Assessing and Using Risk Factors For Assigning Presales Resources

Posted by Peter Cohan on September 25, 2009

0 comments | 1199 reads

Consider including or calculating a relative Risk Factor on Request for Demo (resource) forms. This could be based on the amount and quality of information received and captured on a Request for Demo Form prior to a demo and could be used to determine whether to commit a presales resource to that demo.

For example, we can assign a point for each useful piece of information on a Situation Slide, per key person in a demo (Job Title, CBI, Reason(s), Specific Capabilities, Delta, Critical Date…). The more points, the better prepared and hence the better (lower) the risk.

[One could also call this a Probability of Success Factor, rather than Risk Factor, since the number actually is the inverse risk. Those who love math and formulae might also contemplate multiplying this Inverse Risk Factor (or a conversion thereof) against the forecasted amount of the opportunity to give a Risk-Reward Factor. Go nuts…!]

In cases where there are resource constraints or competition for internal presales resources, a Request for Demo form with a higher score beats out another Request for Demo with a low score…

However applied, this idea of scoring demo risk may be a good tool to help increase the amount and quality of information provided by sales to presales people prior to demos.

For more tips and articles on demonstration effectiveness skills and methods, email me at PCohan@SecondDerivative.com or visit our website at www.SecondDerivative.com. For demo tips, best practices, tools and techniques, join the DemoGurus Community Website at www.DemoGurus.com or explore our blog at http://greatdemo.blogspot.com/.

Peter Cohan

Peter Cohan is the founder and principal of The Second Derivative, focused on helping software organizations improve the success rates of their demos. In 2004, he enabled and began moderating DemoGurus®, a community web exchange on software demonstrations. He is the author of the book Great Demo! - how to prepare and deliver surprisingly compelling software demonstrations.

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