Archive for the 'Value Proposition' Category

07
Sep
10

Sydney Australia – Day 3: Making Money with Security

By Dave Stelzl's Blog 2 Comments
Categories: Real Life and Value Proposition
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Day 3 started our first day of a three day workshop on developing security sales.  Our topic: Making Money with Security – the Power of Security To Open New Doors…we have people from all of the major cities attending, including Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, as well as some from New Zealand.   A few key take-aways from day 1:

  1. Great messaging is more important than great products – of course the product must work, but a lack of great messaging will kill any good technology.
  2. Sales people must make it a priority to study marketing concepts.  Marketing is a science as well an an art and is sorely lacking in most sales efforts.
  3. Security products require a risk based justification model.  ROI is a poor choice and waiting on budget and customer need is purely opportunistic.  You’ll never consistently achieve quota with either approach.
  4. General account managers may not give security the attention it deserves, especially when it is a small part of the overall deal revenue.  It is incumbent on overlay sales, presales, and security division managers to demonstrate the importance of security and it’s power to open new doors of opportunity.
  5. Being demoted by asset owners is a surface problem.  The root problem is poor messaging and a lack of risk focused justification.
  6. Every company has an urgent security need.  Your job is to discover it and present in with compelling messaging.
  7. Security jargon diminishes all urgency – effective security proposals are delivered verbally, to asset owners, in business language, with a focus on impact and likelihood.

Our day ended with dinner outdoors in front of the Opera House with a beautiful view of the city skyline and bridge pictured above.

PLUS: 5 great things about working in Sydney:

1. People show up on time!

2. Seating fills in from the front (rather the rear as in most US events)

3. Fast food is limited, so people tend to be more alert after lunch.

4. The city is safe so you can walk to work or dinner if you are staying in the city.

5. I really enjoy the Australian accent which they tell me is much different than the British accent, although I really can’t tell.

© 2010, David Stelzl

01
Sep
10

Verizon Wireless Trusted Advisers – Listen Up!

By Dave Stelzl's Blog 2 Comments
Categories: Value Proposition
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After working hard to reduce the size of my phone, I’ve taken a step back with the Blackberry.  My wife thinks it’s funny that my phone is as big as some laptops, but I just couldn’t pass up the apps.  So why am I telling you this…because there’s a great “trusted adviser” story behind this – one appropriate for anyone in sales.  Here’s what happened:

1. First, those who know me know I’ve been waiting for Verizon to support iPhone for the longest time.  Keep reading….

2. It all started when I called Verizon to get my sim chip enabled for my upcoming trip to Australia, India, and Singapore.  I keep this function disabled while working in the states as a prudent measure of cost containment.

3. Of course Verizon had to put me hold, so I was surfing around, minding my own business when an idea popped into my head.  I wonder if you can make overseas calls from Google phone for free, or some ridiculously low price.  Of course you can (and Skype works as well)…but it requires an app on a smart phone, which I did not have.

4. As the Verizon sales rep began unfolding the simple plan of 4.99/month plus just $2+ per minute, I was reading about $.02 charges using either Google or Skype on Blackberry or Droid phones.  The Droid seemed to be the obvious choice…I didn’t let on, but thanked them and hung up.

5. From there I was in the car on my way to buy a new phone.  If I spent just ten minutes per day, I was looking at a few hundred dollars in phone charges!  My contract at Verizon is up – so I knew I could probably have a smart phone for close to nothing.  The Droid 2 was a possible choice…lots of memory, lots of apps, and pretty good reviews.

6. At the store they  told me they didn’t have it in stock…bummer.  They started working on getting one to the store overnight when I asked, “Does this really sport global support?”  The said “Yes!” but I was asking the wrong question.  I should have asked, “Does this support GSM global communications?”  They didn’t know.  So I headed back home to find out.

7.  I was right.  It does not.  However, the Blackberry storm is one of the few that does; Droid is working on it.  So I headed back to the store, made the purchase, and here I am.

So here’s the Trusted Adviser issue, in case you missed it.

- Why did the sales person on the phone lead me down the $2+ / minute route?  Was this a money making deception or just plain ignorance?

- Why didn’t the rep in the store know about global networks?  What would have happened if I had bought the Droid with only 2 days to figure out I had the wrong phone?

Being a trusted adviser means knowing more than just the product.  It means having great advice and being an adviser.  It also requires integrity and trustworthiness.  One of the two was lacking with the first rep; I believe the second was just uninformed.

© 2010, David Stelzl

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26
Apr
10

Risk assessments sell every kind of product and service!

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment
Categories: Channel Management, Marketing, Sales Strategy and Value Proposition
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How are resellers showing an ROI on managed services deals in order to sell them?  (If you are in channels, I’d be interested in hearing what you are seeing from your partners as well).  Here are some observations along with a White Paper I have written on using assessments to accelerate sales cycles by providing justification to the buyer through risk.

WHITE PAPER: (click and download the Assessment document)

  1. Differentiation and closing the deal seems to have little bearing on the platform; Nable, Zenith, LPI, Kaseya,…some are  better than others technically, but none are great.  The differentiation seems to be in the offering and services provided locally more than the platform.  The better implementations are largely customized and target only small and mid-market opportunities.  After that it’s custom or OEM’d.
  2. Companies that try to show an ROI simply invite an audit of past service calls.  This leads to long sales cycles.
  3. The initial offering may look promising, however once the reseller’s current customer base has been exhausted, sales plateau.  New customers are needed…but hard to find.
  4. Small businesses won’t sign up for monitoring unless the seller can show some kind of justification.  Often they can not.
  5. Reporting is poor among most platforms – the client doesn’t receive much value here.  Trying to creating quarterly value is often a struggle leading to resellers putting their SE’s on site to demonstrate value.  This is done without an accurate counting of the opportunity cost, and is often the thing that makes the monthly contract unprofitable (something generally hidden in the financials.)

Personally I have found that assessments work as deal accelerators (when they focus on risk analysis) – we’ve done them in every sized account; some complementary, others for a fee.  The deal is closed when justified by demonstrating a high likelihood of loss.  What are you seeing?  I’d love to hear your comments on this and the white paper!  If it’s helpful, feel free to pass it on.

© David Stelzl, 2010

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12
Feb
10

Punta Cana – Day One

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Categories: Value Proposition and Video
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Day one in Punta Cana – preparing for my talk to Kaspersky Partners…and enjoying some time away from the cold wet weather we’re experiencing in the US!

06
Oct
09

Mastering Boardroom Presentations

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Categories: Value Proposition
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Every workshop I conduct is a learning experience for me.  Here are some of the key thoughts I had coming away from today’s workshop on Mastering Boardroom Presentations (Richmond VA):

  • Assessments and studies justify new business.  If your clients are calling for product quotes, someone else created the justification.  Your value proposition is now “Price”.

 

  • If your engineers are delivering your assessment findings, you’re either in front of the wrong audience or your client is sleeping through the presentation.

 

  • Learning to present in front of an audience is non-optional for sales people.  Practice, record it, listen to it, critique it, change it, practice it…etc.

 

  • Don’t start your presentation on a white board and then abandon the picture.  Your audience will be staring at the picture wondering, while you pontificate to no one in particular.

 

  • Don’t write your proposal until you’ve received verbal agreement.  Your presentation is the sales tool; the paper simply solidifies the agreement.

 

  • Language matters – speak is specifics, articulate benefits and outcomes, establish your credibility, and offer solutions with confidence.

 

  • Poor self esteem is one the primary contributors to stalled proposals.  Turn this around – practice until you’re comfortable presenting in front of your worst critics.

 

  • Don’t ask questions IT can answer and don’t speak in technical terms – this leads to an immediate demotion.  Keep a business focus throughout the process.

 

  • Hold off on writing proposal and delivering pricing until you’ve had an audience with the buyer.  To proceed otherwise is just a waste of time.

 

Also – don’t forget to sign up for October’s Teleseminar!  We’ve got a great group already…join us by signing up for Successful Marketing to Management at  www.stelzl.us/store.asp – this material is of utmost importance to sales professsionals looking to establish their brand.

 

© David Stelzl 2009

02
Sep
09

The Tent Makers Advantage

By Dave Stelzl's Blog 2 Comments
Categories: Value Proposition

Remember it rained on my recent backpacking trip? Well not only did it rain, but my tent fly ripped on day one. Actually, the seam came apart right at the top, and grew worse over the course of the trip. It’s a fairly new tent and quite expensive at that. This type of thing causes me much aggravation. So upon my return I was winding up for another call to the manufacturer. While I’m irritated with the product failure, I always look at these calls as a chance to practice my own selling skills.

In preparation I hunted for the receipt. You know I have every receipt for every camping accoutrement known to man; with the exception of my tent! So I’m getting ready to make my appeal for some action, but not well equipped. At least I can look up the transaction date on Quicken (which I maintain with extreme diligence).

Here is what Mountain Hardware did…let this be a lesson to all of us who aim to maintain strong account relationships in an overcrowded world of technology solution providers.

  1. First, Mountain Hardware is not the low cost provider. They’re right up there with Northface, MSR, and Sierra Design, and you pay a fortune to have their stuff. And in most cases it’s well designed and exudes quality.
  2. The warranty on my tent is life-time, but you and I know that means almost nothing to some companies.
  3. I called the number in my instruction book (which I did manage to save), and was greeted almost immediately by an upbeat young lady ready to help. I did not have to navigate through 57 automated options to get there!
  4. I explained the problem…and she immediately empathized with me on the misery of having this type of experience while out in the woods, in the rain.
  5. Then she did the most amazing thing. No request for receipt, no need to escalate this issue up to management, and no forms to fill out. “Simply send us the tent and we’ll send you a new one”. They didn’t even offer to fix it. They just replace it.

What can you do that will make your clients love you today? I am a Mountain Hardware customer for life now! What about your clients?

14
Jul
09

Who’s the fool? The seller or the buyer….take a look.

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment
Categories: Marketing and Value Proposition
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Back from our 4th of July vacation and up in Boston today presenting the keynote at Courions national sales meeting – I came across this video sent from Steven, who attended a recent Making Money with Security Class.  It’s worth taking a few notes from this for your next negotiation session…

02
Apr
09

Throughts on Proposing Solutions

By Dave Stelzl's Blog 2 Comments
Categories: Value Proposition
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  • Proposals don’t sell solutions – they state what’s already been agreed to. Don’t use your proposal to state your value proposition.
  • When you change your selling process based on a company’s protocol for bidding, you turn your value proposition into a commodity. It was your proclaimed ability to create differentiation that got you in your current job position; don’t agree to sell on a “so-called” level playing field.
  • The RFP process was created by government to prevent corruption – of course it’s been a failure. Instead, it has taken every provider’s differentiation out of the decision making process. In fact, the decision is most often made before the RFP is written.
  • When gatekeepers claim that decision makers don’t have time to see you, you should be asking if these same people have time to live with their current condition vs. the few minutes you’re asking for.
  • Before you can propose, you have to come to an agreement on value. Without such an agreement, there can’t be a fair evaluation of price.
20
Jan
09

A Word on Customer Service

By Dave Stelzl's Blog Leave a Comment
Categories: Value Proposition
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No kidding, I sent my latest Making Money with Security® workbook to my printer last week, a 66 page workbook, and there was a typo on the front cover.  The document was in PDF format, ready to print.  This morning I get a message from one of the operations people at Color Visual Concepts telling me that my book has a word misspelled.  They’ve already made  the change, attached the new PDF cover to the email, and are printing to get it done and delivered on time.  This is the kind of customer service you just don’t see any more.  Most of us  would have notified the client, asked them to change it, and then print. Of course this might have created a deadline issue…something to consider.

10
Dec
08

Making Money with Security Workshop Notes

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Categories: Value Proposition
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Having just completed another Making Money with SecurityTM workshop out in Fort Collins Colorado here are some learning points worth noting:

  • Focus on the assets, find the asset owner. Selling security is never about product.
  • IT people are not liable for the protection of assets – as long as they carry out their job and avoid policy violations, they have little to lose. Sell to the asset owner – those responsible for the business.
  • Compliance officers and audit personnel are not asset owners. CSOs don’t normally create or control large budgets. Treat them as influencers.
  • Aside from Government contracts, avoid all RFPs. Companies generally choose the winner long before sending these projects out for bid.
  • Security sales start with a measurement of risk and end with some form on ongoing risk mitigation, such as Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP) offerings.
  • Delivering price proposals to influencers means handing control of the deal over to the client. From there it becomes a waiting game.
  • Asking questions: When you ask executives to answer questions that could be answered by IT, you get an immediate demotion back to IT. Make sure you plan your questions before meeting with key stakeholders.
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