Technology: A Sales Arsenal

Being a part of the IT industry, technology plays a vital role in not just
understanding the various products, but also using it when they have to be sold
to different customer verticals. It's best for sales personnel to befriend the
technology of products and solutions than simply shy away from them. An added
advantage would be the ability to look at the situation from the customer's
point of view.

Which other Industry uses the term 'Technology' more than the 'Information
Technology' (IT) industry. None in my opinion. Through this article, I wish to
draw the reader's attention to the fact that, - Technology surely is a 'Sales
Arsenal', especially given the fact that we belong to the IT industry.

Let's for a moment imagine what an average IT sales guy from any SI
organization must be talking to his prospects: "Hello Sir, I am from so and
so company. We are partners of 'x y z', who are present in 120 countries and
are market leaders in 'a b c' products. They established Indian operations
almost fifteen years back. Sir, what is your current requirement; I can send you
a quote. I need to take a 'special price' from my principal company, so
please give me 24 hours to submit our quote".

Now, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this approach. But, for a moment
let's draw the attention of the sales person by asking these questions: a) who
is your employer? b) Who is that entrepreneur who promoted the organization? c)
What is his vision? d) What values does the organization promote during the
course of doing business? e) What is the credibility of your employer in the
market place? f) Doesn't your company have an image and prestige of its own?
g) What genuinely is the value addition that the customer can expect in working
with you? Don't you find the need to differentiate yourself with the rest of
the IT salesmen?

You may say why am I asking a barrage of questions, and what relevance do
they have with this article? Well, these are relevant questions. The moment
these get answered, the readers can relate better to the fact that I am laying a
foundation for a discussion on my topic today.

Building depth in conversation

Whether we like it or not, let's be clear that ours is not an FMCG type
industry, where the sales person's approach can be stereotype and all they
need to focus on is volumes. They need to build depth in channels, C&F
agents, distributors, retail mega markets and all small retailers. Innovation in
that industry comes from ad agencies and marketing champs. So what am I hinting
at? Technological advancements in our industry are rapid and acquiring knowledge
through constant reading is imperative. If you are not abreast with the latest
in technology, you feel obsolete and when that happens, you lose confidence. Let
me caution you that lack of confidence and posture shows up in the way you talk
to your prospects and customers.

You cannot afford to be monotonous and boring in your approach. While you
could expect some help from the 'pre-sales' guys, that is only for product
positioning, comparisons and detailed specifications. It is your responsibility
to understand the use of technology and you need to point out their business
benefits for the respective customers/prospects. 

Are you technically or technologically oriented?

Let's be clear about the use of the words 'technical' and 'technological'.
The word technical is obviously used for describing technicality of a given
product, details such as its mechanical, electrical and physical features. For
example, the detailed specifications of a printer could mean technical
description. Let me mention that we need not be very technical during our sales
calls. I learnt very early in my career and I teach youngsters that —
"Don't sell features, sell benefits". This is a very profound
message.

So, if that's technical, what is technology? A simple meaning is: 'The
practical application of science to businesses. In other words, the application
of knowledge and applied sciences for business objectives could be termed as
Technology.

Here are some examples: a) Intel 'Centrino' is a technology. Without the
thorough understanding of 'Centrino', you cannot successfully position and
sell the current generation laptops. b) When we talk storage- SAN, NAS, CAS, IP
SAN are all technologies. There are several brands using each of these
technologies. c) In Network Security, an 'Appliance-based Unified Threat
Management (UTM)' is a technology concept. There could be several more
examples.

Relate to customer's business

Every sales person in our industry should understand the different
technologies and should be able to successfully relate the same to their use in
customer's business. When we are able to convey the message effectively, that
usage of technology would help customers eliminate their operational pain
points, improve employee productivity, and also that it could result in higher
profitability, this approach makes a lot of sense.

Unless this is achieved by the sales person during sales calls, even the
routine sales involving say just some desktops, printers; low-end servers etc
(which do not involve any great 'technology') would become very difficult.
Such deals would be taken-away by the smart salesmen.

As an experienced sales guy, I wish to conclude with some simple messages —
a) be a master of your destiny, b) Have a high belief in yourself, c) Remind
yourself about the popular saying: "Managers do different things, Leaders
do things differently". We need to thrive to become a leader, not a just
remain a 'manager' (with due respect to all contented managers).

My best wishes to every IT Salesman. 

The author is President — Sales, Ashtech Infotech Pvt Ltd and can be
contacted at: b_shankar@ashinfo.com

TIPS TO IMPLEMENT

Understand
the need to create differentiators for yourself (as an individual) and for
your organization