Author: web25982625

Generally speaking ” If you do something with open source that is irresponsible and that causes harm, you should go to jail – just like if you kill someone when driving a car..” ( Wendy Hall, United Nations AI advisory body)

For the last few weeks, I have been speaking to early-stage companies and their young team of developers and entrepreneurs. Many are still building a technical solution with various components, and when I asked the question where they are in the market cycle, they are not able to answer the question. What market cycle ? To help them move forward with their marketing and sales strategy, I encourage them to read yet another book, see below, currently in its third edition.

 

 

As apposed to developer teams building individual software modules for enterprise customers, designing an open platform and  PRACTICAL (uncomplicated) ecosystem first, may prove most beneficial for future sales growth.

Benefits include :

1. Establishing a customer relationship, as a “day to day” user experience
2. Growing your brand name using meaningful data points and services within a system’s environment
3. Accumulating more enterprise customer purchases in increments, defined by broader needs, and predicting customer benefits with the availability of new technologies and  “combinational”  flexibility

Requirements :

This platform approach requires a core value proposition that is practical and easily understood, reflecting inherent and particular customer needs, ideally also strengthening distinctive competitive advantages i.e lowering customer switching costs and integration expenses for the service provider.

Challenge :

So, what data sources and services are most important for your particular  enterprise customer, and how will you take advantage of this acquired knowledge ?

Start with a small platform, keep it “light” and very easy to use.

As experienced information technology (IT) leaders understand, building a technology business requires creativity, speed and agility, plus longer-term vision to accomplish an appreciation in value. To address this challenge the following technological developments require detailed study :

• Software architectural models (Security, Process Management, System Design, Data Acquisition)

• Open software tools and platforms for new applications / solutions generation

• New found computing and communication platforms

• Disruptive business models (E-Commerce, Crowd-Funding)

• Methods to communicate globally

As communication channels expand around the globe, new product development methods replace older business operation processes.
Shifts and iterations in product development, sales strategy, marketing and company operations occur more often for competitive advantage.

As a consequence:

• Competitors specialize and focus more clearly on their defined core strengths
• Product managers’ teams require quicker product innovation cycles
• Sales teams require more specialized customer segments to generate solid revenues
• Products and services need to be universally understood and accepted across the globe
• Faster turn-over and lower cost sales channels become essential
• Simple to use and understand business models are necessary for quick implementation

With many years of experience,  experts can reinforce executive leaders in Information Technology (IT) to reach their goals, focusing on strategic decisions and practical actions. With a team approach, collaborating and communicating openly, they connect company objectives with successful processes and operations.

Mission Statement

To provide profitable and strategic advisory services to information technology companies, for competitive advantage and solid growth.

Expertise and Focus

• Vision & Mission
• Channels and Sales
• Go-To-Market Strategies
• Growth
• Joint Ventures

The goal : to enable leaders with their strategic challenges, to build solutions that achieve sustained sales growth and company value appreciation.

Questions to analyze with team leaders include:

• What do you consider your team’s competitive strength and focus ?
• Where do you currently realize your best return on investment and time ?

With detailed questions, collaboratively, experts construct suitable models for differential / competitive advantage, sales and revenue growth.

Weak and Indefensible

• The misallocation of financial resources and ignorance of competitive strengths when distributing assets and assigning people resources, is a habitual problem.

• Building closed pricing / fixed technology platforms and ”pushing” these solutions into highly competitive market segment, is another prevailing growth obstacle.

• Continuing with traditional business routines, and using past experiences to rationalize current operations, despite a quickly changing market place is also commonplace.

What is the result, if action is not taken ?

• Information Technology (IT) companies build on top of non-competitive technologies and business models with no inherent competitive strengths; further investment is placed into non effective (none growth oriented) processes, leading to even quicker financial losses.

Goals

• To strengthen team leaders to find customer segments and sales channels with faster growth, and to build open model product architectures for continuous innovation and add-on capabilities.

• To advise companies how to find new competitive competencies for new products and a rebirth of innovation and growth.

Executive teams must have the ability to anticipate and react quickly to the competition. Experts can help build this environment.

“In a separate commissioned survey by Forrester Consulting, B2B customers ranked easy-to-use, up-to-date DIGITAL customer interfaces as the most important characteristic of organizations they prefer to work with….

Yet … they also emphasized the need for a strong, ONGOING relationship with their sales reps. In fact, more than half said they would stop doing business with a company that failed to meet face-to-face regularly..” (Deloitte Digital)

So find and build the best sales process and start using both.

Report below with a few additional points, examples and questions.

Enterprise B2B Sales