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In sales, the Proof of Concept (PoC) is when a product, service, or solution is demonstrated using a real-world customer context. It acts as a bridge, moving from theoretical solutions (e.g., website content) to tangible, real-world, customer-specific applications. The PoC enables both the prospect and the sales team to validate underlying assumptions, evaluate the solution’s performance, and anticipate any challenges that might arise during implementation–some may even provide a compelling business case for its adoption.
All that said, the PoC answers the question: “Does it work?”
PoCs involve the prospect (buyer), who is evaluating the solution, and the sales team (seller), responsible for presenting and adapting the solution to meet the prospect's unique requirements. As such, the proof of concept (PoC) is what many call an external collaboration. Just like all the business-critical work we do with external stakeholders, PoCs are characterized by frequent communications, planning, and collaboration to document the POC and its results thoroughly.
While that might make it seem that PoCs are only important to the prospect, that’s not the case. It’s important for both the buyer (prospect) and the seller (sales team).
The mutual exploration that occurs in a PoC is crucial not just for closing a sale but for establishing a successful, long-term partnership where both parties benefit.
For the product companies specifically, properly managing the external collaboration has additional benefits far beyond “closed-won.” The content from the PoC provides valuable insights to the product management and engineering team and, with enough context, can shape the product roadmap and engineering decisions. Especially from a product marketing perspective, the content helps build a concrete understanding of the real, pressing struggles of the target segment. This post-PoC value is a key reason to manage and organize the collaboration content properly.
With all this on its shoulders, PoCs can be tricky, but they don’t have to be. We’ve pulled together this list of best practices to make your next PoC a success.
To ensure that the collaborative efforts of your PoC create the most value for all participants, we offer these ten best practices:
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Proof of Concepts are external collaborations between a buyer and a seller during the sales process. There’s quite a bit of communication and documentation that flows between the two parties over the duration of the PoC. Keeping that flow of content and communication organized and available for all participants keeps the level of trust high, which is vital for the success of a PoC and the sale itself.
The external collaboration platform is pivotal as it facilitates efficient communication (real-time and async), organizes all the document collaborations/requests/versioning, and provides project transparency — it's the central rallying point for all PoC-related activities for both parties. The choice of an external collaboration platform significantly impacts the ease and effectiveness of collaboration between the prospect and the sales team. A suitable platform streamlines the process, ensuring that all stakeholders can easily access information, rapidly understand the PoC context within their window of involvement, communicate, and stay updated on the project's progress.
It's crucial to choose an external platform that is user-friendly, accessible to all team members, and capable of handling the specific needs of your PoC. Set up the platform and ensure all key stakeholders are familiar with its features. Utilize this platform to manage all aspects of the PoC, from initial planning to final evaluation. Regular use of the platform for communication, document sharing, document collection, and tracking helps maintain transparency and alignment throughout the project.
Also, if you suspect that your core PoC team will grow to include other stakeholders, SMEs, or leadership (e.g., sales management, procurement, steering committee, etc.), an external collaboration platform–especially those with a summarization or recap feature–is useful for getting those individuals up to speed more quickly.
Keep in mind that basic tools–email, file sharing, etc–can be used for this purpose. If you choose to use these more rudimentary tools, it is imperative that you affirmatively assign individuals from the participating organizations to spend time documenting, managing, and administering the process.
Navigating legal and compliance considerations is a critical aspect of preparing for a PoC. This process involves addressing any legal agreements, data privacy concerns, and industry-specific regulations that might apply. Proper handling of these considerations is crucial for building a foundation of trust and protecting both parties, especially in scenarios where sensitive data or intellectual property is involved.
The implementation of these agreements should be managed through your external collaboration platform. Use this platform to share, review, and track versions of all legal and compliance-related documents. This ensures that all parties have access to the most current versions of these critical documents and that any changes or updates are transparently recorded. Managing these documents in a central location helps streamline the review process and keeps the documentation organized and accessible.
Key documents include:
The definition of a clear scope and objectives is critical for the success of a PoC. This process, involving both the prospect and the sales team, sets a shared understanding and expectations for the PoC. The significance of this step lies in its ability to prevent scope creep, maintain focus, and ensure that the project adheres to its initial goals. A well-defined scope helps avoid misunderstandings and keeps the project aligned with the agreed-upon objectives.
For effective implementation, organize kickoff meetings with key stakeholders from both the prospect's side and the sales team. These meetings are vital for discussing and agreeing upon the PoC's goals, timelines, and expected deliverables. Use your external collaboration platform to manage the document collaboration on the scoping document (and its versions). Remember, version management on the scoping documents is important because helps the team record the rationale for scope changes.
Key documents include:
When conducting a PoC, it's essential to proactively address the potential for scope creep — the unplanned expansion of the project's scope. This often occurs due to evolving requirements or unforeseen challenges that arise during the PoC.
To effectively manage scope creep, start by collaboratively defining what would constitute scope expansion beyond the agreed terms. Establish clear thresholds and triggers that indicate when the project is veering off course. Then, create a response plan detailing the steps to be taken if scope creep is identified. This plan should include decision-making processes, communication protocols, and how adjustments will be documented and managed. Regular review meetings should be scheduled to assess the project's progress against its defined scope, allowing for timely identification and management of any deviations.
One final comment: the level of detail and rigor required will depend on the PoC. Complex, lengthy, paid PoCs will typically include this kind of documentation. For shorter PoCs, documenting how to address scope creep might just show up as a section in the aforementioned scoping documents. The point is that the parties need to be thinking about changes in scope as they plan their PoCs – scale the rigor to your needs.
Key documents include:
Setting realistic and measurable success criteria is essential in the planning phase of a PoC. These criteria serve as objective benchmarks for evaluating the PoC's success, ensuring that both the prospect and the sales team have quantifiable goals to measure against. This step is crucial for aligning the vendor’s capabilities with the prospect's expectations and facilitates a data-driven assessment of the outcomes.
Implementing this effectively involves using your external collaboration platform to collaborate on the success criteria agreement. As with scoping, It's important to manage versions of these documents carefully. As discussions evolve and criteria are refined, maintaining a clear record of each version helps track the rationale for any changes made. This versioning is essential for ensuring transparency and accountability, preventing any disputes or confusion about the agreed-upon success metrics at the conclusion of the PoC. Without well-documented, mutually agreed-upon success criteria, it will be neigh impossible to have a successful PoC.
Key documents include:
Effective planning for a PoC requires a balance between detail and flexibility, especially given the varying durations these projects can have. For shorter PoCs, which may last only a few days to a couple of weeks, developing a high-level timeline with key milestones is usually sufficient and cost-effective. This approach provides a clear framework for what needs to be achieved and when, without the complexity of a detailed project plan that might be overkill for such brief engagements.
In the case of longer PoCs, potentially extending over several months, consider developing a more detailed timeline. However, it's worth noting that such extensive PoCs often border on pilot project territory. For the initial planning phase, regardless of the PoC's length, use your external collaboration platform to manage the development and versioning of this timeline. This platform provides a central location for tracking changes, ensuring all parties are aligned with the updated schedules and milestones.
Key documents include:
Maintaining communication and check-ins during a PoC is crucial for keeping both parties aligned and informed. This practice ensures that any issues are addressed promptly and progress is continuously monitored. Regular communication fosters a transparent environment where both the prospect and the sales team can share updates, concerns, and feedback effectively. Additionally, keeping a history of what transpired between the parties can be incredibly useful if there are questions about strategic choices or disagreements.
The amount of structure you wrap around your communications will depend on the complexity of your PoC. For more complex scenarios, such as long-running or paid PoCs/pilots, a formal communication plan might be warranted. In these cases, your external collaboration platform can serve as the central point for sharing status reports, discussing challenges, and documenting any adjustments to the PoC plan. Additionally, ensure you maintain a comprehensive list of participants, their roles, and responsibilities. This list helps in directing communication to the right individuals and keeping everyone informed. Finally, keep in mind that the combined team will engage in both real-time (or synchronous) and out-of-band (or asynchronous) collaboration and communication throughout the entire process. This means that if you choose to use more basic tools (as opposed to an external collaboration platform), your approach will need to take all those realtime/nonrealtime channels into account.
Key documents:
Key documents for more complex PoCs:
Effective management and documentation of feedback are vital during a PoC. This process allows for capturing insights, concerns, and recommendations from the prospect, which are essential for refining and improving the solution.
Use your external collaboration platform to collect, manage, and document this feedback. By organizing feedback sessions and documenting the outcomes on the platform, both parties can track how the solution evolves based on the prospect's input.
Key documents include:
For PoCs involving technology solutions that will require integration with an organization's existing systems, the PoC is an opportunity to evaluate fit along the technology dimension. After all, a solution that meets the business requirements but cannot integrate with the organization’s technological ecosystem or tech team may be a poor choice.
Your external collaboration platform should be used to facilitate collaboration and actively track technical requirements and integration details. This platform should become the repository for all relevant information, including specifics about the existing systems, necessary integration points, and technical constraints that might influence the solution’s deployment.
Key documents include:
Conducting a thorough and collaborative evaluation of the PoC against the predefined success criteria is essential to determine its success and guide future decisions objectively.
The entire process of authoring, review, and revision should be managed through your external collaboration platform. This will keep all the content and commentary together as the team scores the PoC against requirements.
Key documents include:
While the top ten best practices outlined are what we think are crucial for the success of a PoC, there are additional considerations that can further enhance the process and outcome. These include:
The success of a Proof of Concept (PoC) in enterprise sales hinges not only on the technical prowess of the solution but also on the efficacy of the process behind it. A well-executed PoC can pave the way for a long-lasting and mutually beneficial relationship between the buyer and seller. To this end, the practices outlined in this guide are designed to ensure a smooth, transparent, and effective PoC process.
A key takeaway from these best practices is the paramount importance of using a robust external collaboration platform. Such a platform is instrumental in keeping the PoC organized, streamlined, and focused. It serves as a central hub for communication, document sharing, version control, and project tracking, thereby reducing confusion and enhancing efficiency. The right platform ensures that all stakeholders have easy access to necessary information, which is crucial for maintaining alignment and momentum throughout the PoC.
Equally important is the aspect of record keeping and administration. Many PoCs falter due to inadequate documentation and poor management of project details. Effective record-keeping ensures that all decisions, changes, feedback, and discussions are systematically documented and accessible. This not only helps in maintaining transparency but also aids in post-PoC reviews and learning. Good documentation practices are the backbone of any successful PoC, as they prevent misunderstandings and provide a clear trail of the project’s evolution.
In conclusion, while the technical aspects of a PoC are undoubtedly important, the organizational and administrative elements are what truly enable a PoC to deliver its full value. By adhering to the best practices outlined and leveraging a powerful external collaboration tool, both buyers and sellers can significantly enhance the chances of a successful PoC, setting the stage for a strong and productive partnership.
This guide is intended to provide a roadmap for conducting effective PoCs, ensuring they are not just a technical demonstration but a comprehensive and collaborative journey toward achieving mutual goals.
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