The Crisp Currency of Discovery Communication

The Crisp Currency of Discovery Communication

A Never Stop Learning! Article

Have you ever heard this dialog before?

Salesperson: “I need you to do a demo tomorrow for ACME Corp – it’s a huge opportunity!”

Presales person: “What do we know about the prospect’s situation?”

Salesperson: “It’s a huge opportunity!”

Presales person: “…Sigh…”

Or this one?

Salesperson: “I need you to do a demo tomorrow for ACME Corp – it’s a huge opportunity!”

Presales person: “What do we know about the prospect’s situation?”

Salesperson: “Hmmm… There are some notes in the CRM system…”

A few moments later, after our presales person has found the record: “It only says, ‘It’s a huge opportunity!’”

What’s in This Article for You?

• A sadly traditional challenge
• What’s a Vision Generation Demo?
• What’s an Informal Success Story?
• An incredibly effective and efficient handoff
• And another
• And still another
• And yet more!

No Disco No Demo?

Here’s another frequently played scene:

“I promised them a demo…” announces the salesperson.

“But we don’t have any discovery information,” complains the presales person, “What should I show them?”

“Just show them your standard overview demo…”

What is the result of this decision? Wasted time for all parties involved and an increasing likelihood of the opportunity being lost to a more competent competitor or vaporizing into a No Decision outcome.

Well, what if there were a way to satisfy all parties in this scenario? 

• The salesperson is excited about the opportunity and wants to move the sales process forward, and delivering a demo is a traditional first step.

• The presales person also wants to see the opportunity convert to the next sales stage but knows that an overview demo is a recipe for disaster. Discovery is what is needed at this point.

• And the prospect (let’s not forget about our prospect’s point of view!) wants to get a sense of what solutions to their problems are possible.

It seems like the ingredients in this recipe are not going to combine well and may result in some serious vendor-prospect indigestion! What’s an elegant and effective solution to this dilemma?

You can find the balance of this article here. Enjoy!