How we run a super demo
A super demo, as we’re sure you already know, is an enormously powerful branding tool. A week or two of enhanced activity on the shop floor brings products and brands to life, and has a massive impact on the bottom line. A super demo boosts sales hundreds of times over. But they also take more time and effort to organise and run than a smaller activity.
So, what does that process look like? How do we do what we do for you? We’ll walk you through it step by step…
1. Outline agreements for Costco approval
The journey starts with agreeing the concepts, targets, locations and dates for the super demo, discussing the non-standard requirements like design and point of sale presence that will make your super demo yours. These are the pull-up banners, the branded counters and demo units, the product imagery and clothing, and the advertising and promotional activity that will run alongside the demo.
You set the KPIs — the targets the demo is intended to achieve. You create visuals for Costco approval, and once they sign off on the plan, we enter the fray.
2. Vendor sign-off
We assemble a detailed quote, costing the entire super demo process and submitting it to you for approval. Once you’re happy, the demo is formally booked and scheduled.
3. Warehouse sign-off
The visuals and details are now passed to individual Costco warehouses for their approval, and for any adjustments that need to be made for the busier warehouses where space might be a challenge at peak trading times such as Christmas. Once the warehouse manager has signed off, the visual and details are passed to one of our on-site specialist Demo Services Managers, who confirms any additional requirements such as brand ambassador training for the demo.
4. Production and booking
This is where we do most of our work. Brand ambassadors are scheduled, contracted and trained; point of sale and promotional material is produced and delivered to warehouses; the product is stocked up and the demo prepared for launch.
5. The demo goes live!
For one week or two, at Costco warehouses across the country, brand ambassadors go to work. Customers are introduced to product, brand messages are delivered and sales are boosted.
6. Results reporting and wash-up meeting
The end of the demo is not the end of the process. At this stage we collect and report on the KPIs – how many people visited, how many converted, how many sales did we see across different locations, and at which times did sales peak? As well as our successes, we look for the learning opportunities – what we’ll do next time to deliver even better results.
All of this takes time. The typical lead time on a super demo is six to eight weeks; once you know what’s to be done with that time, you can use that time efficiently to tee up the super demo for maximum impact and ROI. The only question is… which six to eight weeks? In our next post, we’ll talk about when to put this process in motion. When’s the best time for a super demo?
