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[Editor's Note: Vendors have asked us to describe the information and tools we would like them to provide about their products and services. The intent is to make our evaluation and recommendation process easier and more productive in terms of the use of their capabilities. The narrative that follows is directed at these requests. In the process, we have attempted to represent not only our own needs, but those in the rest of the technical consulting community as well. Comments and suggestions are invited and would be appreciated. Please indicate your sphere of interest and send them to: ]
What can vendors do to help customers and the consultants who represent their interests? This section provides an overview of some things vendors should consider doing. Although the theme focuses on consultants, even when a consultant does not appear to be involved, customers still play that role in the buying process for themselves and usually need the same kinds of information. Consultative selling is really the traditional selling process with a few modifications.
Before discussing a few specifics, here is a key piece of advice. Walk in the shoes of the customer or consultant! This means looking at things from their point of view. Try to understand what it takes them to learn about what you have to offer. Then what is involved in making them comfortable with you, your company and the products and services offered, and save them time and effort in the process. In large part, the answer centers on being easy to do business with. But in addition, it often requires doing some of their work for them.
It's a fine line. Whether internal or independent, each consultant has a job to do and is hopefully being well paid to do a very good one. If you are a vendor, in all likelihood, the consultant's client is also your customer. The consultant is hired to do a number of things including evaluating competing products, making a selection of the ones that best fit the needs of the customer, and then helping to incorporate your products or your competitors' into their business. Part of the consultant's value is maintaining objectivity and coming up with an optimal solution balancing a number of sometimes competing criteria and tradeoffs.
The vendor's job, your job, is to do the best one possible to get the consultant on your team. Remember, there are influencers and decisionmakers in any sales situation. Although this can sometimes be the same person, for complex sales, multiple individuals are usually involved. Similarly the bigger the sale, more people involved that need to be sold. The better the job you do in helping the consultant and convincing him or her of the merits of what you are trying to sell, the better the job they will do in explaining or incorporating your interests into the recommendations being made to the client.
It is important not to compromise the integrity of the consultant in the eyes of the customer who is paying for objectivity, but the consultant that is more familiar with something that works, especially if it works well, will frequently avoid looking further. The unknown can be quite threatening particularly in the world of high technology. Complex technical things are difficult enough for the initiated, the consultant. As a friend put it, "You guys really are getting important. Lucky for you, things [technically] seem to be getting more complex every day!"
Vendors should not be selling things anymore. They should be selling solutions. They should be selling benefits and meeting needs. The company that merely sells something with a bunch of features without focusing on the benefits usually ends up in a commodity situation where price rules and where the customer looks at pricing with a microscope, feature by feature. Moving things to a higher plain usually means that a cost-benefit comparison will justify a higher price that reflects the added value the vendor provides through a packaged solution. Packaging is important to prevent unbundling.
Let's look at a few things that will help improve the positioning of your products and services with the technical consulting community. Obviously, some items are more important than others, and some may not always apply. Further, budget limitations will probably force priorities on what can be done and how soon.
These are several classes of the information that consultants need and use. Organizing and packaging the information to maximize its usefulness and usability will help assure that it will not just sit on a shelf somewhere. That is the challenging part. Here are several things that are important.
Packaging can be in different forms. Some appear to duplicate others. However, not everyone has the capabilities or desire to use one form or another. Consider a mix of the following communications vehicles. Do not forget duplication across the different media. Sometimes it pays to be direct, other times be more subtile. Also, continually seek feedback and do more of the things that your audience demands.
It is important to be highly proactive. Continually keeping in front of the customer/consultant makes them think of you first. Further, the more complete the customers'/consultants' knowledge base becomes, the less they will need to call with special requests for additional information. The objective is to provide tools that are easier for them to use than calling you for every answer. Save yourself for the critical, thought provoking requests.
At times, it really seems that perception is everything! Your information needs to work on changing perceptions to favor you and your company. Assistance from ROCKWOOD MANAGEMENT SERVICES will help give you the competitive edge!
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