Structuring Proof of Concept Deals with Ken Pouliot (Gigya)

Bowery Capital Startup Sales Podcast

In the SaaS world, a proof of concept can be a Honey Pot—a quick preamble to a great customer win—or a Bear Trap—a drain on resources without clear end in sight. Ken Pouliot of Gigya joined us in the studio this week to share his framework for a repeatably effective proof of concept. If your customers try before they buy to any extent, we know you'll enjoy this latest episode: "The Proof of Concept Deal: Bear Trap or Honey Pot?"

Ken is VP of sales at Gigya, a customer identity management firm that helps customers turn anonymous visitors into known customers, enabling the collection of rich first-party data. With years of enterprise sales experience, Ken has seen the proof of concept play out both ways at companies like Box, Symantec, Veracode and Verisign. In his experience, a few key structural choices can turn a proof of concept into a startup sales team's secret weapon, giving reps valuable experience and paving the way for lower-friction reference sales. Without the right structure, however, you risk a POC becoming a time-consuming experiment in frustration. In today's episode we'll discuss a framework for structuring proof of concept deals that will ensure all parties are on the same page, with clear milestones, timelines and expectations, helping your sales team turn POCs into Honey Pots that close big deals reliably, rather than risking valuable time, focus and potentially even IP.

In this episode, Ken leads us through the best ways to make the most out of running a proof of concept, with specific pointers around key considerations like length, milestones, and the involvement of sales vs. engineering. Happy listening and make sure to subscribe on iTunes for a new episode every week!