Why do we do demos?
There are lots of different kinds of demos.
Many of them are informative.
Some are entertaining.
For presales, what we really want is to have a demo that is persuasive and influential. It should help your customer have one or more "a-ha" moments, that they realise that this solution will help them with their business problem. And it has a call to action, to get the customer to do something about it!
In order to get these moments, you need to back up a step or two. Who is this person you're meeting. Are they alone, or are other people in the meeting? Why did they agree to come to this meeting today? What are they hoping for?
You usually have a hint, or a hunch, or a hope of what they are looking for. You should check on these hopes, and validate why they are interested. You should understand their pain, or check on what you've been told before you go into the session, and connect these thoughts to what you are about to show.
Once you have that purpose, align the parts of your demo to it, with a simple structure, such as saying - today we're going to look at 3 of the capabilities of the product, and show you how they will help with <your main business problem>. Wait for a nod, and any correction you get here - and this is important - as anything they say here could help you avoid wasting time from this point, until the end of the sales cycle.
If you can continue, with a potential course correction, I find it is good to visually outline these capabilities, and go through the first. Each part should not take a long time. Don't wander from one point to the next. When you show the first part, give them a connection to the value they want. If you have a ready example that will mean something to them, use it. Show this capability, and then come back to your 3 points.
This completes the first part! Summarise the capability AND the benefit.
Now onto points 2 and 3, with an introduction, and a summary for each.
Once you've finished your points (and I use 3 of them for simplicity), give an overall summary and connection to the business problem, and at this stage, you and your sales rep should be ready to offer next steps, and a lively discussion.
Before you do your next demo, think about who you are meeting, and why. Have a chat with the sales rep, and discuss what the aim is. Maybe it is very similar to your other meetings, but each time, you meet someone new, at a different stage of their career, and their own understanding of their business problem.
How do you tailor your session to help that person get to their a-ha moment?