Selling trust through demos Experiential selling and multi persona persuasion at InBody India

Abstract

InBody India sells body composition analyzers to hospitals, clinics, gyms, corporates, and researchers in a complex, trust-heavy market where decisions are slow and multi-persona. A single sale may hinge on doctors seeking clinical validation, administrators weighing ROI, trainers prioritising usability, and corporate HR emphasising engagement and data privacy. Across a three-month internship in sales and marketing, the protagonist ran cold calls, demos, installations, and conference outreach, finding that patience, adaptive messaging, and experiential demos moved deals forward. Incidents include a five-hour wait for a doctor’s signature at Athani, persona-specific selling at Trendo 2025 in Chennai, and a corporate installation at Google Ananta that reframed value as workforce wellness and adoption. Frameworks such as Porter’s Five Forces, STEEPLE, and funnel mapping reveal high buyer power, intense rivalry, and steep drop-offs between demo and PO, while motivation models (Maslow, Herzberg, goal-setting) highlight micro-goals and coaching as buffers against rejection. The case challenges students to design a practical go-to-market playbook persona-aligned narratives, demo-first proof, event-led lead generation, CRM hygiene, escalation governance, and a post-sale AMC rhythm. Success is measured by demo-to-PO conversion, cycle time, stakeholder coverage, and repeat revenue from service and upgrades. The narrative grounds analysis in lived incidents across Indian settings.