Do you know what the "wow" effect is during a demo? It's the magical moment when time seems to stop and everyone is convinced that your product or service is amazing.
But you know what? Making a persuasive demo, even if you have experience and in-depth knowledge of your product, is not easy at all.
If you don't target your demo, you can waste your time and your prospect's time.
And that's really not good for your business!
So we analyzed over 40,000 demos to understand what makes a demo successful. And believe me, some of the results are really surprising!
If you want to create the "wow" effect in your next demo, you need to know these results.
1. "Social proof" as a winning strategy.
Smartly leverage social proof by citing similar customers to your prospect to convince them of the effectiveness of your solution.
Don't focus on famous customers, but rather on companies that are similar in terms of industry, size, and challenges.
Choose companies that have solved the same problems as your prospect with your solution, as this will be more relevant to them than large companies that do not resemble them.
This will generate two reactions from your prospect:
- They will be reassured by the service you offer. We always fear being the first.
- They will not want to be "a Kodak", or in other words, the person in the ecosystem who misses the innovation curve.
Remember, salespeople who use this technique increase their close-rate by 22%.
2. The end at the beginning and the beginning at the end
When demonstrating your product, it's important to show the results that your prospect can achieve using it first, followed by the key features that will help them get there.
You shouldn't try to build anticipation as if you're going to end with a big fireworks finale, as that may distract your prospect. Before the demo, make sure you understand your prospect's needs from the discovery call, so that you can highlight the features that best address their use case.
If you start by presenting features without showing results, your prospect may tune out and lose interest in your product.
For a successful demo, show the results before the features. That's the key to keeping your prospect's attention and closing the deal successfully.
3. Challenge the Status Quo!
If you really want to convince your prospect to buy your solution, you need to focus on the specific problems they are facing. Many salespeople spend their time touting the benefits of their product without even mentioning their clients' challenges. That's a mistake!
If you make your prospect aware that their current situation is no longer tenable, they will be even more inclined to buy your solution. As Larry Ellison, the CEO and founder of Oracle, says, clients are often more motivated to avoid losses than to gain benefits.
So, to sell effectively, you must emphasize the risks that the status quo poses to your prospect.
For example, you could say, "If you continue not to share the best practices of your top salespeople internally, you risk losing valuable sales opportunities. Do you think it's time to remedy this situation by implementing a more efficient knowledge-sharing system?"
Then, you can ask them if they think it's time to address this situation by implementing a more efficient knowledge-sharing system. By being clear about the dangers of the current situation, you can convince your prospect of the need to adopt your solution.
4. Keep the situation under control!
It's important that you keep control of the conversation and bring up topics at the right time. Always make sure to prepare your demonstrations in advance so that you can answer all your prospect's questions, even the most difficult ones.
And don't forget to prepare for objections that your prospect might have before each sales appointment. Think of the worst-case scenario so that you're ready at all times.
When faced with an objection, the best thing to do is to ask questions to better understand your prospect's concerns. The top salespeople ask questions 50% of the time, while average salespeople only do it 30%. This will help you better manage objections and respond more effectively.
Finally, avoid talking about the price of your product before showing its value to your prospect. If you bring up the subject of price too early, it can reduce your chances of success. So, focus first on the benefits of your product and show your prospect why it's important and how it can help them.
5. No next step, no more sales!
To speed up your sales cycle, I recommend dedicating an additional 50% of time to discussing next steps at the beginning and end of each call.
Here's how you can do it effectively: right from the start of the call, clearly state your intentions by saying "By the end of this call, I'd like to know if what I'm presenting is relevant to you and if you'd like to move forward, or if you're not interested and prefer not to waste time."
This will allow you to lay the groundwork from the start and get a clear answer from your prospect.
The demo is the decisive moment to turn a prospect into a satisfied customer. Don't miss this crucial opportunity by being too chatty. Your listener will quickly lose interest if they have to listen to a long conversation. To avoid this, be concise and get straight to the point. Here's the most important advice to remember: be impactful and brief. Allow your prospect to ask questions so you can respond in a targeted way.
Best,
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