Which is the MOST important step a sales associate should take to ensure that a product is working before demonstrating it to a customer?

• A. Role-play with a coworker who can ask difficult questions in a customer scenario.
• B. Have all vendor supplied marketing materials on hand and a display model ready to go.
• C. Read and understand all the information about the features being demonstrated so that they can be shown with ease.
• D. Verify that the product is fully functional with power, if needed, and that any accessories needed to demonstrate the features are located.

Answer: (D)

The main idea here is ensuring the product is actually ready to work before you try to demonstrate it. Before showing a customer what the item can do, you want to power it up, confirm it runs, and make sure any accessories needed to demonstrate features are on hand. This readiness matters because a live demo hinges on seeing real functionality. If the device won’t power on, or you’re missing cables, adapters, or other necessary items, you won’t be able to demonstrate the features as intended, which can break the flow, erode credibility, and waste time. Verifying full functionality and gathering the required accessories shows you’re prepared and professional, and it lets the customer experience the product’s capabilities smoothly.

The other options touch helpful aspects—practicing with a coworker to handle questions, having marketing materials on hand, or knowing feature details—but they don’t guarantee that the product will actually work during the demonstration.