Discovery and Demo
Use discovery and demos to connect customer pain to measurable value.
Key takeaways
- Discovery exists to establish why the customer must change now and what evidence makes that change credible, not to fill a pre-demo checklist.
- Cover six discovery areas: pain, business impact, current workflow, decision process, timing, and the success outcome that proves the project worked.
- Design the demo as a sequence: recap the problem, map the use case, show the smallest credible value moment, surface objections, then define a concrete next step.
- Avoid the common failures: showing every feature, leading with navigation, dodging objections, and treating users and economic buyers as the same person.
Discovery is not a checklist before the demo. It is the process of understanding why the customer must change now and what evidence will make that change credible.
Discovery Areas
| Area | Questions |
|---|---|
| Pain | What is broken, slow, risky, or expensive today? |
| Impact | What does the problem cost in money, time, risk, or growth? |
| Current workflow | How is the customer solving it now? |
| Decision process | Who evaluates, approves, buys, and uses? |
| Timing | Why now? What happens if nothing changes? |
| Success | What outcome would prove the project worked? |
Demo Design
| Step | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Recap problem | Show that discovery was heard |
| Map use case | Connect product path to customer workflow |
| Show proof | Demonstrate the smallest credible value moment |
| Discuss gaps | Surface objections early |
| Define next step | Move to business case, pilot, or proposal |
Demo Mistakes
- Showing every feature.
- Starting with product navigation instead of customer pain.
- Avoiding objections.
- Ending without a concrete next step.
- Treating users and economic buyers the same.