Terms

Sales Demo

A sales demo is a presentation where a sales representative demonstrates a product or service to a prospective customer. The primary goal is to illustrate how the solution directly addresses the prospect's specific needs and pain points, thereby showcasing its value. This process helps the prospect make an informed purchasing decision and moves the deal closer to closing.

Importance of Sales Demos

Few people purchase a product without seeing it work. A sales demo acts as a test drive, turning abstract features into a tangible experience. This helps prospects visualize how the solution solves their unique challenges and meets their specific needs.

Demos are also pivotal for building trust. They provide a platform to address questions and alleviate concerns in real-time. This direct engagement builds a stronger relationship and accelerates the decision-making process, shortening the sales cycle.

Best Practices for Sales Demos

To deliver a sales demo that resonates, focus on the prospect's world, not just your product's features. A successful demo is a conversation, not a monologue. It requires careful preparation and a commitment to providing genuine value.

  • Personalize: tailor the demo to the prospect's specific pain points and goals.
  • Value: connect every feature shown to a direct benefit for the prospect.
  • Engage: make the demo a two-way conversation by asking questions and encouraging participation.
  • Clarify: define the next steps clearly at the end to maintain momentum.

Sales Demo vs. Product Demo

While both demos showcase a product, their audience and objectives are fundamentally different.

  • Sales Demo: Aimed at prospective customers to close a deal. It highlights personalized value to address specific pain points, building trust and shortening the sales cycle. For enterprise and mid-market companies, a tailored demo is crucial to demonstrate ROI and secure new business.
  • Product Demo: Geared towards existing customers for onboarding and education. Its goal is to increase adoption and satisfaction, reducing churn. For enterprise or mid-market clients, it's used post-sale for training or introducing new features to maximize their investment.

Common Challenges in Sales Demos

Sales demos are fraught with potential pitfalls that can turn a promising opportunity into a missed one. Reps often struggle to maintain a delicate balance between showcasing features and telling a compelling story. Key challenges frequently revolve around preparation, delivery, and audience connection.

  • Personalization: failing to tailor the demo to the prospect's specific needs and pain points.
  • Engagement: keeping the prospect interested and avoiding a one-sided monologue.
  • Technicalities: managing software glitches or connectivity problems during the presentation.

Tools and Technologies for Sales Demos

Modern sales demos rely on a suite of digital tools to engage prospects effectively.

  • Conferencing: Tools for live screen sharing and video chat.
  • CRM: Platforms to organize leads and track sales activities.
  • Video: Software for creating and sharing pre-recorded or personalized demos.

Frequently Asked Questions about Sales Demo

How long should a sales demo last?

Aim for 30-45 minutes to cover key value points without overwhelming the prospect. Always confirm the allotted time beforehand and be prepared to adjust based on the prospect's engagement and questions to keep the conversation focused and respectful of their time.

Should I use a script for my sales demo?

Avoid a rigid script, which can sound robotic. Instead, use a flexible outline with key talking points. This allows for a more natural, conversational flow while ensuring you cover all critical information tailored to the prospect's specific needs.

How do I follow up after a sales demo?

Send a personalized follow-up email within 24 hours. Recap the key value points discussed, address any outstanding questions, and clearly outline the agreed-upon next steps to maintain momentum and guide the prospect through the sales cycle.

Other terms

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
00 items

Marketing Qualified Opportunity

A Marketing Qualified Opportunity (MQO) is a lead vetted by marketing as a genuine sales opportunity, ready for direct sales follow-up.

Marketing Qualified Opportunity

Dynamic Territories

Dynamic territories are fluid sales assignments that adjust based on real-time data, ensuring reps can focus on the highest-value accounts.

Dynamic Territories

Call Disposition

Call disposition is the process of labeling the outcome of a call. It helps sales teams track interactions and plan their next steps effectively.

Call Disposition

SEM

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is a digital marketing strategy that uses paid tactics to increase a website's visibility in search engine results.

SEM

Load Testing

Load testing is a type of performance testing that determines how a system behaves under both normal and anticipated peak load conditions.

Load Testing

Product Champion

A product champion is an internal evangelist who drives a product's adoption and success by ensuring it solves real problems for their team.

Product Champion

Deal Closing

Deal closing is the final step in a sales cycle. It's when a prospect signs a contract and officially converts into a paying customer.

Deal Closing

User Interaction

User interaction is any action a user takes within a digital interface, like clicking a button, scrolling a page, or filling out a form.

User Interaction

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) is the predictable, recurring income a business expects to receive each month from all active subscriptions.

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

Application Programming Interface

An Application Programming Interface (API) is a set of rules that lets different software applications talk to each other and share information.

Application Programming Interface

Direct Mail

Direct mail is a marketing method where businesses send physical promotional materials directly to potential customers' mailboxes.

Direct Mail

Deal-Flow

Deal flow refers to the stream of business proposals and investment opportunities that a company or investor receives.

Deal-Flow

Scalability

Scalability is a company's ability to handle increased workloads or market demands without a drop in performance or a spike in costs.

Scalability

Data Privacy

Data privacy is an individual's right to control their personal information, including how it's collected, processed, stored, and shared.

Data Privacy

Data Warehousing

Data warehousing is the process of storing and managing large sets of data from various sources for business intelligence and reporting purposes.

Data Warehousing

Sentiment Analysis

Sentiment analysis, or opinion mining, automatically determines the emotional tone behind text—whether it's positive, negative, or neutral.

Sentiment Analysis

Account

An account is a company or organization that you're targeting for sales. It can be a prospective, current, or even a past customer.

Account

Hybrid Sales Model

A hybrid sales model blends traditional and digital sales methods to engage customers across multiple channels and buying preferences.

Hybrid Sales Model

Nurture

Nurture is the process of building relationships with potential customers, guiding them through the sales funnel with personalized communication.

Nurture

Awareness Buying Stage

The awareness stage is the first step in the buyer's journey, where a potential customer realizes they have a problem or an opportunity to explore.

Awareness Buying Stage

Email Engagement

Email engagement measures how your audience interacts with your emails. It includes key actions like opens, clicks, replies, and forwards.

Email Engagement

Predictive Analytics

Predictive analytics uses historical data, statistical algorithms, and machine learning to identify the likelihood of future outcomes.

Predictive Analytics

Closed Opportunities

Closed opportunities are potential deals that have concluded. They are categorized as either 'closed-won' (a sale was made) or 'closed-lost'.

Closed Opportunities

Buying Committee

A buying committee is a group of stakeholders within an organization who are jointly responsible for making major purchasing decisions.

Buying Committee

Marketo

Marketo is a marketing automation platform used by B2B marketers to manage lead generation, nurturing, email marketing, and analytics.

Marketo

CPQ software

CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) software is a sales tool for creating accurate, configurable quotes for complex products and services.

CPQ software

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is a performance-based model where affiliates earn a commission for promoting another company’s products or services.

Affiliate Marketing

Virtual Private Cloud

A Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) is a secure, isolated section of a public cloud. It lets you provision your own logically isolated resources.

Virtual Private Cloud

Sales Qualified Lead

A Sales Qualified Lead (SQL) is a prospect vetted by marketing and sales, deemed ready for a direct sales pitch after showing intent to buy.

Sales Qualified Lead

Objection Handling

Objection handling is the process of responding to a prospect's concerns or hesitations about a product or service to move a deal forward.

Objection Handling

HTTP Requests

An HTTP request is a message sent by a client, like a web browser, to a server to ask for a resource, such as a web page or an image.

HTTP Requests

Conversion Path

A conversion path is the journey a visitor takes to complete a desired goal, such as making a purchase, filling out a form, or subscribing.

Conversion Path

Freemium

Freemium is a business model offering a product's basic features for free, while charging for advanced or supplemental features.

Freemium

Persona-Based Marketing

Persona-based marketing uses fictional customer profiles, or personas, to create targeted messaging for specific audience segments.

Persona-Based Marketing

CRM Data

CRM data is the information businesses use to manage customer relationships. It covers contact details, purchase history, and communication logs.

CRM Data

Sales Strategy

A sales strategy is a comprehensive plan that outlines how a business will sell its products or services to achieve its revenue goals.

Sales Strategy

Value Gap

A value gap is the difference between the value a customer expects from a product and the actual value they receive, often leading to churn.

Value Gap

Marketing Budget Breakdown

A marketing budget breakdown is a detailed plan that allocates your total marketing funds across various channels, campaigns, and activities.

Marketing Budget Breakdown

Net 30

Net 30 is a common payment term where a client has 30 calendar days from the invoice date to pay for goods or services in full.

Net 30

Batch Processing

Learn about batch processing, including benefits of batch processing, best practices for implementation, & common use cases.

Batch Processing

A/B Testing

A/B testing is a method of comparing two versions of something, like a webpage or email, to determine which one performs better with your audience.

A/B Testing

Order Management

Order management is the end-to-end process of tracking customer orders from placement to fulfillment, ensuring a seamless customer experience.

Order Management

Lightning Components

Lightning Components is a UI framework for building dynamic web apps for mobile and desktop devices on the Salesforce Lightning Platform.

Lightning Components

Product-Led Growth

Product-Led Growth (PLG) is a business strategy where the product itself drives user acquisition, conversion, and expansion.

Product-Led Growth

Voice Search Optimization

Voice search optimization is the process of optimizing your content, SEO, and online listings to appear in and rank for voice-based searches.

Voice Search Optimization

B2B Data Solutions

Learn about B2B data solutions, including unlocking the power of B2B data, & key components of effective B2B data solutions.

B2B Data Solutions

Sales Pipeline Velocity Formula

The sales pipeline velocity formula is a key metric that measures how quickly deals move through your pipeline and turn into revenue.

Sales Pipeline Velocity Formula

Tokenization

Tokenization is the process of breaking down text into smaller units called tokens, such as words or characters, for AI to process.

Tokenization

Digital Analytics

Digital analytics is the analysis of data from digital channels to understand user behavior and optimize online experiences for business goals.

Digital Analytics

Account-Based Marketing

Account-Based Marketing (ABM) is a focused B2B strategy where marketing and sales collaborate to target and convert high-value accounts.

Account-Based Marketing

Demand Capture

Demand capture is the strategy of engaging potential customers who are already actively looking for a solution that your company provides.

Demand Capture

Sales Demonstration

A sales demonstration is a presentation showing a prospect how a product or service works and how it can solve their specific problems.

Sales Demonstration

Customer Journey Mapping

Customer journey mapping is the process of creating a visual story of your customers' interactions with your brand across all touchpoints.

Customer Journey Mapping

Buyer Behavior

Learn about buyer behavior, including understanding the buyer's journey, influencing factors in buyer behavior, & buyer behavior and marketing strategy.

Buyer Behavior

Cross-Selling

Cross-selling is a sales tactic of encouraging customers to purchase products or services that are related to what they're already buying.

Cross-Selling

Net Revenue Retention (NRR)

Net Revenue Retention (NRR) is the percentage of recurring revenue kept from existing customers, including upsells, downgrades, and churn.

Net Revenue Retention (NRR)

Customer Data Management (CDM)

Customer Data Management (CDM) is the process of collecting, organizing, and analyzing customer data to create a unified view of your audience.

Customer Data Management (CDM)

Sales Automation

Sales automation uses software to streamline and automate repetitive, manual sales tasks, freeing up reps to focus on selling.

Sales Automation

Precision Targeting

Precision targeting is a marketing strategy that uses data to identify and reach a highly specific audience most likely to convert.

Precision Targeting

Event Tracking

Event tracking is the method of collecting data on specific user actions, or 'events,' on a website or app, such as clicks or downloads.

Event Tracking

Robotic Process Automation

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) uses software bots to mimic human actions and automate repetitive, rules-based tasks on digital systems.

Robotic Process Automation

Ramp Up Time

Ramp-up time is the period a new hire takes to get fully up to speed and become a productive member of your go-to-market team.

Ramp Up Time

Purchase Buying Stage

The purchase stage is when a buyer has decided on a solution and is ready to buy. They're comparing vendors to make a final choice.

Purchase Buying Stage

Sales Enablement

Sales enablement provides sales teams with the necessary tools, content, and information to help them sell more effectively and efficiently.

Sales Enablement

Lead Response Time

Lead response time is the duration between a potential customer showing interest and your team's first point of contact with them.

Lead Response Time

Adobe Analytics

Adobe Analytics is a leading web analytics solution for gaining real-time insights into user activity across websites and mobile applications.

Adobe Analytics

Site Retargeting

Site retargeting is a marketing strategy that shows ads to people who have previously visited your website but left without converting.

Site Retargeting

AI-Powered Marketing

AI marketing uses artificial intelligence to analyze data, automate decisions, and deliver personalized customer experiences at scale.

AI-Powered Marketing

Consumer Relationship Management

Consumer Relationship Management (CRM) is a strategy for managing all of a company's relationships and interactions with its customers.

Consumer Relationship Management

Net New Business

Net new business is revenue from customers who have never purchased from your company before. It’s a crucial indicator of sustainable growth.

Net New Business

Needs Assessment

A needs assessment is the process of identifying the gap between a company's current state and its desired future state.

Needs Assessment

Call for Proposal

A Call for Proposal (CFP) is a document that solicits proposals, often through a bidding process, for a specific project or service.

Call for Proposal

B2B Buyer Intent Data

Learn about B2B buyer intent data, including sources and types of buyer intent data, & key benefits of leveraging buyer intent data.

B2B Buyer Intent Data

Outbound Leads

Outbound leads are potential customers a business proactively contacts through outreach like cold calls, emails, or social media.

Outbound Leads

Account-Based Advertising

Account-based advertising is a hyper-focused B2B strategy that targets key accounts with personalized ads across multiple channels.

Account-Based Advertising

Customer Buying Signals

Customer buying signals are the actions, behaviors, or statements a prospect makes that indicate they are moving towards a purchase decision.

Customer Buying Signals

Marketing Play

A marketing play is a repeatable tactic used to achieve a specific marketing goal, like generating leads or driving engagement.

Marketing Play

Shipping Solutions

Shipping solutions are services or software that streamline the logistics of getting products to customers, from label printing to final delivery.

Shipping Solutions

Customer Relationship Management Systems

A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system is a tool that centralizes customer data to help manage interactions and nurture relationships.

Customer Relationship Management Systems

Sales Territory Planning

Sales territory planning is the process of dividing customers into geographic areas to be assigned to specific sales reps or teams.

Sales Territory Planning

Data Security

Data security protects digital information from unauthorized access, corruption, or theft throughout its entire lifecycle.

Data Security

Progressive Web Apps

Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) are websites that look and feel like native mobile apps, offering features like offline access and push notifications.

Progressive Web Apps

Proof of Concept

A Proof of Concept (PoC) is a small exercise to test whether a business idea or project is technically feasible and has real-world potential.

Proof of Concept

SFDC

SFDC stands for Salesforce Dot Com, a popular cloud-based CRM platform that helps companies manage their customer interactions and data.

SFDC

Retargeting Marketing

Retargeting marketing is a digital advertising strategy that targets users who have previously interacted with your website or brand online.

Retargeting Marketing

Video Prospecting

Video prospecting is the sales technique of sending personalized videos to potential customers to grab their attention and secure more meetings.

Video Prospecting

Bounce Rate

Learn about bounce rate, including understanding bounce rate implications, key factors affecting bounce rate, & reducing your bounce rate effectively.

Bounce Rate

Cold Call

Cold calling is a sales technique where reps contact potential customers who have had no prior interaction with their company or product.

Cold Call

Marketing Automation

Marketing automation uses software to automate repetitive marketing tasks, such as email marketing, social media posting, and ad campaigns.

Marketing Automation

Application Performance Management

Application Performance Management (APM) monitors and manages an application's performance, availability, and the experience of its end-users.

Application Performance Management

On-premise CRM

An on-premise CRM is a system hosted on a company's own servers, offering complete control over data, security, and system maintenance.

On-premise CRM

BANT Framework

Learn about BANT framework, including implementing BANT in sales strategy, advantages of the BANT methodology, & BANT vs. other qualification models.

BANT Framework

Ideal Customer Profile

An Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) is a detailed description of the perfect, hypothetical company that would get the most value from your product.

Ideal Customer Profile

Brand Loyalty

Learn about brand loyalty, including how to build brand loyalty, benefits of brand loyalty, measuring brand loyalty, & strategies for increasing loyalty.

Brand Loyalty

Simple Object Access Protocol Application Programming Interface

A Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) API is a web service that uses XML to exchange structured information between different applications.

Simple Object Access Protocol Application Programming Interface

Accessibility Testing

Accessibility testing is a software testing method that verifies an application is usable by people with disabilities, like vision or hearing loss.

Accessibility Testing

Account-Based Marketing Benchmarks

Account-Based Marketing (ABM) benchmarks are key metrics used to measure the performance and success of your targeted account strategies.

Account-Based Marketing Benchmarks

Sales Performance Metrics

Sales performance metrics are key data points that measure a sales team's effectiveness in achieving its goals and driving revenue.

Sales Performance Metrics

Buying Process

The buying process is the journey a customer takes from first realizing a need to making a final purchase decision and evaluating it afterward.

Buying Process

Sales Pipeline Reporting

Sales pipeline reporting is the process of analyzing sales data to track progress, identify bottlenecks, and forecast future revenue.

Sales Pipeline Reporting