ERP Demo Script Example
Intro
Built for a controller plus head of operations at a light manufacturing or distribution shop (~200 FTE) still stitching QuickBooks, warehouse spreadsheets, and an old order system together.
You demo core financials with procurement-to-pay and inventory in one continuous thread—not a module tour.
Success: they believe receipt, inventory valuation, and AP accrual post in one logical flow so month-end is reconciliation, not detective work.
Common problems
- Subledger chaos: inventory adjustments and AP do not meet until someone builds a bridge file at close.
- Slow close: cut-off fights because receiving timestamps and supplier invoices disagree.
- Ops blind spots: customer service promises ship dates from a phone call, not available-to-promise in the system.
- Duplicate entry: the same PO line touched in three places before finance sees it.
Demo script
Talk track you can lift into a call. Swap product names, proof points, and the exact scenario you confirmed in discovery.
Opening
“Thanks—my read is you want finance and ops reading the same numbers, and you want close to shrink because receipts, payables, and inventory move together.”
“I’ll run one flow: PO to receipt to supplier invoice to GL impact, then ATP so customer service is not guessing. If that works as our spine, we can peel into reporting after.”
“Call it five minutes on procurement, eight on receipt and inventory, five on voucher and posting, five on financial summary and ATP, then your questions.”
Problem framing
“Right now month-end is where you discover the mismatch—after the warehouse thought it was done and AP already scheduled the pay run.”
“I want you to see the same transaction once, early, where policy is enforced instead of corrected later in a journal.”
Walkthrough
- Planner creates a requisition that becomes a PO: vendor, terms, expected date—approval limits enforced with an audit trail, not email screenshots.
- Warehouse posts a partial receipt against the PO: on-hand updates; receipt accrual hits the books under the policy you choose so finance is not surprised at invoice time.
- Show the variance queue when quantity or cost differs from expected—finance sees it as a workflow item, not a surprise line on the trial balance.
- Three-way match: PO, receipt, invoice—if it clears, the voucher is ready for the payment run; if not, the exception routes to AP with documents attached.
- Trial balance slice: show accounts touched by this thread and period lock status so you can explain who can still post during close.
- Customer service looks up SKU by site: on-hand, reserved, incoming PO—ATP date from the same inventory ledger finance just trusted.
Value reinforcement
“That was one thread from buy to pay to stock—no parallel spreadsheet for ‘true’ inventory.”
“Close gets shorter because you are not manually trueing up receipt, accrual, and payables at the last minute.”
“The number CS quotes is the number on the stock record—fewer callbacks and fewer margin surprises.”
Close
“Next step I like: half-day workshop with your controller and warehouse lead—we post two of your open POs as test data and validate account mappings.”
“In parallel, IT gets the integration list for the one system you must keep—MES, 3PL, or marketplace feed—so we scope effort honestly.”
Example scenario
Example: Daniel, Controller, and Priya, Director of Warehouse Ops
Daniel owns a 10+ day close and hears “inventory was off again” every quarter. Priya gets escalations when CS promises a ship date the floor cannot hit. They need one receipt to hit inventory and accrual the same way, and they need ATP that does not require a phone call to the dock. This script shows them that story in one sitting.
Why this script works
- Finance and ops stay on one narrative instead of alternating module demos they cannot connect.
- Receipt and match are the emotional center—most ERP distrust starts there.
- ATP at the end ties operational pain to the same data the controller signs off on.
Call to action
Turn this talk track into a reusable outline and prep checklist.
More category scripts
FAQ
What if they demand intercompany on the first call?
Acknowledge it, show where multi-entity lives in your product at a high level, and propose a dedicated session with consolidated reporting examples. Do not derail the PO-to-pay proof thread.
How much customization should I promise live?
None by name. Say “configurable within standard policy options” and book a solution consultant if they want bespoke posting rules—your job in presales is credible standard flow, not contract language.
How do I prep logistics for this demo?
Run the Demo Checklist Generator with a technical-deep-dive slant, and sketch the same PO in your Software Demo Script Template so co-presenters know who owns which beat.