The #1 Most Important Foundational Demo Technique on the Planet: Tell-Show-Tell

[Bob] It happens all the time. We show a group of stakeholders how easy and helpful our software can be, but their feedback is “it seems too complicated.” How can that be? Certainly, the selection team doesn’t want us to take away any of that great functionality?

Modern, comprehensive applications may seem simple to us but easily appear too complicated in the eyes of a stakeholder. In all fairness, many prospective clients are simply trying to judge the ability of their people to learn and operate your applications efficiently. They are trying to predict the impact that your solution will have on their operations, and they are using your product demonstration to help them make that prediction.

We will break down the problem with the typical, traditional demonstration method, and then show you how to improve your presentations and convey simplicity using the Tell-Show-Tell demo technique.

The Typical Demo Episode

Take a minute to think about how functionality is customarily demonstrated. Pre-sales professionals often share their screen, and immediately begin demonstrating the most powerful feature in their application during the web meeting.  Fifteen minutes later, the demonstrator pauses, turns on their webcam, and says, “…given what I know about your needs, I thought I’d show you the most compelling part of our software first. Any questions?” After a few uncomfortable seconds of silence, someone finally says, “Your software screens are really busy, and that seems quite complex.” From here, it is all defense…