Please Stop Circling Your Mouse!

Have you ever seen a demo where the presenter circles their mouse around and around and around (and around and around) a screen element? One circle can be helpful; each additional circumnavigation is simply annoying!

 

And eventually, that constant gyration actually tires audience members’ eyes, forcing them to look away! 

 

Solution?

 

Move your mouse smoothly and deliberately to the screen element you wish to highlight. Circle it no more than once, then stop your mouse so that the pointer points directly at the element. For most cursors that means your mouse should stop slightly below and to the right of the desired element.

 

Practice this: It may take a while to make it an unconscious, consistent habit!

 

For an amusing true story about overenthusiastic mousing, see “That’s a Zippy Mouse!” in Suspending Disbelief: A Collection of Sales, Presales, and Marketing Stories (and Lessons Learned) here: https://tinyurl.com/yc7rsrmy 

Can You See My Mouse?

 

Not easily!

 

The standard Mac and Windows mouse cursors are too small and too insubstantial for effective demos. Both display a thin black outline and white body which are fine for your own work. After all, you (generally) know where your mouse is and where it is going!

 

However, that thin outline and white body can be tough to see as a demo audience member. 

 

Solution? 

 

Increase its size and fill it in to make it stand out clearly. I’d recommend increasing the size 2x and use black for the fill. Here are instructions for the current versions of Windows and iOS (thanks, Google!):

 

Windows 11: “You can change the mouse cursor in Windows 11 through Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mouse > Additional mouse settings, or by going to Settings > Accessibility > Mouse pointer and touch. The first method lets you change entire pointer schemes or customize individual cursors by browsing for .cur or .ani files. The accessibility option allows you to quickly adjust the pointer's size and color.”

 

Macintosh: “To change the cursor on a Mac, go to System Settings > Accessibility > Display > Pointer to adjust its size and color.”

 

Do it now!

 

Next, share your screen with a colleague (over the web) or grab a colleague (in office) and ask for feedback: How easy is it to see the mouse? Too large, too small? Adjust and refine!

 

Want more tips on mousing and related? See Chapter 15 “Style” in Great Demo!

Why Specific Value Numbers Are MUCH More Compelling Than Platitudes

Compare the following exchanges: 

Scenario One:

 

    “If you use our product, you’ll save time and money…!” offers the vendor rep. 

 

    “Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah…” thinks the prospect.

 

Scenario Two:

 

    “If you use our product, you’ll save time and money…!” says the sales rep. 

 

    “That isn’t particular compelling,” thinks the prospect, “we’ll revisit this project next year…”

 

Scenario Three:

 

    “Industry averages show savings of a half a million dollars a year…!” declares the rep. 

 

    “But we’re not ‘industry average,’” thinks the prospect, “we’re not even the same size as the average company in         our space.”

 

Scenario Four:

 

    “Other customers in the same space, similar to you, enjoyed savings of $400,000 per year,” offers the vendor rep. 

 

    “Well, that’s better,” thinks the prospect, “that’s a good datapoint, but I need our own, specific numbers to get this     project approved!”

 

Scenario Five:

 

    “When we spoke last week, I believe you said you hope to recover $275,000 annually as a result of addressing your     problem,” says the vendor.

 

    “That’s right,” replies the prospect, “that’s the kind of change I need to meet my objectives.”

 

Which approach is more compelling?

 

In the first case, the vendor sounds like they are reciting from a marketing brochure, and it clearly doesn’t connect with the prospect (sorry, marketing folks…!). 

 

In the second scenario, the rep has offered the same unhelpful value statement, unintentionally contributing to a No Decision outcome!

 

The third case shows some improvement, but value numbers from Gartner and other industry analysts are still insufficient to support prospects’ needs to build compelling business cases.

 

The fourth scenario is even better, and can be helpful for the prospect, but it still lacks the required specifics for prospects’ business cases.

 

In the fifth scenario, the rep had done sufficient discovery to uncover the prospect’s perception of the value of the solution, and the deal is moving forward nicely!

 

 

Want a few more insights? See “Let’s Talk About Value – Uncovering the Delta”

 

Or really invest in yourself by “Doing Discovery”!

 

In Your Demos, When You Say “If…”

In your demos, when you say “if,” you are making a major error!

 

When you say “If,” you are creating a branched pathway that unproductively elongates your demo.

 

When you say “If,” you are changing a crisp, focused pathway into a long, painful one.

 

When you say “If,” you are at risk of Buying It Back.

 

When you say “If,” you are making your offering look confusing and more complicated.

 

When you say “If,” you are admitting that you didn’t do sufficient discovery!

 

Don’t say “if.”

 

Execute all pathways with the fewest number of clicks!

 

Learn more about “if” and it’s cousin, “or” – see the full article here!

Planning an SKO But Can’t Afford $1000s for a Speaker?

 

Here’s a surprisingly effective alternative for $20-$60 per participant: Provide your team with copies of Great Demo!, Doing Discovery, and/or Suspending Disbelief!

 

Sowing these seeds now and harvesting the results at your SKO offers substantial advantages:

 

-  Productive change begins well before your SKO!

-  Participants learn the methods and lessons at their own pace!

-  Use the time at your SKO to identify best practices!

 

The books are all available on Amazon – and you can secure deeper volume discounts from me.

 

BONUS: Place your order with me a month or more ahead of your SKO and I can sign your copies.

 

BETTER BONUS: I’d be happy to join a session to answer questions and provide examples!

 

BEST BONUS: If you do have $1000s for a speaker, I know some terrific folks who will help you transform your team!

 

For volume discounts, contact me at PCohan@GreatDemo.com

 

Or go directly to Amazon:

 

Suspending Disbelief:

https://tinyurl.com/yc7rsrmy 

 

Doing Discovery

https://www.amazon.com/Doing-Discovery-Important-Enablement-Processes/dp/B0B8RJK4C2/

 

Great Demo! Third Edition:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9SNKC2Y/

Aligning Your Communication of Value

“And if you use our tool,” said the salesperson, “you’ll save millions every year!”

 

The response from the prospect team was indifferent, even quietly hostile. Why?

 

The group were all individual contributors, and in response to the salesperson’s claim they were thinking, “Sure, and we’ll never see any of that money…!”

 

There are three interchangeable expressions of value: time, people and money. These are simply three ways of expressing the consumption, redeployment or liberation of resources associated with solving a problem. Generally speaking, people at different levels of an organization perceive value through different filters, aligned with these three parameters:

 

ü  High Level (e.g., C-Suite, SVP, VP): These people are typically most interested in gaining or saving money. Senior management needs to see an ROI analysis before they will agree to move forward with a major software purchase; intangibles are rarely applicable.

 

ü  Middle Level (Sr. Directors, Directors and other middle managers): While arguable, these folks are generally concerned with people resources. For example, at budget time most middle managers will say, “I need more staff members to meet my objectives…!”

 

ü  Low Level (e.g., staff and individual contributors): “I just want to end my day on time…!” Individual contributors’ main concern is time. Time saved so that they can focus on other, more productive tasks or projects, for example.

 

So, when discussing value, we need to articulate it in alignment with the people we are speaking with.  

 

PS: It is even worse when the salesperson says to lower-level folks, “And if you use our AI tool, you’ll save millions every year!”

 

Now, not only is the group thinking, “We’ll never see any of that money…!” but they are also worrying, “And that AI may be taking our jobs!”

I Have to Point This Out…!

 

Be aware of how you point in your face-to-face demos – you may not realize what you are communicating!

 

On a Mediterranean island, I was watching a tour group listening to their guide pointing to a map of an ancient megalithic complex, when I noticed the group laughing and smirking as their guide identified features on the map.

 

What was going on?

 

I realized the guide was pointing using their middle finger, and the tour group was from North America. From the group’s perspective, their guide was “flipping them off!”

 

In many cultures, the logical finger for pointing is the middle finger, since it is the longest.

 

In other cultures, the index finger (aka forefinger) is preferred.

 

And in other cultures, pointing directly at someone with a finger is rude!

 

Solution? 

 

Use the Two-Finger approach: This is the clearest method of pointing with the least risk of offending people!

 

Note that many airline flight attendants use the Two-Finger method during their safety briefings for the same reasons.

 

Get the point?

SKOs, Volume Discounts, Book Club Support?

 

Signed copies for your SKO? Yes!

Volume discounts? Yes!

Book club support? Yes!

 

Signed copies of Great Demo!, Doing Discovery, or Suspending Disbelief books are a great way to kick of your year! (A thousand copies might take some time, however!)

 

Are volume discounts available (beyond what Amazon offers)? Yes, indeed!

 

Would the author be willing to join a book club session or two to answer questions and provide examples? I’d be delighted!

 

All part of my desire to improve the world one discovery conversation and one demo at a time!

Are You Telling Stories or Just Reciting Facts? Part 2: What’s a Good Story?

What’s a Good Story?

 

“You need a search capability, we provide that capability with a range of filters, enabling you to find the information you need.” Boring, insufficient, and this “pain, features, value” structure is definitely not a story that will be remembered.

 

There needs to be more to make it a compelling, resonating story that gets remembered and retold.

 

Chip and Dan Heath in their seminal work on storytelling, Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, identified five key attributes to make a story successfully sticky:

 

Simple Message:         The concept or message needs to be clear and easy to understand

Real Experience:         It must be believable and perceived as being true 

Element of Surprise:   An unexpected twist, event or outcome generates interest and tension

Evokes Emotion:          The best stories are those that generate an emotional response 

Relevant:                     Good stories relate directly to the subject or key point

 

The “pain, features, value” structure may satisfy three of these five, but ignores two. 

 

Is there an element of surprise? Nope. Does that structure evoke an emotional response? Hardly. And these two missing elements provide much of the drive that makes a story memorable.

 

Triggering our emotions is what makes a story great and unforgettable. For example:

 

-       Empathy: “I’ve also been in this position!”

-       Shock: “OMG – that’s terrible!”

-       Surprise: “Oh no! What happened next?”

-       Humorous: “Well, that’s sad, but also very funny!”

-       Cleverness: “Oh wow, that’s a really elegant solution!”

 

Evaluate the stories you currently use: How many of these five attributes do they trigger?

 

Intrigued? See the full article on our website here! 

https://greatdemo.com/effective-storytelling-in-discovery-demos-and-more-a-never-stop-learning-article/ 

 

You’ll find 35 delightful examples to draw from in “Suspending Disbelief”:

https://tinyurl.com/yc7rsrmy 

 

And see “Storytelling” in “Great Demo!” for more on this important practice here:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C9SNKC2Y/