By Matt Massey, CEO drive2 Inc.
I know, telling technology companies to stop selling technology is like asking; "Is water wet?"
What I'm really saying is stop marketing the technology and start selling the business value. According to Business 2.0 Magazine, in 2008, there are more technology companies appearing on the landscape, with market-ready technology, than ever before. We've gotten past the boom, bust and rebound of the .com bubble and these are tech companies ready to go-to-market.
The challenge for almost every technology company is to rise above selling to the IT departments of target customers and start selling to the business line decision makers.
Why? What's the difference?
Selling your technology to IT, engineering or technology departments of target customers poses a significant challenge for small and medium tech companies. Primarily, it results in elongating the sales cycle by first trying to get on the radar screen of already over worked tech departments of a target customer. Then immediately enter into a long process of technology evaluation and fit then eventually moving up the line to determine fit within the existing business model. Add to this challenge if you are small or medium company with low brand awareness, having an even more difficult time because they've never heard of you.
The Business Line Sales Focus –
Sell your business value to the Business Line of a target customer. It's a top down strategy. Engaging at the C-level, Board-level or VP level of the business line, will in most sales processes, qualify your opportunities better and achieve buy-in from senior executives who can drive the process internally and expedite the sales process. Conversely, it can earn you a solid No more quickly and allow you to move on to the next target customer without the issue of having prolonged the sales process, only to arrive at a negative outcome.
Yes, there is the still challenge of getting on the radar screen of the senior executive and demonstrating your relevant business value, but once you've entrenched yourself with the target customer decision maker, its smoother road to a PO and you can drive faster to get there.
drive2 is a demand creation company. We develop performance driven, results-based lead generation and demand creation programs for technology and services companies. For more information on demand creation and on how drive2 can work with your company, visit www.drive-2.com.
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