Business History Books » Business Consulting Strategy » The Myth of High Tech Marketing?
The Myth of High Tech Marketing?
Question:
You could call this the "Sales Prevention Department" 
<snip> – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->let a salesperson get the "lead hot" and ready to sign >and then you are someother technically competent person make sure that >expectations are in line before you "let them" sign the contract – <snip>
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>Further, IMHO, the same keys to your success in selling advertising can be an >asset to you in selling "Tech". Think about it … the business owner doesn’t >really buy MIPs or Cycles or GUIs or function points or …. any of this "Tech >stuff" – They buy Business Benefits! and ROI! Right?
People buy hi-tech products because they think they’re suppose to or their employees think they are supposed to. Very few people buy computers to improve their ROI. They buy them to solve problems that are too costly to do otherwise. They buy them to keep from hiring more employees, or to insure their compliance with tax collecting agencies and federal regulations. If people bought computers to make money, my job would be a piece of cake. They don’t believe computers can make them money because very few of them know how to use one to make money. The positive effects of a good computer system is that it changes the way you think. A computer is just a machine, and someone has to apply intelligence to the hardware and software to create a new perspective, a new outlook on their method of operation. As long as personal computers continue to lead the market, it will never change. Regards, ScotSystems Inc. – http://www.scotsystems.com RVForumDot Com – http://www.rvforum.com AS/400 Support Forum – http://www.scotsystems.com/as400_os400.html 601 638-6989 Voice 601 631-0165 Fax 800 698-0462 Pager ICQ Address: 2783173 N32 24.753 W90 46.328
Response:
> > So, perhaps rather than limit yourself by "writing off" >salespeople altogether, maybe you should develop a commission plan that >incents the type of behavior you would like, right? > As I see it, the problem is no matter how hard you look, you can never > know everything the salesman told the customer. Many times I have been > asked to explain why my system, which includes over 1,000 objects and > programs, doesn’t perform this specific task or that one. The saleman > doesn’t remeber becuase with the customer says "does it do this?", the > salesman says, "heck yes it’s do that."
Ok, sure I can understand that. So, why not think about some ways to address this issue … like, let a salesperson get the "lead hot" and ready to sign and then you are someother technically competent person make sure that expectations are in line before you "let them" sign the contract – What do you think about something like that? Obviously it would be preferable to either have a technically competent person do the sales and/or have one participate in the complete sales cycle, but I also know for a "small shop or firm" that this may not be feasible, so … think about solutions! What do you think? > I don’t mean anything derogatory by this, but one of my favorite jokes > is, "Do you know the difference between a used car salesman and a > computer salesman?" The used car salesman KNOWS when he’s lying.
<G> I think this is *funny*, and sad 
, but true, so … What can be done about this issue? Hope this helps, – Michael S. DeVries Principal, Virtual Consulting Firm Global Business Marketing, Inc. (TM) Consulting Services, Training / Courses and Mentoring To Help You in: * Business * Management * IT/Computer Phone: (205) 761-9051 Fax: (205) 761-9227 ****** http://www.Creative-Trade.com/vcf.htm ******
Response:
> So, perhaps rather than limit yourself by "writing off" >salespeople altogether, maybe you should develop a commission plan that >incents the type of behavior you would like, right?
As I see it, the problem is no matter how hard you look, you can never know everything the salesman told the customer. Many times I have been asked to explain why my system, which includes over 1,000 objects and programs, doesn’t perform this specific task or that one. The saleman doesn’t remeber becuase with the customer says "does it do this?", the salesman says, "heck yes it’s do that." I don’t mean anything derogatory by this, but one of my favorite jokes is, "Do you know the difference between a used car salesman and a computer salesman?" The used car salesman KNOWS when he’s lying. Regards, ScotSystems Inc. – http://www.scotsystems.com RVForumDot Com – http://www.rvforum.com AS/400 Support Forum – http://www.scotsystems.com/as400_os400.html 601 638-6989 Voice 601 631-0165 Fax 800 698-0462 Pager ICQ Address: 2783173 N32 24.753 W90 46.328
Response:
<snip> > I was a salesman for 14 years <snip> my success was > due to my knack of transporting the customer to an imaginary > environment within which he actually believed that the successes I > painted for him were possible.
<snip> IMHO, "sales is like riding a bike" – you just have to get "back on one" to remember how 
Further, IMHO, the same keys to your success in selling advertising can be an asset to you in selling "Tech". Think about it … the business owner doesn’t really buy MIPs or Cycles or GUIs or function points or …. any of this "Tech stuff" – They buy Business Benefits! and ROI! Right? So, why not transport you client into the future – after buying your product or service – and have them imagine how their business will run better, smoother, more productively, more efficiently, etc. If they are transported into this vision and see how your product(s) and/or service(s) can help him get there, then why wouldn’t he buy it? Again, just to reiterate – business people buy business solutions! not "Tech stuff", so why try to sell them "Tech stuff", Sell them Business Solutions! Hope this helps, – Michael S. DeVries Principal, Virtual Consulting Firm Global Business Marketing, Inc. (TM) Consulting Services, Training / Courses and Mentoring To Help You in: * Business * Management * IT/Computer Phone: (205) 761-9051 Fax: (205) 761-9227 ****** http://www.Creative-Trade.com/vcf.htm ******
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Dear Bill: I guess I am missing your point somehow. Your post seemed to point out many of the problems with current state of information technology. I am missing the connection between those problems and what that has to do with making "the customer understand this and you’ll be a zillionaire." That seems to imply that you have solutions to these problems but you don’t really say what they are. It sounds like you want people to migrate their applications from PC’s to AS/400’s. Tough sale in a lot of cases having to do with attitudes, correct or not. As I said earlier in this thread, it’s very expensive to change attitudes, like convincing technical people that non-technical marketing personnel can do good work in their environment. So, do you try to change attitudes or just concentrate on finding the market segment that is already biased toward the solution you will ultimately offer? My experience selling intangibles (financial services) versus technical products was similar to yours. Unfortunately I couldn’t seem to captivate my audience as well as you could selling the intangibles, so I am eager to get back to manufactured products again where I am comfortable with the decision making process. My strengths have been more in the area of research, analysis and planning than sales anyway. But even with technical products, there often is an emotional component to decision making. You hinted at this when talking about how IS types want something they can play with and brag about at cocktail parties. I can also relate to your problem with competitors not playing fair. I frequently find myself competing with someone who offers impossibly good rates and terms. I know damn well that as they get close to loan closing that they will end up changing them to reflect where the market really is due to some flimsy excuse. At that point the client has to decide to either start all over with someone else and end up with the same result or going ahead with the unscrupulous lender/broker. Since I refuse to play that game I am at a significant disadvantage. Getting through to the actual decision makers has been a common problem in every industry I have been involved in. These people tend to insulate themselves with underlings who filter their information for them (and hence put their own spin on it), so it’s a little tricky communicating with them directly, especially if they do not appreciate the vital nature of their IS department. The best solution is communicating with both the influencers and decision-makers in their own languages and pushing their special hot buttons. This approach is more expensive and more work than approaching just the key influencers or key decision makers, but it seems to improve the chances of success. Charles J. Dudek resume: http://home.earthlink.net/~cdudek/
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As a marketing person, I have a great deal of respect for technical experts that design and support a company’s products and services. I don’t recall ever discussing a technical aspect of a product with a customer or prospect without involving or at least consulting with an engineer unless I had received the information previously. Yet it has been my experience that technically-oriented people like engineers do not respect the work of marketing people. They feel that marketing is just the application of common sense and to an extent they are correct. However, I have been bitten many times by engineers who made product decisions that were based on their own preferences and assumptions which were not reflective of the target market’s desires. Engineers tend to be biased toward technical superiority, efficiency and cost-effectiveness. However, these are not necessarily the things that will maximize profitability and engineers must be constantly reminded that changes which potentially affect form or function must be discussed with marketing. They don’t like to do this because they often feel better qualified to make these decisions, due to their superior technical understanding, than even customers or prospects . But sometimes customers do not share their viewpoints and that’s where I think a marketing person, not directly involved in the design process, can be valuable in being an advocate of the customers’ needs. I have been personally involved in cases where diligent market research led product development efforts in a direction greatly different from the engineering staff’s original specs. I feel I can honestly say that if I had an engineering degree it wouldn’t have made any difference in how I marketed the technical products I was responsible for. Our customers tended to communicate their needs in a language somewhat different from our engineers since the problems existed in one discipline and the solutions in another. For example, I doubt that cost accountants much care about your coding, they only care about how they will be able to process and access data. Although having an engineering background might have made me more credible to engineers who were responsible for design, it might have also made me a threat to them since I would have been tempted to tell them how to design instead of just conveying our customers’ desires. Taking some electrical engineering courses, as I did, helped me understand some of the language and problems that the engineers were dealing with, but it did not change the market’s needs or my insistence on developing ways to meet them. If the market wants something, it doesn’t matter how well you can explain why it can’t be done, so having the engineering knowledge would not have helped me communicate with our market. I know I will not change your mind, but making engineering degrees mandatory for marketing people will not necessarily result in more successful marketing programs and could actually have the opposite effect. That is, if you’re really marketing and not selling. My observations are based on the central tendencies of my experiences. Obviously there are exceptions. I think what is called for here is a little mutual respect for each profession which encompasses different skill sets. Making unilateral decisions about issues which are beyond an individual’s expertise, whether in the area of IS, accounting, production, engineering, sales or marketing, is not a good thing. However, the limitation of each specialist does diminish the specialized knowledge of those professionals nor does it obviate the need for that unique skill set in an effective organization. Charles J. Dudek resume: http://home.earthlink.net/~cdudek/ – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – <snip> >Every sale that’s been made by a marketing person has gotten me into >hot water. I’m being sued right now for $200K by a customer that >"misunderstood" what the salesman told him. No marketing department >will ever sell anything for me again. >Yes I know the difference between marketing and sales. Unfortunately >most marketing people don’t.
Response:
>>I am having one heck of a time cracking into the<BR> > world of high tech marketing.<BR> ><snip><BR> > The answer I most frequently get is that I do not have high tech >experience.<BR> ><snip>
<BR> <BR> Speaking as someone who hires marketing people for a relatively high tech area (Professional Audio/Digital Audio), I want to know four things: <BR> 1)Does the person intimately understand my business and the technology? <BR> 2) Does he/she know enough to translate my tech-speak into English (or whatever language) that my customer understands? <BR> 3) Does he/she know what MY customer really wants? <BR> 4) Does he have successful, documented experience doing the above?<BR> From past experience, when I hire an agency or marketer who does not understand my business, I get output that is so general it neither differentiates me nor adds value. And those are the two things I’m trying to get done! <BR> I agree, Michael, you need the industry specific experieince and knowledge to offer something special. After all, no one needs to just "hire" someone, they want superstars.<BR> – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->Brad Lunde >transamerica audio group, inc >Drawmer USA, Soundfield Mics USA, Brauner Mics USA >805-241-4443 >805-241-7839 fax
Response:
>My observations are based on the central tendencies of my experiences. >Obviously there are exceptions. I think what is called for here is a little >mutual respect for each profession which encompasses different skill sets. >Making unilateral decisions about issues which are beyond an individual’s >expertise, whether in the area of IS, accounting, production, engineering, >sales or marketing, is not a good thing. However, the limitation of each >specialist does diminish the specialized knowledge of those professionals >nor does it obviate the need for that unique skill set in an effective >organization.
I agree with everything you’ve said Charles. Maybe someday I’ll find a good marketing person who can help me improve my sales. I would like to add something to your comments that might shed some light on my feelings. I was a salesman for 14 years before I got into the computer business in 1978. I was a good salesman and made enough money to start my own computer business. I sold advertising. In that field, my success was due to my knack of transporting the customer to an imaginary environment within which he actually believed that the successes I painted for him were possible. However, the more I got into the computer business, the less of a salesman I became. I had to deal with actual facts, and I had to be able to demonstarte them early on or I would be just another liar. I find it literally impossible to wear both hats now. Having a complete and precise understanding of the product is a horrible asset. I can no longer answer questions honestly without jeopardizing the sale. When a customer asks, "can it do that?", instead of answering in the affirmative, I feel compelled to explain what we will have to do to make that happen. OR even worse, I have to explain why it doesn’t do that and why he doesn’t want it to do that. In our field, I have found that customers have attended too many Star Wars episodes. They believe anything is possible. My biggest problem at the moment is competing against sales and marketing people who have become experts at selling "vapor-ware". They make the customer believe that some things are possible, then they bleed the customer to death trying to make it happen. I lose the sale, and the customer loses his money. Then the customer becomes leary of me and everybody else in the business. It tends to make one cynical. Now the world of PCs are a bit different than the mid-range market I deal in. The computers I sell don’t play games, hook to the Internet – there’s no cute little mouse or colorful icons. It’s all business and consequently somewhat boring in comparison to Windows-based PCs. But the plus side is, they never crash, they rarely require a service call, they come with worldwide on-site servce and they are infinitely scalable; and for a kicker, they are about three times cheaper to run than a PC LAN. Our potential customers are usually the owners of businesses, not their employees. These "owners" tend to be somewhat handicapped in the understanding of data processing technology. They listen to their employees more than they listen to anybody else. Their employees want something they can play with. Something that will empower them. Something that will make their jobs more interesting, more fun, more commerically appealing to their peers. They love to go to cocktaiil parties and talk about high technology issues that will give them a common base of conversation with their peers. They’re not interested in the cost to run it, the on-site service, or the crash protection. And as far as scalability is concerned, how much room do you need for word processing and spreadsheets? They just go down to the Walmarts and grab another one. Microsoft has done a marvelous job at marketing, but a terrible job at quality control. But Microsoft was necessary. They have managed to get the issue of data processing out of the dungeons and the boardrooms and into the bright lights of the office where millions of workers have become involved and far more productive. A feat that no one else had been able, or even attempted to do. But now Microsoft is holding us back. The PC architecture has run its course. We need to move to a new level of technology. Microsoft is hopelessly tethered to 15 year old technology that refuses to die because it’s necessary to run all these commercially popular programs that made Microsoft famous in the first place. Who wants to buy Beta machines when they’ve gone 4,000 VHS tapes in the closet? We have to leap frog over the heads of the people the boss listens to and get the buyer to realize the benefits of a better type of environment without endangering the empowerment his employees have struggled so hard to retain. We have to get hime to realize the perils of apathy and complacency. This usually only happens after the boss is fed up with the current environment, runs into a business associate who has broken the bonds of what’s commercially attractive, and finally decides to do something about it. If it weren’t for the Year 2000, I would define my chances as "hopeless" to none. But the fact is, that 80-90% of the world’s PCs with turn belly-up on January 1, 2000. Why? Because most of these machines are loaded with little devices called embedded controllers – the little black chips that permeate the technology like white on rice. There are at least 10 billion of these little chips in virtually every electronic device on the face of the planet. PCs are lousy with them. They come from Taiwan, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, China, Bangladesh and Central and South America. Nobody really knows what these embedded controllers do, or whether they are date sensitive. But let’s say that the number of failures is as little as 10%. That’s 1 million systems failing all at once. Then there’s the problem of old PC technology that will crash regardless of the embedded controllers. There are literally millions, no tens of millions of these antiquated devices still in service. The disrutptions caused by this mere oversight will result in a catastrophe of monumental proportions. It will be talked discussed and studied for the next 1,000 years. Then there’s the problems of standards and electronic commerce. Just when we think it’s safe to turn our machines on again, businesses will find out they are no longer able to compete on a level playing field because of their self-imposed isolation with incompitible environments and equipment that won’t "talk". Show me a way to get a salesman to get the customer to understand this and you’ll be a zillionaire. Regards, ScotSystems Inc. – http://www.scotsystems.com RVForumDot Com – http://www.rvforum.com AS/400 Support Forum – http://www.scotsystems.com/as400_os400.html 601 638-6989 Voice 601 631-0165 Fax 800 698-0462 Pager ICQ Address: 2783173 N32 24.753 W90 46.328
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>I agree that the principles of marketing are universal and I have often said >that it doesn’t matter if you’re selling battleship parts or panty hose. On >the other hand, my experience for the past few years has been in financial >services, a field that was completely new to me. That shouldn’t have >mattered, but it sure did. What I have learned is that the application of >marketing principles can be tricky and the decision making processes are >quite different than I had dealt with at manufacturing companies.
Dear Mr. Dudek, I had about twenty years experience working with the financial services industry up until my work was put to the ultimate test. The accuracy of the work is summarized in the following item from "Worth" magazine: http://www.worth.com/articles/Z9511F02.html Marketing principles apply to financial services exactly the same way they apply to any other business. As we saw in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, there is a terrible price to pay for ignoring them. > Oddly, >decisions seem to have a larger emotional component and a smaller fact >component than in product marketing. You would think just the opposite, >since financial transactions by their very nature are quantifiable, but the >thought of money itself automatically generates a large amount of emotion.
Part of the issue is the role of legislation and regulation in financial services. Up until FIRREA, 1937-1989, poor decision making and non-marketing were actually rewarded by the regulatory and insurance environment for thrifts and banks. This created, not so much incompetence, but an insular avoidance of competance in banking at senior management levels. Today, marketing competence at financial organizations is probably at the highest level it has been in the last 75 years. It still has a long way to go. >At my earliest opportunity I am high-tailing it back to manufacturing where >life is a lot simpler and I am more at home.
This would probably be a loss for the financial industry. They need more people with an understanding of marketing. Sherman Whipple, Sargent & Associates Strategic Services 10 Industrial Park Road, Hingham, MA 02043 http://www.whipplesargent.com
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<<Every sale that’s been made by a marketing person has gotten me into hot water. I’m being sued right now for $200K by a customer that "misunderstood" what the salesman told him. No marketing department will ever sell anything for me again. Yes I know the difference between marketing and sales. Unfortunately most marketing people don’t.>> I would be very interested in hearing your definitions of marketing & sales. As for "what the salesman told him", they usually tell them what the technical people tell them and what "management" tell them. If not, your hiring practices need overhauling, your closing processes need work, your overall sales process needs to be reengineered, internal communications needs to be reviewed, your product needs to be better documented, or all of the above… Regardless of the definition of marketing, sales or whatever else, I suspect you have some major problems in your organization that go beyond this single incident. You will realize (usually later than sooner) meaningful growth depends on building a healthy "self-reliant" organization able to perform normal business functions without your presence. I suggest you take some time to reflect on the incident and track down the "root" causes of the failure. Just one person’s opinion. J.P. Solyom KS Business Development
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> As an experienced marketer with over 15 years of practical, hands-on time in > the world of marketing, I’d like to ask for input on something. I am having one > heck of a time cracking into the world of high tech marketing.
Here’s a newsletter to subscribe to. Published by Guy Sohie, PhD, and focuses on precisely your target market. Called GEMS Executive Strategies. Good stuff. Guy has a lot of experience in the field, and writes clearly and with an understandable style. ==== To subscribe to GEMS Executive Strategies, send e-mail to SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.) ==== Hope this is useful. Paul — Netrepreneur’s Digest – http://www.talkbiz.com/digest Small Business Articles, Discussion boards, a weekly email newsletter, and other free stuff. Stop by and say hello!
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>(snip) > From my experience we are slowly turning away from selling a product > because ‘it can do all these things’, to ‘you customer wanted this, so > here it is’. This can be spread to promotional side of things, making the > e.g. adverts more interesting and like consumer adverts, rather than dry > features only. >I figure overall High Tech Marketing is not special.
Well, kinda disagree. High tech marketing requires special focus on the product and on the target audience. Think about this. Some ISP advertised their services the same way Pepsi and Coke are doing. I mean, attack the competitor, take him to the street. In India the recent campains during the Cricket (a game widely played) Coke displayed Pepsi’s models as monkey’s while Pepsi went on to ridicule Coke’s punch line "Eat cricket, Sleep Cricket Drink only Coca cola" Similarly, a local Tire manufacture here tried to flex his muscles with Good Year and fellow Indian manufacturer. The relevant point here is what worked for Coke, Pepsi, and others is not working for the ISP – a high tech industry at the moment. Had the contributors been a bit focussed and had any idea about what is required, they might have realized the potential. Now they are contributing to their own negative campaign. my $ 0.02 cents Krishnan J iyer bcmfax.net Redefining Global Fax Communications http://www.bcmfax.net
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>The answer I most frequently get is that I do not have high tech experience. >My comeback is that marketing, done properly, cuts across all industries.
Based on how I handle this: 1) You do have High Tech experience but don’t sell it. You can talk about products, results and offer to fax samples of client marketing literature you have been involved with. Even better give them a URL. 2) You can stupidly say "It’s all benefits innit" ask about their product and discuss it, so they can sniff out expertise. 3) You could also point out that the eventual cheque signers are none technical and have to understand what they are buying. Then bore them with a potted case study of the DEC VAX. This was mainframe which was brilliant, engineers loved it and would specify it, but it lost sales as the marketing was incomprehensible to the cheque signers. John John Block Creative, marketing aware work which Freelance Copywriter talks rather than blandly bores, actively promotes your product, International and aims to be the best Welcomes Dollar and Sterling, in your market sector.
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<snip> > Every sale that’s been made by a marketing person has gotten me into > hot water. I’m being sued right now for $200K by a customer that > "misunderstood" what the salesman told him. No marketing department > will ever sell anything for me again.
Well, you and I both know that the sales/marketing person is incented = paid to sell the product or engagment, right? Not, where it works or is even feasible, right? I’m not trying to "bash" salespeople, really. I just think that it is very important to look at what the person is incented to do and then expect that this is exactly what they are going to do, you know what I mean? So, perhaps rather than limit yourself by "writing off" salespeople altogether, maybe you should develop a commission plan that incents the type of behavior you would like, right? Hope this helps, – Michael S. DeVries Principal, Virtual Consulting Firm Global Business Marketing, Inc. (TM) Consulting Services, Training / Courses and Mentoring To Help You in: * Business * Management * IT/Computer Phone: (205) 761-9051 Fax: (205) 761-9227 ****** http://www.Creative-Trade.com/vcf.htm ******
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(snip) > From my experience we are slowly turning away from selling a product > because ‘it can do all these things’, to ‘you customer wanted this, so > here it is’. This can be spread to promotional side of things, making the > e.g. adverts more interesting and like consumer adverts, rather than dry > features only.
I figure overall High Tech Marketing is not special. While the part in Belinda’s comment on promotion is true – a few years ago while working in a packaging firm I had the task of trawling the trade magazines for info on polymer films. The number of photos of scantily clad women used to promote these products amazed me. In consumer ads they would have been unacceptable outside of a cosmetics promotion. I presumed then as now, some poor Joe in a large ad agency was asked to draw up a campaign and had an insight from the data along the lines of "40 – 50 year old male Engineers spec this stuff"…. What do the copywriters think these guys want? Young women! And of course, thats why the Engineers are queueing up to read Packaging Weekly…. Recently I noticed a promotion for investment in the country of Slovakia with a similar idea, the Advert read: "There are some impressive figures" etc with a woman dressed in a trouser suit (Ah Progress!) standing by a window with some graphs to one side and the call to action was to phone the featured woman. I figure it is laziness on the Advertising agency and not trying to understand their target audiences really ARE interested in boring old ROI, polymer film, widgets etc. IMHO Benefit promotion works better in business to business promotion than in consumer advertising esp in software where you are essentially selling an intangible item as one CD looks like another no matter what is on it be it Dire Straights or Windoze ‘98. > To sum up: * hi tech/industrial will not like being told their industry is > like the consumer market. These days I think the difference is only > partially true. * learn a little about an industry before diving in. May > be target one type for a start. * the hi tech market is getting more > towards consumer methods, but it isn’t quite there yet. Having experience > of both could be good.
Also while working in the Packaging firm I learnt that people in the technical end in one industry hate to think their industry is similar to any other. They like to believe they have unique characteristics, corporate personalities, facing uniquely difficult challenges and problems. Of course, this is absolute and manifold nonsense. If you can cut the mustard in the Instant Coffee business the same fundemental rules apply in the Coffee Machine code supplier business. Keep the costbase low, minimise overhead, maximise profit, recognise your niche and dominate it.
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> Without my physics degree >background and other various subjects, I think I would have found it quite >difficult to work in this environment.
Your informative post reminds me of a computer salesman that once marketed my product for a third party firm I had licensed my software to. He was one of those pre-PC IBMers that was used to selling mainframes to systems analysts in large companies. He was talking to a prospect one day about selling him an IBM/Sys 36 midrange computer. The customer asked him "How does a computer work?" Without missing a beat, he respnded with "Real good and that’s all you need to know." The customer laughed and bought the system anyway. Now that kind of story tends to make a marketing person think, "you don’t need to be an expert to market a high-tech product." But if you ask me, you can’t make a living with that kind of cr*p anymore. My prospects ask me hard technical problems, and detailed questions involving accounting issues on how the system handles complicated taxing situations and moving average inventory costing (to menion two of hundreds). Some of them I can’t answer myself and I wrote the code. I have to go back and research the question and get back to them. Every sale that’s been made by a marketing person has gotten me into hot water. I’m being sued right now for $200K by a customer that "misunderstood" what the salesman told him. No marketing department will ever sell anything for me again. Yes I know the difference between marketing and sales. Unfortunately most marketing people don’t. Regards, ScotSystems Inc. – http://www.scotsystems.com RVForumDot Com – http://www.rvforum.com AS/400 Support Forum – http://www.scotsystems.com/as400_os400.html 601 638-6989 Voice 601 631-0165 Fax 800 698-0462 Pager ICQ Address: 2783173 N32 24.753 W90 46.328
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> I am having one heck of a time cracking into the > world of high tech marketing. <snip> > The answer I most frequently get is that I do not have high tech experience.
<snip> That’s hardly unique regarding anyone trying to move into an area or position they have not specifically done before. The "nay sayers" always say "well, you have never done task xyz before or you don’t have years of experience doing abc", so … in my opinion the critical quality is the ability to adapt and learn, so … you need not feel in this type of situation alone. However, as someone else mentioned, you can help yourself by "boning up" on information regarding this industry and learning the jargon so you can "talk the talk", ya’know? Then some will barely know you don’t have years of experience, right? > marketing, done properly, cuts across all industries.
Well, yes the basic concepts of marketing do apply across industries. However, IMHO, you want to be both creative and learn how to customize these marketing concepts for optimal effectiveness in a particular industry, and then for a particular product, right? Again, it would help if you acquired knowledge of the IT industry so you can demonstrate how these concepts apply to a particular product or service, right? > Software is something now sold no differently than a can of coffee.
No! I disagree. Yes, you can buy some software at retail outlets, but IMHO that is not where the money is … Many "larger" business software packages are sold either via advertising and direct sales and/or as part of an overall business solution, typically selected and recommended by IT/computer consultants. Therefore, one good strategy for you both to learn more of the IT industry and "get a foot in the door" is to partner with one or more IT consulting firms and/or their strategic software/hardware partners – what do you think of that idea? Hope this helps, – Michael S. DeVries Principal, Virtual Consulting Firm Global Business Marketing, Inc. (TM) Consulting Services, Training / Courses and Mentoring To Help You in: * Business * Management * IT/Computer Phone: (205) 761-9051 Fax: (205) 761-9227 ****** http://www.Creative-Trade.com/vcf.htm ******
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I have been working in the marketing department of an industrial/hi tech international company for the last 8 years. Without my physics degree background and other various subjects, I think I would have found it quite difficult to work in this environment. Because of the subject and the customers, there is the need for more ‘customisation’ for customers. They may want a vacuum pump to make e.g. silicon chips, but there is a lot more to it than ‘this batch of customers will buy this type of coffee because of the quality and promotion we do’. They need to consider exhaust management, servicing agreements, gases to be used, their production methods, the future…. Marketing in hi tech/industrial companies includes a lot more contact with production, technical, customers… than I think the consumer areas. I have had one experience with using a research agency to do some research for me. It was difficult as the questions, of course, were quite technical. By the time we had reviewed them with them, we could have done it all ourselves. The results were not new and their lack of knowledge of the market hindered some real results. There is the other side to it. I have found that because I have been in the industry for a while now, I can get sucked into doing short term actions, rather than keeping above it all. I think a consultant who has looked into the industry I am working in, who knows a little about recent developments and trends, such as from magazines will have more cred, than someone saying a pump is like selling coffee. I also think that someone who has had experience of ‘both sides’, consumer and hi tech is an asset. From my experience we are slowly turning away from selling a product because ‘it can do all these things’, to ‘you customer wanted this, so here it is’. This can be spread to promotional side of things, making the e.g. adverts more interesting and like consumer adverts, rather than dry features only. To sum up: * hi tech/industrial will not like being told their industry is like the consumer market. These days I think the difference is only partially true. * learn a little about an industry before diving in. May be target one type for a start. * the hi tech market is getting more towards consumer methods, but it isn’t quite there yet. Having experience of both could be good. Good luck, Belinda
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> I am having one >heck of a time cracking into the world of high tech marketing.
Nice to hear! >My background is consumer packaged goods, and for the past few years I have >been consulting in various other industries. However, in doing research about >where I want to go with my consulting practice, I look to the high tech >companies and ask why not?
Huh … that’s one way to do it! Strictly speaking, your niche is precisely where the ‘ability x need factor’ is greatest (‘ability’ being your ability – based on experience, know-how, insight etc. – to provide a particular product or service-based solution to a problem; ‘need’ being an unfulfilled customer need / problem, unfulfilled demand etc.). >The answer I most frequently get is that I do not have high tech experience. >My comeback is that marketing, done properly, cuts across all industries. … >Software is something now sold no differently than a can of coffee.
Don’t you believe it! Your argument is the ‘technocratic’ one, namely that if you have a (‘technical’, ‘theoretical’ or ‘in-principle’) understanding of a particular problem (i.e. ‘marketing’), then the context in which the solution is provided is largely immaterial. From the (undisputed) fact that the basic principles of marketing apply to all industries alike does not follow that a marketing consultant will not greatly benefit from specialisation (most commonly a specialisation by ‘industry’) and industry experience (hence lack of such experience makes you less effective!). As someone who started off as a generalist and is now a specialist (see my sig below), I know what I am talking about! Your ‘comeback’ is therefore not so much that industry experience does not matter, but that you appear to have a technology background / some software marketing experience already: >I teach marketing to MBA students in a Technology Management program; I did >work for a former student who was trying make a bigger splash at Comdex.
R E Lutz International Marketing & Strategy Consultant to the IT and Telecoms Industry London, UK http://members.aol.com/R2Lutz Tel: +44 (0)171 229 3958 – Fax: +44 (0)171 221 4539 – Email:
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I agree that the principles of marketing are universal and I have often said that it doesn’t matter if you’re selling battleship parts or panty hose. On the other hand, my experience for the past few years has been in financial services, a field that was completely new to me. That shouldn’t have mattered, but it sure did. What I have learned is that the application of marketing principles can be tricky and the decision making processes are quite different than I had dealt with at manufacturing companies. Oddly, decisions seem to have a larger emotional component and a smaller fact component than in product marketing. You would think just the opposite, since financial transactions by their very nature are quantifiable, but the thought of money itself automatically generates a large amount of emotion. At my earliest opportunity I am high-tailing it back to manufacturing where life is a lot simpler and I am more at home. I have had a similar experience in applying for jobs at high-tech companies. The prejudice is so strong that I now ignore job ads for these companies unless they state that high-tech experience is not necessary. By high-tech I mean computer hardware/software, telecommunications, etc. A good marketing person will realize that it’s a lot easier and cheaper to find a market that likes what you have to offer than to try to convince a market that does not like what you have to offer to start liking it. Charles J. Dudek, President Southeastern Commercial Mortgage Corporation 4320 Worthington Circle Palm Harbor FL 34685-1154 813/785-9927 FAX 784-6580 http://home.earthlink.net/~cdudek – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – >As an experienced marketer with over 15 years of practical, hands-on time in >the world of marketing, I’d like to ask for input on something. I am having one >heck of a time cracking into the world of high tech marketing. >My background is consumer packaged goods, and for the past few years I have >been consulting in various other industries. However, in doing research about >where I want to go with my consulting practice, I look to the high tech >companies and ask why not? >The answer I most frequently get is that I do not have high tech experience. My >comeback is that marketing, done properly, cuts across all industries. I teach >marketing to MBA students in a Technology Management program; I did work for a >former student who was trying make a bigger splash at Comdex. Software is >something now sold no differently than a can of coffee. >If anyone has any thoughts, I would appreciate hearing back. >Ken Keller
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> Software is something now sold no differently than a can of coffee.
Not the way I’ve been selling mine for the past twenty years. I don’t know where you got that idea. Have you ever thought about working on commission to get started? If you’re so sure of your marketing abilities, then it should be a snap for you. Regards, ScotSystems Inc. – http://www.scotsystems.com RVForumDot Com – http://www.rvforum.com AS/400 Support Forum – http://www.scotsystems.com/as400_os400.html 601 638-6989 Voice 601 631-0165 Fax 800 698-0462 Pager ICQ Address: 2783173 N32 24.753 W90 46.328
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[...] >The answer I most frequently get is that I do not have high tech experience. >My comeback is that marketing, done properly, cuts across all industries.
[...] I agree and disagree — many of the basic concepts of marketing do apply regardless of the industry or media used, but certain industries (and this is not limited to high tech) offer certain opportunities that should be used and certain pitfalls to be avoided. Perhaps if you need to prove your experience (e.g., with a portfolio), do a few jobs at a lower-than-normal rate for those who might not be able to afford your regular rate. This gives them something and gives you something too — proof for others that you can do it. S. Whitmore Want Critical How-to Information for Marketing Electronically? Get CHIME! http://www.uninova.com/chime.html
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Hello Ken, Regis McKenna has the distinction of being one of the top marketing gurus in the field of high tech marketing. You might consider reading his book, it might give you some insights. I can agree with your observation "high tech" marketing is in essence marketing. There is however much to be learned that is specific to the field of high tech. A parallel in the field of graphic design comes to mind: you can teach a competent graphic designer to use computer tools more readily than to teach a computer tool user to master the art of graphic design. One aspect of marketing is to communicate the essence of a thought or concept in the "lingo" of the target audience. This does require mastering some of the knowledge and vocabulary unique to that industry. You mention "not enough high tech experience" as a frequent reason for not engaging your firm. Me thinks this is more of a symptom than the true reason. I would need to better understand the specific context(s) before I could suggest possibly reasons and remedies. I also suggest losing the " … sold no differently than a can of coffee" comment. Most clients regardless of industry will often mention the uniqueness of their particular situation. The flavor of your post comes across as "rigid", "tired" and "old". I hope you take this in the positive sense I mean to convey it. You defend your expertise by advertising your 15 years of experience and the fact you teach marketing to MBA students. Why is this of any relevance in today’s world of "one-on-one" marketing and the Internet age? My "gut" reaction is you could do with an identity makeover and maybe an injection of "professional paranoia" which helps exude an aura of "cutting edge" expertise. As I mentioned earlier in this post, my comments should be taken within the framework of the minimal posted information. J.P. Solyom KS Business Development
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As an experienced marketer with over 15 years of practical, hands-on time in the world of marketing, I’d like to ask for input on something. I am having one heck of a time cracking into the world of high tech marketing. My background is consumer packaged goods, and for the past few years I have been consulting in various other industries. However, in doing research about where I want to go with my consulting practice, I look to the high tech companies and ask why not? The answer I most frequently get is that I do not have high tech experience. My comeback is that marketing, done properly, cuts across all industries. I teach marketing to MBA students in a Technology Management program; I did work for a former student who was trying make a bigger splash at Comdex. Software is something now sold no differently than a can of coffee. If anyone has any thoughts, I would appreciate hearing back. Ken Keller