Selecting the Right Software; Five Sources

Posted by Rsnyder on Nov 20th, 2011 | no comments

Results are not where you need them to be. You know your approach can be improved. You decide you’ve got to do something about this.

You search the web and discover potential solutions to your problem.

You ask colleagues and post a question on your social media groups.

However, there are so many tools out there; it is hard to know which one will be best for you.

Don’t despair, there is help!

This help comes from five types of sources;

• Industry analysts
• Industry and technology sites and newsletters
• Platform and tool vendor sites
• Third party reviews
• User reviews, forums and social platforms

Industry analysts, such as Gartner, Forrester, IDC, etc. have long been helpful in analyzing and positioning product offerings by segment. They provide a very helpful big picture view and help you shape your thinking re what to look for in a tool in a category.

Industry and technology review sites and newsletters provide valuable perspective, including overview and in-depth product reviews. These include Techcrunch, Cnet, PC and software magazine sites and industry newsletters, such as the one from Sandhill.com.

Platform vendors often provide marketplaces of tools that run in on their platform by category. Two examples of this are CRM vendors (i.e. Salesforce.com’s AppExchange) and the Apple Store. This makes it easy to find tools that do what you’re looking for. Most of them also provide user ratings. Tool vendors themselves often provide product positioning and comparisons as well as testimonials and case studies.

Another very helpful resource is third-party reviews. There are sites that review software tools in specific categories and sum up each tool’s strengths and where they best fit. A good example of this is SmartSellingTools.com .

Finally, there are user reviews, forums and user perspectives posted on social sites. Naturally these are very helpful, provided the user’s perspective is representative of your needs. It is often hard to know the person’s perspective and what issues they were trying to resolve.

As you go through this process, these resources help you deepen your understanding of what is out there and what criteria will enable you to make the best selection and produce the results you need. They make it much easier to make a good decision in a world of increasing choices.

Sales & Marketing 2.0 Conference Take-Aways

Posted by Rsnyder on Oct 21st, 2011 | no comments

As I reflect on the conference, I see that organizations need to:

1. Connect with buyers- respond quickly, engage them via video (live, on-line, in email).
2. Ensure sales and marketing align to identify, target and touch empowered buyers.
3. Engage users. Make it easy for the to get full value from the tool/method.
4. Identify and implement the critical few strategies and metrics that drive results.
5. Integrate in one place your tools and methods that drive results (i.e. your CRM).
   
6. Communicate across boundaries (internal functions, organizations).
   

In order to stay on top of these trends, I need to:

1. Use video more (prerecorded and live) because it brings back the person-to-person connection that is getting lost in today’s selling environment.
2. Build support connections  that are easy to generate (i.e. through networking, acquaintances) and expand my reach and impact- by being more active in LinkedIn, twitter… and facebook.
3. Participate in and help develop the value of online communities by delivering valuable content, asking questions that illuminate and sharing my experience.
4. Manage the conflicting priorities in a world that is moving at the “speed of thought.”