful Sales Prevention Demos

An amusing (yet painful) series of typical errors and mistakes in demo delivery.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Debilitating Demo Diseases

Symptoms, examples and cures for common demo diseases.

Stunningly Awful Demos – Debilitating Demo Diseases Additional Afflictions

More symptoms, examples and cures for common demo diseases.

The Content-Free Buzzword-Compliant Vocabulary List

The article that started these articles…!  Alternatives to typical buzzwords.

Too Complex – A Demo Disaster Story

A real-life disaster story told and examined – so you don’t do the same!

‘Twas the Night Before the Big Demo

A holiday favorite!


Presales Growth and Personal Development


Title

Abstract/Topic

The Surprising Road(s) to Demo and Presales Mastery

An exploration of demo and presales skills, roles and personal development.

COVID-19, Presales, and Leadership

Actions, expectations and opportunities for presales during a pandemic.

Stunningly Successful Great Demo! Implementation – A Practitioner’s Perspective

Guidelines and steps for implementing the Great Demo! methodology.

Stunningly Successful Methodology Implementation

A mini-book on methodology implementation –largely for managers – identifying do’s and don’ts, with examples for Great Demo!

Are You a Demo Expert?  Why Experts Should Feel Uncomfortable

A discussion of why and how to never grow complacent and never stop learning.

Demo Skills Assessment – Do It Now

An opportunity to take stock of your current skill set for demos.

The Meaningless-Filler Gratuitous-Phrases Vocabulary List

Eliminate wasted words and sharpen your verbal delivery.

The Content-Free Buzzword-Compliant Vocabulary List

The article that started these articles…!  Alternatives to typical buzzwords.


Customer Success


Title

Abstract/Topic

Stunningly Awful Sales Tactics – The Future-Sales Prevention Team

Traditional vs. good vs. great account management – and an exploration of Transition Vision concepts to help customers achieve success in a managed process.



Beyond Demos


Title

Abstract/Topic

Competitive Demo Situations and “Bake-offs” – How to Bias Towards Your Strengths

More surprisingly simple methods to outflank your competition.

Stunningly Awful Demo Situations – The Horror of Scripted Demos

Strategies and tactics to manage RFP responses and scripted demo situations.

Four Opportunities to Harvest – The Value of Informal Success Stories

When and why to capture “informal” success stories.

Stunningly Awful Software Evaluations – A Strategy of Hope?

Guidance on managing successful POCs, POVs, and other evaluations.

The Database Break-Even Point

Insights into accelerating time to value.

Trade Show Best Practices

A few tips for improving results at trade shows and conferences.


Marketing Topics


Title

Abstract/Topic

Death By Corporate Overview

How much to present (or how little) – and an alternative approach.

Ignition Demos – A Rather Huge Unmet Need and Opportunity

An opportunity to reduce “wasted” demos and prime the sales pipeline.

Vision Generation Demos – The Crisp Cure for Stunningly Awful Harbor Tours

How to present just enough to satisfy customers’ desire to “see a demo” and move into Discovery.

Stunningly Awful Sales Kickoff Demos:  Selling to Your Sales Force – the Toughest Customer of All!

Successful methods to fire-up your sales team with your new product and new releases.

Why Don’t They Get It – Are They Stupid Or What?

Demos, the Technology Adoption Curve, and Vision Generation.

The Database Break-Even Point

Insights into accelerating time to value.

Auto-Demo Hell

Cautions, tips and guidance for creating recorded demos.

More Auto-Demo Hell – A “Customized” Recorded Demo?

More on the same – and a rescue…!


And in the Future…


Here are a few candidate topics for upcoming articles:


  • Doing Discovery – Beyond the Basics
  • Great Demo! Principles for Presales Managers
  • Eight Engaging Examples (What Does “Great” Look Like?)
  • Workflow Analysis – Uncovering Four Delightful Pieces of Information (That You Need)
  • The Delusion of Product-Centric Demos
  • Stunningly Awful Demo Detail – Let Me Explain What Happens Behind the Scenes
  • The Terrible Tabs Death March

Vote for the ones you’d like to see and/or suggest others…!



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