During my decades-long career as a CFO, I’ve had the great pleasure of knowing and interacting with many superbly talented entrepreneurs. Unfortunately, some of these remarkable individuals are also what I call “cash-blind owners.” This “disorder” describes otherwise-savvy business owners who are totally oblivious to the monthly cash activity of their business. Because many owners Read the full article…
As technology and customer demands shift, so do the approaches we need to take to sell systems and services to clients. As Bob Lobascio, partner at Corporate Sales Coaches, pointed out in a recent NSCA webinar, integrators now have to battle against the “three Cs” when selling: Consolidation: Do your clients view bigger as Read the full article…
Preparation can make or break a sales meeting with prospects or clients. If you enter the sales meeting ready to answer questions and address resistance, you’ll strengthen the relationship and help your prospect or client increase their trust in you. If the meeting is unorganized and unprofessional, however – and you’re not able to answer Read the full article…
Account executives generally think of their role as one that generates revenue and gross profit. This assumption is mostly – but not entirely – correct. Sales professionals can also make a serious contribution to cost containment if they pay attention to it. The problem is, however, that they rarely give enough thought to what happens Read the full article…
In just the last few months, two of the leading technology providers in the systems integration industry have switched from a hybrid go-to-market model (having a direct salesforce and a dealer network) to committing 100% to the dealer channel. I’ve been fortunate to help both organizations through this transformation and observe the challenges and results. Read the full article…
Before digital strategy became my passion, I loved sales. In fact, I still love sales. Whether you’re a business owner or manager, or you are carrying a bag, selling is at the core of what drives a business forward. Read the full article…
Every employee in your organization supports the sales process, but many probably don’t realize how their role impacts the bottom line. From marketing and accounting to inventory managers and receptionists, each role in the project delivery process goes a long way toward retaining or losing a client – even if the employee doesn’t have direct Read the full article…
Technology can be confusing. Few people truly know how things work, but in an industry full of “techies,” we tend to disregard that fact when we step in front of a customer. This isn’t anyone’s fault – most sales professionals have had little actual sales training. So like anyone asked to operate based only on Read the full article…
NSCA knows all too well some of the actions integrators take that may have unforeseen consequences. The reason we’re so familiar with them is that we’ve either made these mistakes ourselves or routinely hear about them from NSCA members. Read the full article…
The use of social media is one way to stay in touch with clients. But I would categorize it as a small piece of the engagement puzzle. I caution integrators all the time that social media isn’t a replacement for face-to-face, one-on-one conversations. Yet we see this happen all the time. Read the full article…
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