Simple Tips for Successful Demo Nights
Over the past few weeks I’ve been fortunate to attend a number of demo nights throughout New York City. Some have been great - while some have just been okay, which led me to put together this list of tips for successful demo nights.
Timing is a major recurring theme throughout this list, as it plays a key role in keeping the audience engaged. If you say that your event is starting at 6:30pm, the first presenter should begin no later than 7. A half hour window will usually give your attendees a chance to get there, get checked in, grab a drink or something to eat, and take their seats in time for the first presenter to begin.
Getting There + Getting Out.
Depending on the size of your event, it’s important to have a few people at the door checking people in and directing them to the main seating area, coat check, bathrooms, food and drink, and etc. If they need to take an elevator up or down a level, have signage so people know where they are going. And if you have to let attendees know that certain exits close at a certain time or elevators will only support so much weight, do so in a humorous and memorable way.
For example, the main entrance of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism usually closes after 9pm. Since most guests will be entering that way, they will likely expect to also leave from the same exit, and have already taken note of nearby subways or other forms of transportation. Nothing is worse than missing your train because you have to go around to a back exit on a different street when you thought you could exit the same way you entered. Remember, most people have never been there before, and they’ll be less frustrated if you’re upfront about the nuances of the space.
If you plan on providing food or drink, it’s a good idea to have some light food out prior to the event starting. Since most people will be coming straight from work, if they think they are getting food, don’t make them wait until the end of all the presentations. If you do, you’ll definitely have some grumpy folks who will leave early.
Pictured above: CUNY J-School Professor Travis Fox enjoying pizza while chatting with his colleagues Bob Sacha and Simon Surowicz.
Coffee, tea water and soda are all great drink options prior to an event. If you plan on serving alcohol, it’s recommended that you serve it after all the presenters have demoed, or else you’re likely to have some drunk hecklers in the crowd.
Don't serve lots of boozy tea before an event. And then proceed to hand it out to attendees during the demos.
We live in world where online and in person are often intermixed, especially when it comes to demo nights. Beyond smartphones, I’ve seen people with laptops and tablets at demo nights, which are especially useful for looking up companies’ profiles on CrunchBase, taking photos, following along as presenters showcase their sites or apps, and tweeting.
People love live tweeting and connecting with the companies or individuals demo-ing and others in the room/at home, so it’s important to have an established hashtag prior to the event. Not only will it help to generate hype prior to and during your event, but you can create a storify of all the tweets after the event and showcase them on your blog or website as a marketing material. You should have the guest wifi information prominent and visible throughout the night on a screen or board, along with the pre-selected hashtag for your event.
It's also really important for organizers to make sure you have a strong wifi connection at these events, as companies that are demo-ing are likely to engage the audience by asking them to complete an action via the internet, or demo-ing something that lives online. A constant complaint at the #NYTM is that the guest wifi at NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts is not strong enough to support demos and user engagement. This often delays presentations and contributes to a sometimes hostile/rowdy crowd.
Timing + Sound + Control.
The room where you host the event should have an adequate PA system so that even people in the very last row can hear everything that is going on. The MC should make announcements about the wifi and hashtag prior to the start of the event, and introduce each new presenter.
Presenters should be allotted a certain amount of time for their presentation and for Q&A so that no one presenter gets more time than someone else, and the night keeps moving forward in a steady progression.
Presentations Dos + Donts.
Presentations should be set up ahead of time so that there isn’t too much of a delay between presenters, and there should be someone on hand who knows how to work the projector and audio system.
The presentations should be demonstrations of the product or service, and demo-ers should make every effort to be as efficient and prepared as possible. If the lights go out in the first 10 seconds, people in the audience should know the name of your product or service and what it does. It’s helpful to inject some humor into your presentation every so often, but beware of making distasteful jokes.
The Q&A should be organized so that there is a microphone that can be passed throughout the audience, or so that attendees can line up behind a central mic to ask questions.
The presenter should also make an effort to repeat the question so all attendees can comprehend it prior to giving their answer. And even the Q&A should be timed.
It’s important to give the attendees a break if your event is longer than an hour. You can structure this break however you’d like, but I’ve seen MC’s use this time as an opportunity for people in the audience to make plus and announcements about new opportunities. At the NY Tech Meetup, Nate asked everyone in the audience to turn to someone they don’t know and talk to them for three minutes. It was a really great way to meet new people and forced everyone to network in a comfortable fashion (their seat).
People can also use breaks to grab coffee, use the restroom, make a phone call or check their email. But beware that some people may take this time as an opportunity to leave the event, so be mindful of that for your other presenters.
After the event is over, people will want to network. It's one of the primary reasons' they've come to your event, so don't be in a hurry to rush them out out of the space. The most successful demo nights will have people lingering for a while and making meaningful connections, because isn't that the point?
Have something to add? I'm happy to expand this list based on suggestions, so feel free to email me with your own tips!
