Why good demos make or break your product

In the relentless pursuit of product excellence, founders often overlook a critical component that can determine success or failure: the product demo. Sharif Shameem, founder of Lexica, makes a compelling case for why demos deserve significantly more attention than they typically receive. His insights challenge the conventional wisdom that great products simply speak for themselves.

Key Points

• Demos are marketing artifacts – They're not just functional demonstrations but carefully crafted narratives that should be repeatedly refined and tested against user reactions.

• The greatest products aren't always obvious – History shows that revolutionary products like the iPhone required masterful demos to showcase their value, as their benefits weren't immediately apparent.

• Good demos require strategic design decisions – Products should be built with "demo-ability" in mind, potentially influencing core architecture and feature prioritization.

• Reactions tell you everything – Real-time user reactions during demos provide invaluable feedback that should drive product iterations.

• Demo-first development can be transformative – Designing backward from the ideal demo experience can focus development on what truly matters.

The Hidden Power of Product Narratives

The most profound takeaway from Shameem's perspective is how dramatically we underestimate the relationship between product design and narrative. While Silicon Valley culture has long celebrated the mantra "build something people want," Shameem reveals a more nuanced reality: even the most revolutionary products fail without an equally revolutionary way to demonstrate their value.

This insight matters tremendously in today's attention-scarce ecosystem. As product categories become increasingly crowded and complex (particularly in AI and emerging tech), the ability to quickly communicate value becomes as important as the value itself. The iPhone wasn't just revolutionary because of its technology—it was revolutionary because Steve Jobs knew exactly how to make people understand why it mattered.

Beyond the Demo: Creating Memorable Product Experiences

What Shameem doesn't fully explore is how this demo-centric philosophy extends beyond formal presentations. Every user touchpoint functions as a kind of demo. Consider Superhuman, the email client that transformed onboarding into a high-touch demo experience. Their mandatory onboarding calls seemed counterintuitive in a self-serve SaaS world, but they ensured every user understood the product's value proposition perfectly