EN 
ES Great Demo!
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An Advent Calendar for SKOs? Sure!
“A story a day,” says a colleague… What an intriguing idea! A CRO colleague sent me a message that he is buying copies of ...
Demo No No: “I’m not listening…!”
In a demo, clicking or changing screens while the prospect is talking indicates “I’m not listening…!” Just saw this and realized how rude ...
The Reverse Demo: A Fabulous Discovery Method!
“Before I demo to you, why don’t you demo to me?” If you are looking to displace an existing system (either a competitor or ...
How to AVOID Discovery Feeling Like an Interrogation
“A conversation is a dialogue, not a monologue.” – Truman Capote Discovery should be perceived by your prospects as a two-way conversation, where both parties ...
Cooks, Chefs, Discovery and Demos
Are You a Cook or a Chef? Insights into Personal Growth With respect to doing discovery and delivering demos, are you a cook or ...
The Gruesome Anatomy of a One-Hour Overview Demo
Warning! Gruesome content ahead! Here’s the rough but strangely consistent timeline for far-too-many overview demos: 00:00: Fumbling with Zoom/Teams/Google Meet 00:04: Introductions, but one-sided ...
Overview Demo? A True Story
“What’s he doing?” – Whispered my colleague in my ear I was a third party joining a demo presented by a partner vendor ...
A Story a Day – A Rewarding Strategy!
What a great idea… A colleague shared his intriguing strategy for consuming Suspending Disbelief: A Collection of Sales, Presales, and Marketing Stories (and Lessons ...
THIS Is a Good Discovery Call!
(Compare this one with the poor discovery call posted previously.) But before you read further, examine the Gong recording – the call was ~55 ...
Is THIS a Good Discovery Call?
You decide…! But before you read further, examine the Gong recording – the call was ~45 minutes long. What do you detect? First, the ...
DISCOVERY Skills Assessment Time!
Where are YOU with the seven levels of discovery skills? Level 1: Uncovers statements of pain Level 2: Uncovers pain and explores more deeply Level ...
Undivided attention?
In your business conversations, instead of really listening, how often do you find yourself: Thinking about what you want to say next? Considering how ...
Demo Hack: New vs Save As
“Execute all pathways with the fewest number of clicks.” – Cohan’s Law of Simplicity “Choose pathways that CAN be executed with the fewest ...
A Painful Logo Slide Lesson
“Cured me!” I commented to my colleague, after a visit to a prospect. He had wondered why I didn’t do a corporate overview ...
A “Thank You for Your Time” Alternative
Many vendors offer the phrase, “Thank you for your time…” when starting or completing a meeting with a prospect, often adding “I know your ...
Demo Skills Assessment Time!
Where are you with the ten levels of demo skills? Level 1: Follows the standard demo script. Level 2: Customizes based on the prospect’s ...
Take a Break from Your Reading…?
I was surprised when I heard this recommendation from three separate people… They said they were working their way through business books and needed ...
“With great curiosity comes great opportunity!”
Be curious – it’s an evolutionary advantage!
Acronym Musings
Forty years ago, when electrons were slower, there was an acronym that guided development, marketing, and sales of software: RSVP. (And no, in this ...
Practical Pointing Practices for Demos
“There are always three demos for every one you actually gave. The one you practiced, the one you gave, and the one you wish ...
That’s a Zippy Mouse! A True Tradeshow Story
Some habits can be changed… We were on booth duty the morning after a long, but enjoyable evening on Bourbon Street listening to Dixieland. ...
Get Up!
Demo Presenters: You are not bound to your chair! I watched a ninety-minute face-to-face demo, and the presenter never left his chair! Result? He ...
Click-Click-ClickClickClickClickClickClick-Clickety-Click…!
That’s the sound of an over-enthusiastic mouse… I was watching a demo from the founder of a startup who was excited to share his ...
WHAT Time Is that Meeting?
Be aware that different countries start and end Daylight Savings Time on different dates! So, what was once a comparatively comfortable time to meet ...
Mousing: Look, Find, and THEN Move
Let’s run a quick experiment: Open an existing document in MS Word. Now, choose “Review” and then “New Comment.” (Or “Suggesting” and “Add Comment” ...
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? ...
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 ...