Chapter 1: Laying the Groundwork

Preparation and clarity in communication are crucial.

The stakes were incredibly high as our new Asia-Pacific office was in dire need of revenue. With the end of the fiscal quarter approaching, we were still a six-figure contract short of what our Corporate HQ expected. Time was of the essence, so I collaborated with my General Manager to focus our efforts for January.

Our target became Company A, a prominent player in aviation repair and maintenance across Southeast Asia, where we felt we had the greatest chance of securing a deal.

Forsaking the Deck, Focusing on the Pitch

We aimed to steer clear of the dreaded PowerPoint purgatory. Each slide needed to deliver significant information or lead to the next major point—if it didn’t, we scrapped it.

Eric, my General Manager, and I rigorously evaluated our pitch deck through individual product demonstrations. He would present first, removing redundant slides, and then I would do the same. This process took us an entire day, trimming our pitch deck from over 50 slides to a streamlined 16. Every unnecessary filler was eliminated.

Section 1.1: Understanding Our Clients

We didn’t need extensive data analysis to understand our clients. A simple review of emails and LinkedIn profiles provided insights into their corporate hierarchy and professional backgrounds.

From this information, Eric and I tailored our message to resonate with the attendees of our product demo—C-Suite executives, managers, and specialists. We paid particular attention to specialists for two main reasons:

1. They are influential decision-makers who can quickly dismiss ideas if they aren’t convinced.
2. Their jargon-heavy language often reflects a narrow focus on their domain, lacking broader business perspectives.

Thus, we dedicated two days to thoroughly analyze the attendee list and identified specialists. We categorized them into three main groups: Agile Release Train engineers, Lean practitioners focused on Operational Excellence, and Kanban specialists.

Surprisingly, we uncovered gaps in our knowledge, which kept us grounded. We researched what these roles entailed in the aviation sector and the daily responsibilities they encompassed. I even reached out to a contact at Toyota to learn how Kanban is utilized in their assembly line, jotting down key terms to incorporate into our demo. Eric did the same.

After refining our presentation, we were ready for the product demonstration.

Section 1.2: Structuring Our Presentation

We had a strict 20-minute time limit for our demonstration, aiming to wrap up by 19:59. We broke down this time into specific segments:

• Total time for the demonstration: 19 minutes 59 seconds.
• Company introduction: 3 minutes.
• Software introduction: 2 minutes.
• Presentation of 4 product use cases: 12 minutes.
• Closing remarks: 2 minutes 59 seconds.

In our dry run, we realized that switching between PowerPoint and our software was inefficient, wasting precious seconds that added up quickly. To optimize this, we decided that Eric would manage the PowerPoint while I demonstrated the product, reducing transition times.

Summary

"You have to rely on your preparation. You got to really be passionate and try to prepare more than anyone else, and put yourself in a position to succeed, and when the moment comes you got to enjoy, relax, breathe and rely on your preparation so that you can perform and not be anxious or filled with doubt." - Steve Nash

On the day of the presentation, we successfully completed our demo in 19 minutes and 50 seconds, much to the satisfaction of the client team. Although we couldn't answer every question during the Q&A, we followed up within two business days.

Two weeks later, we received a purchase order for a six-figure contract, successfully closing the deal just before the fiscal quarter ended. Our Chief Financial Officer was pleased, and so were we.

About the Author:

Feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn and Twitter!

Chapter 2: Engaging Product Demonstrations

In this video, learn how to orchestrate a 7-figure product launch in just under an hour—perfect for anyone looking to elevate their demo game.

Chapter 3: Effective Product Demos That Sell

This video provides a simple framework for delivering product demonstrations that convert prospects into customers.