FDE Foundations · Module 12: Business Impact & Handover
Demos That Decide
A demo is a decision instrument: run the customer's own scenario, show the before and after, survive the glitches, and close by asking for the decision the work needs.
10 min reading
Objectives
- Structure a demo around the customer's scenario
- Rehearse failure paths and have backups
- End with the decision you need
Their scenario, not your feature list
Open with the problem from the brief, in their numbers. Run the demo on the workflow they named: their document type, their queue, their report. Feature tours feel impressive and decide nothing; a demonstration of their own pain dissolving decides.
Before and after
Show the current way briefly (timed, if fair), then the new way, then the metric: "Six hours to four, on yesterday's batch." The metric closes the loop opened in discovery and sets up the ROI conversation.
Rehearse the failure
Pre-flight everything: data staged, environment stable, browser profiles ready. Have a recorded backup for the live path and a plan for the question you hope nobody asks (answer it anyway in the appendix). Demos fail at the integration seam, so rehearse exactly that seam.
The ask
Close with the concrete decision: approve phase two, grant production access, nominate the two operators for training. A demo that ends without an ask is entertainment.
Quick check
An optional 2-3 question self-check. Answers never leave your device, are not stored, and never count toward any assessment.
Exercise
Plan a 15-minute demo for a fictional reconciliation feature: opening line with the number, the scenario steps, the metric slide, the backup plan, and the closing ask.
Pass criteria
Opening uses a discovery number, steps follow the customer's workflow, backup plan covers the riskiest seam, and the ask is a specific decision with a date.