If you've done the hard work of getting the attention of a potential customer for your products or services, you have the golden opportunity to showcase what you've got. But how do you ensure that this demo doesn't just end as a "nice-to-know" session? How do you turn it into a sale?

A well-executed demo can be the tipping point that moves a potential customer from "just looking" to "let's do this." A study reveals that top-tier companies manage to seal the deal with 30% of their qualified leads, while the average firms only close around 20%. What makes them different? It’s their approach. Here, we'll discuss how to convert a demo into a sale using best practices. Let’s begin.

Curiosity Does Not Mean Opportunity

Filling out a demo request form is a promising sign of a potential buyer's interest in your product or service. However, this action doesn't necessarily have to indicate an immediate purchase intention. According to Salesmate, nearly 73% of B2B leads aren't prepared to make a buying decision during their initial interaction with your brand. It's merely a phase in the customer's decision-making process where they are gathering more information. So, how do you differentiate between curiosity and opportunity? The answer lies in the utilization of interactive demos. These demos go beyond mere presentations by providing the prospects with relevant information and the ability to touch and feel the product on-demand. Those who after getting educated still want to meet the sales team, have higher chances of converting. Those, who were only curious and managed to gather the info they wanted but are not ready to buy, will opt out from your sales process. By offering the prospect multiple demo options and engaging them in leaving comments, visiting your LinkedIn profile, or sharing the demo with their colleagues you can gauge the prospect's level of interest and tailor your pitch accordingly.

9 Best Practices to Turn Your Demo Into a Sale

• Discovery
• Personalized Demos
• Build Relationship
• Address Objections
• Active Listening
• Interactive Demo
• Technical Test
• Discuss the Road map
• Followup

Transforming a product demo into a successful sale requires preparation, personalization, and engagement. Here are nine best practices to guide you through this process.

1. Ensure a Thorough Discovery Process

For the demo to turn into a sale it has to address the true pain points of the buyers. That is why investing the time in a thorough discovery is a must... The power of sales discovery is invaluable for setting clear objectives for the demo, ensuring you focus on what truly matters to your potential customer. By seamlessly integrating the information gathered during the discovery process into your demo, you ensure that every moment spent is aligned with what truly matters to your potential customer.

2. Always Be Relevant 

Product demo has to continuously come back to the specific needs and pain points identified by and with the buyer. Being relevant means tailoring your presentation to meet the specific needs and interests of your client, ensuring that the content remains pertinent throughout. By staying relevant, you demonstrate a deep understanding of your client's challenges and objectives, reinforcing your credibility and building a stronger rapport. This approach not only captures their attention but also keeps them engaged and invested in the demo, ultimately increasing the likelihood of a successful outcome and a positive impression. A carefully constructed script, personalized to address your prospect's specific needs, serves as the backbone of your demo, guiding its flow and focus. However, a script alone isn't enough, you must incorporate real data to add credibility and weight to your points. Especially when it's tailored to the prospect's insights gathered during the discovery call.

3. Focus On Building Relationships and Then Selling

Building strong relationships with your prospect is a cornerstone of a successful demo. By adopting a consultative selling approach you’ll go beyond mere feature listing and instead offer solutions tailored to the prospect's specific needs. This dual focus on relationship-building and tailored solutions creates a more engaging and effective demo, enhancing the chances of converting prospects into customers.

4. Uncover and Address Objections Early On

Objections are not roadblocks but opportunities for clarification. By proactively asking about the concerns or questions you can identify and address common objections early in the demo, and you can prevent them from escalating into deal-breakers later on. This approach requires a flexible communication style that is attentive to the prospect's concerns, allowing you to understand and resolve any issues they may have.

5. Actively Listen to the Prospect

When prospects feel heard and understood, they are more likely to trust your solution and, ultimately, make a purchase. The key takeaway? Listen more than you speak. Doing this makes the other person feel comfortable enough to open up, ask questions, and share concerns. It's a great way to make them feel included and build a genuine connection.

6. Make the Demo Interactive to Engage Prospects

Utilizing engagement techniques like FAQs and real-time polls adds a dynamic layer to your presentation and aids prospects in visualizing the solution more effectively. You’ll create a two-way interaction that allows prospects to actively participate, ask questions, and understand how your product or service can help them. 

This heightened level of engagement can be a significant factor in converting a prospect into a customer. Demoboost provides a platform for crafting interactive product demos that can be quickly customized and shared with potential clients. 

The on-demand access enables buyers to focus on the aspects that are most important to them. Additionally, its collaborative tools and the option for personalized video messages, further enrich the demo experience for potential buyers.

7. Test It for Technical Glitches

Nothing can ruin a demo faster than technical issues. Therefore, it's crucial to test your demo thoroughly before the actual presentation. Cloud-based demos are often more efficient and less prone to technical glitches. 

They can easily handle increased loads, meaning your demo won't suffer from lag or downtime even if multiple users are accessing it simultaneously. Moreover, they often come with automated backup features, so you won't lose your progress or data in case of a technical glitch.

8. Lay Out the Next Steps

Once the demo is over, discuss the roadmap ahead. Be clear about what the next steps are, whether it's another demo, a trial period, or a contract negotiation, and schedule them accordingly. This clarity helps maintain momentum and sets the stage for a successful conversion.

9. Effectively Follow Up

A good follow-up is as important as the demo itself. Send an email with a leave-behind demo they can check out later, a quick summary of what you talked about, and a straightforward next step to keep things moving. 

Help them reach out by offering different ways to contact you like email or a phone call. And don't forget to add a little urgency by letting them know about any special deals or deadlines coming up.

Turn Your Demo Into a Sale With Demoboost

Demoboost, a leading platform in demo automation, offers a comprehensive set of tools that align with the above practices and turbocharge your sales process. Here's how:

• Centralised Demo Galleries: Think of your demo gallery as a one-stop info shop, helping potential customers easily find what they need. These galleries can be organized by various factors such as industry type, customer persona, or specific use cases, enhancing the user experience.
• Interactive Leave-Behind Demos: These demos go beyond mere recordings of your live presentations. These are interactive showcases tailored to your key contacts, empowering them to share the product's capabilities within their organization. This turns your key contacts into invaluable sales advocates, arming them with the information needed to influence decision-makers.
• Real-Time Analytics: Demoboost equips sales teams with real-time analytics allowing for a more personalized and effective demo experience. The platform tracks user engagement and generates stakeholder maps, enabling quicker navigation through the sales process. 
• Scripting Capabilities: The platform offers speaker notes, arming your team with the insights needed to ace every live demo.
• Engaging Interactive Product Demos: Interactive demos offered by Demoboost enable prospects to experience your product's benefits firsthand, eliminating the need for imagination.

Book a demo and turn your demos into conversions.

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