Better software smoothes the road to managing KPIs

This article echoes our frustrations and the dilemma that many software suppliers face when dealing with prospective customers.

Shall we refer this prospect, who just wants to replace a manual system with a very basic networked BI / PSA / CRM software system that mirrors their current procedures, to a competitor, or do we ‘sell’ one of our more feature-rich modules that will require the prospect to change some of their very basic business management procedures, so they can actually benefit from the internal cost and time savings that will pay for this slightly higher investment in a matter of months?

Do we just give them what they want, rather than sell them what they need? Are we in a position to lecture / educate the prospect? Until we get to know and trust each other this can be very difficult to assess.

Many prospects ask for the price of the software before they even know what it can do or what value it can unlock for their business. Direct product comparisons can be very difficult. No wonder many end up with “garbage”, as the lowest price is not the best qualifier when selecting software.

Client case studies can sometimes help to give a before and after picture but few companies had a clear idea of what their old manual system was costing them to run or how the lack of real-time KPIs and inadequate business management processes were affecting their efficiency / bottom line.

Even after installing the best software there are no guarantees. It’s a business tool and wholly dependant on how well it is used and supported.

Gil van der Sluis
Marketing Manager
www.onesys.co.uk