Demo

Question 1

You should be building customized examples of & demoing these features in My Demo Account

Answer 1

1. CRM Objects (Contacts, Companies, Deals, Tickets, Custom Objects, etc.)
2. Contact Record
3. Landing Pages (and forms)
4. Blogs
5. Workflows
6. Traffic Analytics

Question 2

Biglytics

Answer 2

• A shared demo portal available to all GTM reps. It is the name of the fictional business we used to showcase how HubSpot could be custom tailored to a prospects use case.
• It is a helpful tool when you demo, just be aware when you should & shouldn’t use it.

Question 3

A few use cases where Biglytics has stronger capabilities than your personal demo portal.

Answer 3

• Paid-Ads
• Social Media Management
• Workflows with Integrations
• Sales Analytics

Question 4

There is a direct correlation between the level of customization in your demo and the likelihood of your deal closing.

Answer 4

• Biglytics & My Demo Account are the tools reps use to create customized demo environments.
• You’ll want to be sure that your entire demo experience is customized to each of your prospects. A great start to customizing that experience is customizing your demo environment.

Question 5

The features you showcase need to reflect your prospects use case.

Answer 5

• There is no case where you need to demo the entirety of a Hub to exemplify HubSpot’s value.
• Choose 3-4 features that can solve for your prospect’s pain and that’s it.
• You devalue HubSpot when you feature dump. HubSpot can quickly seem overwhelming to a prospect when we show too much.

Question 6

Selling on value is dependent on the ‘story’ you’re able to write.

Answer 6

• If you’re not ‘writing’ & preparing a story, you’re going to dump a pile of features on the prospect that undermines your ability to solve their pain (& their confidence in your ability)
• Remember, no prospect cares about what you’re selling as much as they care about themselves.

Question 7

Snippet for helping you plan your demo’s

Answer 7

demoplanner

Question 8

The Decision Maker

Answer 8

• The person with the ‘yes’ or ‘no’ power
• Looking for value at a high level, and analyzing whether the investment on HubSpot is worth the potential ROI.
• The Decision Maker(s) may care less about individual features, and more about the bigger picture impact on a deal.

Question 9

The End User

Answer 9

• The Decision Maker will most likely be looking for the End User’s insights on the strength of HubSpot compared to the status quo or a competitor.
• They’ll likely have the most knowledge of how HubSpot can be applied to their day-to-day

Question 10

Champion

Answer 10

• Your end user may have used HubSpot in a previous role & be a champion for implementing it at their current company.
• Use them/their knowledge to your advantage to help influence the decision making process.

Question 11

Technical Stakeholder

Answer 11

• IT/Developer/Ops will evaluate the technical specifications of the product.
• They’ll likely be looking into whether or not HubSpot will work with their current tech stack of essential tools and/or processes.

Question 12

The Blocker

Answer 12

• The Blocker may be a champion of the status quo, and is not ready to embrace change.
• They may also be a champion of a competitor they’ve used before.

Question 13

Managing the relationship

Answer 13

1. Pre-Demo
2. Start the Demo
3. Set Expectations
4. Tie Down

Question 14

Pre-Demo: Run a Temp Check before your demo

Answer 14

• Build in regular touch points before the demo to run a quick temp check and confirm that the information from the discovery is correct and still relevant.
• Can be a quick call or email

Question 15

Start the Demo: with a recap of information & insights from discovery

Answer 15

• Bake 5 to 10 minutes at the start of your demo agenda to recap goals, pains, challenges, timeline, and any other factors from discovery.
• This will ensure you and the prospect are aligned before starting the presentation.

Question 16

Set Expectations: Engage the room by asking everyone to introduce themselves

Answer 16

• Before officially kicking off the demo, go around the room and ask everyone on the call to introduce themselves
• Sync these introductions with your UFC. This is a great way to tee up expectations on all sides for the call, and align them to outcomes.

Question 17

Tie Down: make everyone in the room feel seen using tie down questions

Answer 17

• Whether you’re demoing just a decision maker, or multiple decision makers & end users, it’s critical that you make everyone on the call feel seen.
• You’ll ultimately close business through the DM, but asking tie-down questions to the entire audience will confirm value from multiple angles.

Question 18

Start by understanding who is on the call and what their pains are.

Answer 18

• You should define and outline these roles in your demo prep. It’s important you remember that not all pain is shared pain.
• The business will have shared goals, but different stakeholders will likely be analyzing different angles of HubSpot’s solutions.

Question 19

Business Challenges

Answer 19

A set of shared challenges that are impacting the organization as a whole. An example of a Business Challenge is missing quarterly or annual revenue goals.

Question 20

Team or specialized challenges

Answer 20

• A set of shared challenges (or in the case of a smaller business they are individual challenges) that impact a specific area of the business.
• At HubSpot these may look like Sales, Marketing, Service, or Operations challenges. An example of a Team Challenge is Sales missing quota, or Services not retaining enough customers.

Question 21

1
2
3
4

Answer 21

1. Build the demo around primary challenges. You’ll close business by solving for them. Any pains that aren’t cause for immediate action aren’t constructive enough to build a demonstration around.
2. Set the expectation upfront of what pains the tools you’re showcasing will solve for. Connect them on a personal level that shows you’re a trusted advisor that is invested in solving their challenges for helping them fulfill their goals.
3. Be transparent with yourself & stakeholders. Set another demo if there are too many challenges, goals, Hubs, or features to address in one presentation.
4. Remember, when you show fewer features to solve a prospect’s pain, the tool comes across as simpler & more attainable.

Question 22

Quantifiable Business Goals & Pain

Answer 22

You know exactly where they’re trying to get and/or what is currently holding them up - with specific numbers/metrics.

Question 23

Compelling Event

Answer 23

• Businesses always have a pain. They don’t always need to solve them immediately, especially when that costs money they could invest elsewhere.
• Something is driving the need for a solution now, and we know what that is.

Question 24

Decision Making Process Identified

Answer 24

Not just/always people who are involved - but also, what are the steps that need to happen and when in order for this to be signed off.

Question 25

Competition

Answer 25

• There is always competitor. It doesn’t have to be named alternative they’re also evaluating. In fact, most cases we’re competing with the status quo i.e. then continuing as they are today.
• As an alternative to HubSpot, that’s still “competition”

Question 26

Investment Acknowledged

Answer 26

• We’ve given them a close estimate of what an investment in HubSpot looks like, to solve their specific pains.
• They have acknowledged that it’s realistic, provided we demonstrate a solution that meets their expectations and come to any other terms (i.e. legal, technical)

Question 27

If you have all 5 of these criteria…

Answer 27

The Prospect is qualified for a demo! If you don’t have all 5, you must continue Discovery conversations before you can construct a demo.

Question 28

Importance of protecting your time

Answer 28

• Between gathering information, preparing & customizing your demo, and giving the demo itself, you’re making a huge time commitment.
• Let’s talk about your time value & the demo.

Question 29

Demo is leverage

Answer 29

When you give a demo, you’re giving up a big piece of your leverage. So ensure you have what you need before you give it. What you need are our exit criteria from Discovery.

Question 30

How to demo any tool:

Answer 30

1. Intro
2. Positioning statement
3. Utility
4. Tie Down

Question 31

Intro

Answer 31

The intro is where you explain why you’re going to show the Prospect what it is you’re about to show. This should be clearly called out as you navigate the tab/tool.

Question 32

Positioning Statement

Answer 32

• The Positioning Statement should cover why we built this specific part of HubSpot. Ensuring to include the Prospect’s use case if the tool serves multiple functions.
• This helps normalize their problems and positions HubSpot as a company and provider that has a lot of experience helping similar businesses with this pain.

Question 33

Utility

Answer 33

• Utility is the part we’d most traditionally associate with the Solution Demo - it’s where we actually show how the tool is used - utilized.
• As we’ve previously established, and similar to the 2 previous parts of the framework, this should reflect how the prospect would use it to solve the specific pain that we’re positioning this part of HubSpot as a solution for.

Question 34

Tie Down

Answer 34

• The Tie Down question is a question that should elicit a response from the prospect related to what we have just shown them and the context they used it in.
• There are many different types of Tie Downs, but a good Tie Down question will have them visualizing themselves using the tool shown to solve their pain.
• This technique elicits more authentic responses as they’re actively imagining themselves using something through how you asked the question, versus just passively thinking about it.

Question 35

Important note

Answer 35

Constructing & giving a custom demo is a huge time commitment on your part, if you don’t set expectations with your prospect at the outset of the call and engage them with meaningful questions during the call, you run the risk of losing their focus. Once that focus is lost, the time you spend on the demo is essentially worthless.

Question 36

Smokescreen Questions

Answer 36

1. Is HubSpot easier to use than SalesForce?
2. Can we be up and running by next quarter?
3. What kind of discount can you offer?
4. I’m not familiar with HubSpot, can you show me a little of everything?
5. Show me a demo first then we can talk about getting my boss involved

Question 37

Ask a clarifying question

Answer 37

• Great question! To be clear, when you ask _____ what exactly do you mean?
• I’d be happy to show you that in a demo. But first, what are you looking to fix by using _____ Hub at your company?
• That is an interesting question! Out of curiosity, before I answer, why do you ask?
• A lot of my customers ask me that, but I’m curious what makes you ask?
• I’m glad you are already thinking about the investment! But may I ask, when you say “too expensive”, what do you mean?
• Excellent point. But before we unpack that, what type of resources do you think you may need to avoid ____?

Question 38

The Thermometer Close

Answer 38

Gauges the prospects reaction to your talk track on a scale from 1 to 10. Rather than using “yes” or “no” questions to try and gauge an often complex reaction, the Thermometer Close takes the guess work out of understanding whether or not the pitch and solutions are resonating.

Question 39

The Thermometer Close example

Answer 39

• On a scale from 1 to 10, how suitable do you think using workflows in this way would be able to solve your current challenges around lead assignment?
• At this point, I want to pause and take stock of where we’re at so far. 1-10, 1 being we totally missed the mark and 10 being we’ve nailed it and you’re ready to go. Where are we with what I’ve shown you so far?

Question 40

You might use the Thermometer close to ask about…

Answer 40

1. Impact on their business or day-to-day
2. Timeline
3. Technical considerations

Question 41

Important note

Answer 41

• You can use the Thermometer Close at any point in the demo:l; it’s especially useful if we’re struggling to get a read on the prospect from what they’re saying or body language.
• Make sure you’re running at least one Thermometer Close at the end of the demo. In addition to the Thermometer Close, you should be leveraging Tie Down questions throughout the demo to confirm value.

Question 42

Fulfillment (the demo)

Answer 42

Fullflment is composed of 3 steps that when aligned with help you advance the deal. You should be familiar with these elements as you’ve already translated discovery into a stretchier that fits nicely into each step.

Question 43

Review
Present
Close

Answer 43

Review:
- Recap on process so far
- Align on demo expectations

Present:
- Tell the story of a future state with HubSpot
- Position features as solutions to pain

Close:
- Drive urgency around next steps
- Agree on next steps date

Question 44

Storytelling

Answer 44

Storing is where the average reps separate themselves from top reps. High performers consistently “write” & deliver compelling stories to their prospects, and close deals on that strength.

Question 45

The Demo

Answer 45

• The Demo is your opportunity to tell a story with visual reinforcement. The screens, tabs, decks, or environments you prepare are just a backdrop. While they are a key element to the story, they don’t move it along.
• The ‘plot’ of your story begins with pain in the current state and should end with the potential for a pain free future state. It’s up to you to bridge those 2 states by ‘writing’ the story that connects them.

Question 46

You present demo in 3 phases

Answer 46

1. Review
2. the Presentation Itself
3. Close

Question 47

Review

Answer 47

• Establishing clarity & expectations with an Up Front Contract. Clearly recap your understanding of what the prospect expects to get out of the demo - based on what you agreed at the end of the discovery - and have them reconfirm this
• Recapping pain, goals, timeline, budget, and verifying the decision making process
• Running a 2nd temp-check before the demo, “Has anything changed since we last spoke?”
• Introducing yourself to anyone new on the call, and asking them to introduce themselves and briefly explain what they’re hoping to get out of the demo.

Consider using a small presentation deck to deliver the review pain, goals, & solutions

Question 48

The Presentation

Answer 48

Connect Pain to Solutions with a Presentation:
- The purpose of your presentation is to obtain a buying decision. You help the prospect reach that decision with a compelling demonstration; and we know that a strong demo is precision tailored to that prospect’s use case.

• Limit your demo or presentation to a talk track that consists of social proof & tools that are relevant to your prospect. Anything behind those points will have no impact on their reason to buy, and is a waste of everyone’s time.

Question 49

Order Matters

Answer 49

• Never randomly select an order in which you present your solutions or tools. You must strategically position the tools in an order that logically flows & exemplifies how the features speak to one another. Start at the top or middle of the funnel (wherever your prospect has the most pain or challenges) and present in a way that mirrors their customer journey.
• Mapping your solutions in a sequential order helps your prospect conceptualize where and when a HubSpot feature has the potential impact to both of their customers.

Question 50

Feature Narratives

Answer 50

When you’ve reached the point of the demo where it’s time to “show & tell” the solutions you’ve formulated, you should be using this format to position the tools:

1. Intro
2. Positioning Statement
3. Utility
4. Tie Down Question

Question 51

Close

Answer 51

• Everyone ounce of energy you put into the demo has the potential to be wasted if you don’t close it properly. It’s an unfortunate truth that many reps waste both their time & calories giving a demo without taking the time to establish continued clarity in their closing.
• When you take the time to mutually define the next steps in the deal with your prospect, you’re rounding out the demo with a strong finish.

Question 52

The Close consists of…

Answer 52

• Time for the prospect to ask any outstanding questions. An engaged prospect should have been asking questions throughout the demo, but here they can ask anything else that didn’t come up naturally.
• A high-level review of the solutions presented & business implications
• A Thermometer Close on the solutions presented & overall state of the deal (i.e. “On a scale from 1 to 10, 1 being we completely missed the mark and 10 being it’s the perfect solution, where did we land with the demo?”)
• When appropriate (complex deals may require multiple demos) ask for the prospects business.
• A Firm Future Commitment outlining next steps to keep the deal moving, and the date of those next steps. Do not leave the demo without this information. You should have already covered this in the Outcomes portion of your Up Front Contract. All you’re doing here is calling it back.

Question 53

Tie Down Questions

Answer 53

• With tie down questions you can control the conversation of the demo and use that opportunity to help connect their features to pain you uncovered during the discovery process and use tie down questions to confirm that connection.
• How do they work? Tie Down questions can start to show the level of commitment of the buyer. If a buyer is engaged with your tie down questions and providing helpful insights, then they are likely a much more interested buyer than someone who gives you yes/no answer.
• Why should I use them? Using tie down questions throughout the sales process enables you to prompt your buyer to think strategically about how HubSpot will fit into their business process/budget/planning/etc.

Question 54

How do you use tie down questions in a demo?

Answer 54

• By having tie down questions ready for each part of the tool you are planning to show, you will be able to use those as conversation starters throughout the demo process.
• If approached correctly, you will also have the buyer actively discussing how they can use these tools to help achieve their goals.
• The most common way to use a tie down during the demo is to have the buyer explain to you how they would use that specific tool or how they can imagine using that tool.

Question 55

Tie Down Question Examples

Answer 55

Workflows: “How does this compare to how you’re building out these things today?”

Contact Record: “Is there any other use cases or ideas that you guys have from a prospecting perspective that you could see yourself using HubSpot for as it relates to the contact record?”

Landing Page Tie Down: “Could you see yourself doing this?”