Want to talk tech? Build it.

If you have to communicate with audiences on technology with any frequency, building a demonstration is a great way to up your game. Demos show your audience instead of telling them what the tech is and how it works. It also helps answer the question if the tech is marketecture. I feel that demos are one of the most important tools sales engineers, architects, and/or developers have. If you have to educate an audience on a technology, build a demo!

Showing rather than telling equates to MUCH higher bandwidth for your message. Your audience can see the tech in action and ideate possibilities, while spending less processing time unpacking your words. A demo also shows your audience that the tech is real and works.

While building a demo or wrangling one to work, you will fail. A lot. With failure comes learning. Developing a demo will give you lots of time to really learn the technology you’re trying to communicate or teach. You’ll get to see the tech’s ugly underbelly and learn its quirks. And the deadline and deliverables around building a demo will do wonders for your learning efficiency.

By building an example you will gain an immense amount of confidence in your understanding and ability to effectively communicate the benefits and trade-offs. This kind of confidence can only be gained by getting something done with the tech. The confidence you’ve gained through the process will be noticeable and your message will more easily received.

If you want to guarantee your tech demo will work 100% of the time, record it! Pre Recording your demo is a great way to ensure your demo will be executed correctly. It also gives you space to articulate insight and value while not tethering you to performing the demo.

I’m not advocating to build a bespoke demo for every piece of software or idea you think is neat. That would waste a lot of precious time. However, when you want to clearly communicate technology to people, it is an excellent tool that benefits you and your audience.