Show 'Em What You've Got!

Even though the digital age has changed the way we market our businesses or the way we present our products and services, one thing that still resonates with consumers is the old fashioned demo.  Demonstrations are great ways to showcase your product to potential clients and have them understand just how your product fits into their life and why exactly they need it.  Regardless of if you have a physical product or you offer services strictly online, you have multiple ways of reaching your consumer without having to do the old door-to-door sales pitch perfected by Kirby and those pioneers of yesteryear.

In fact, customers ADORE demonstrations BECAUSE it's a digital age.  They prefer to talk to a human being and make a connection instead of trudging forward in the cold selling tundra of the internet.  If you can, personalize as much of their experience as possible.  The customer service of your company shouldn't be focused on consumers but on Betty in Phoenix, Tim in Arkansas and Jennifer in New York.

Forms Of Demos 

There are several ways in which you can show someone how your product works so that they might convert to purchasing it.  In case you are wondering, door-to-door still works too.

• Screenshots - These are great if you just want to show how the product runs through but can't offer them full access to try the program on their own.  Screenshots are also extremely helpful for setup instructions or troubleshooting.
• Pre-Recorded Videos - Similar to screenshots, this is a great way to walk a consumer through your product or service or even help them with setup and troubleshooting.  Many consumers prefer video so they can follow along step-by-step or see how every piece moves in your system.  These are fabulous little salesmen because they highlight the product and peak interest.
• Videoconferences - Do this LIVE.  This allows the consumer to ask questions on the spot and see how products work in real time.  This is the next best thing to being physically next to them in their living room.
• Walk-Throughs - You can do this via any of the methods listed above.  You are simply running a real case study for them.  Use your product or service as if you are a consumer.  For instance, if you have a machine that creates stuffing for toy animals, go through the process slowly until you have gone from nothing to stuffing.  These can be great little promos to blast on the internet in regards to gaining attention for your brand.
• Free Membership -  If you have a service or multi-tiered system, offer for them to come in at ground level and check things out for free.  They can use basic functionality and if they want the primo features or the whole kit 'n caboodle, they pay for each feature or the next level of the program.  This is actually the most popular option nowadays with nearly every site online offering basic use with upsells for better features.
• Limited Time Trial - If your product is pretty straight forward, you don't have tiers or you simply want them to see how amazing the whole thing is because you are certain it sells itself, consider offering a limited time trial for free.  Let them try it for a week, a month - whatever time frame you want - and at the end of their free period, they can pay to continue the service.  Think Amazon Prime.  They give you a month to try out all the bells and whistles and if you like it, you can continue your membership at the end of the free period.
• Free Samples - Do in-store demos or have an option where they can submit their information online so you can mail them a free sample.  If they have a tangible product in their hand that they can use, the chances are high that they will purchase more down the road.

There are other ways to demonstrate your product so don't be afraid to be creative with it.  Another beautiful benefit of utilizing some of the suggestions above is that you can use them in multiple ways.  You can post them on your site and create extra blog posts or articles breaking it into sub-topics.  You can position them into your sales funnel to help the consumer during the decision making process or even use them to drive traffic.  The possibilities are endless if you think outside of the box and tweak existing examples.

What is important to remember is that a consumer won't necessarily be coming into your sales funnel at the beginning.  There may be random ways they fall into your product or service so be aware of the customer's journey and how you can have them enter the funnel at various points.  These demos will not fit in every juncture so think ahead and plan out the possible steps they will need to take.  Be sure to highlight how your product benefits the consumer.  Results and Experience are the key factors a consumer needs to see in order to make an informed decision.