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Do You Suffer from Platypus Demos?
The platypus has often been described as being “designed by a committee.” Many demos suffer similar challenges as they try to embrace the needs ...
Assessing Discovery Skill Levels: Level 5!
This element of discovery results in deal expansion: Level 5 is all about Vision Reengineering. Prospects don’t know what they don’t know…! Frequently, prospects ...
Assessing Discovery Skill Levels: Level 4!
What do most vendors miss when doing discovery? Uncovering value! And without capturing and communicating tangible value, you really can’t call it discovery. ...
Assessing Discovery Skill Levels: Levels 2 and 3
Let’s go a bit deeper to… Level 2 When doing discovery, if you or your colleagues simply uncover “Pain” and go no further, then ...
Assessing Discovery Skill Levels: How Do You Rate?
Many sales and presales practitioners say they are skilled at doing discovery – but are they? Are you? Here’s a simple method to assess yourself ...
What Is a Discovery Methodology? Why Is It Important?
A handful of questions is not sufficient! Effective discovery requires knowing when and how these questions and associated skills should be applied. Should a ...
English: Lesson Learned?
“Even monkeys fall from trees.” (Saru mo ki kara ochiru) – Japanese Proverb I was visiting prospects in Japan with representatives from one ...
English, Simply!
This was a personal Dunning Kruger experience for me… “In literature the ambition of the novice is to acquire the literary language; the ...
When Discovery Is Going Well…
There’s a feeling you get, doing discovery, when everything is clicking. Your prospect is engaged, empathy is aligned, it’s a real conversation. Your ...
Users’ Groups: An Underutilized Competitive Weapon!
Customers sing your praises to prospects (then beat you up about desired functionality)! One of my first recommendations as a board member was ...
Another Member of the Sales Prevention Team
Want a horror story? (I love sales and demo horror stories!) “It’s the little details that are vital. Little things make big things ...
“I Already Saw Your Demo….”
“And I didn’t see anything interesting.” That was the prospect’s response to the vendor’s inquiry, “Would you like to learn more?” First ...
Doing Discovery Pro Tip: “Why” Questions Drive the Conversation Upwards
And help uncover Critical Business Issues. True story: I asked a sales manager, “What’s the biggest challenge you face in your job today?” He ...
Handling Questions in Demos: Verbal Aikido
One of the key ideas of Aikido is to deflect your opponent’s energy and momentum or use it against them. The same idea can ...
True Story: Even an Executive Can Run It!
He did indeed touch type: He just used two fingers. “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication” – Leonardo da Vinci I once worked ...
“Habit Is Habit”
“Habit is habit, and not to be flung out of the window by anyone, but coaxed downstairs one step at a time.” — Mark ...
The “Butter Test” for Live and Automated Demos
What is the “Butter Test”? It’s another term for the “5-Second” analysis for user interface navigability. Very simply, it is a method to ensure that ...
“The Difficulty Lies, Not in the New Ideas…”
“The difficulty lies, not in the new ideas, but in escaping from the old ones.” – John Maynard Keynes
Automated Demos: Garbage In, Amplified Garbage Out?
Too many automated demos are uncompelling and ineffective. Why? If you’re just presenting features, your automated demos will fail. When you create automated ...
How Is Memory Strength Like a Spiderweb?
The more strands and attachment points the better! Have you ever seen a spiderweb in a good breeze and been amazed at its tenacity? ...
SKO Swipes: Revenue Leaders LOVE These!
Revenue Generators: You won’t like this while it is happening, but you’ll thank your leaders afterwards! “Now THIS is different…!” I thought. I was ...
“I was gratified to be able to answer promptly…”
“I was gratified to be able to answer promptly, and I did. I said I didn’t know” — Mark Twain
Uncovering Critical Business Issues: A True Story
One day, a head of sales called me, out of the blue, and opened the conversation with, “Our demos suck…!” This was one of ...
When Should Value Be Communicated?
When should you communicate tangible, specific value in your demos? Frequently! In Great Demo! methodology, our guidance includes: Right at the beginning of the ...
Value: A Bit LESS About Numbers?
How many digits of Pi do you remember? How many digits of Pi do you use?! The math constant π (Pi) has an ...
Perception
We note the presence of something new much more acutely than the absence of something old.
Calculating Value: Numbers You Should Know
Value calculations rely on a number (pun intended!) of constants that every customer-facing vendor player should learn and memorize! Here are a few: Working ...