To be successful at IT sales calls, you need to get in touch with the right people within small businesses. So how do you get past the gatekeeper and talk to the decision maker?
Cold IT Sales Calls
If the gatekeeper just takes your name and number and declares disinterest, how do you get through? This will almost always be the situation when you make cold calls, so your best bet is to get a new strategy. If you have to make cold IT sales calls, there are some tactics that will give you a better chance of getting through.
Tips for Getting Through
1. Call before or after the gatekeeper leaves (which typically means before nine and after five, before eight and after six or before eight and after four).
2. Send an e-mail.
3. Send a fax.
4. Send a letter.
5. Mail a postcard.
6. Send a Fed-Ex parcel marked “personal confidential.”
A lot of these strategies will not be new to most businesses, so you still will probably get some resistance.
A Better Way for IT Sales
Your best bet for getting your foot in the door with small businesses is making the decision makers part of your community. Get to know local accountants and deeply-niched solution providers, speak at events, hold seminars, volunteer and really create a network for your company.
The Main Idea: Get Your Foot in the Door!
You need to establish a good reputation in your local area for the work you do. You will not get people to pay you until they know, like and trust you, and tricking a gatekeeper will not build trust.
Added By: Computer Consulting Kit
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Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Sunday, August 26, 2007
IT Consultants Should Give Clients Hardware Options
Those that have been IT consultants for a while have most likely supported thousands of PC hardware set-ups. During this time, you’ve probably decided which hardware specs you think are the best for your clients.
But IT consultants need to explain why they are choosing a specific hardware configuration to clients if they want to appear professional and be believed.
Choose the Right Thing from the Get-Go
When you select the proper PC specs, for clients as IT consultants, you can save a lot of money on changing installation and support costs. Many software and hardware vendors say their products are entirely compatible with specific operating systems, but that is not always the case.
IT Consultants: Save Your Clients Time and Agony
If you involve yourself in selecting hardware pieces and software programs from the beginning, particularly those that are preinstalled with new PCs, you can really save your clients a lot of time and potential pain.
Hardware and Software Solutions
With computer purchasing, often bundled packages with hardware and software are a great way to get the most value, and IT consultants should recommend them to clients. When your client buy hardware components and their upgrades with new PCs instead of shopping for them separately, they can save a lot of time and money.
What is the Value of Components?
Part of your challenge as IT consultants is knowing the exact value of components and upgrades. What are they worth? Which components will cause major support issues? Your firm can truly save the day if you can tell clients what they need to know about hardware purchasing.
Submitted By: Computer Consulting Kit
But IT consultants need to explain why they are choosing a specific hardware configuration to clients if they want to appear professional and be believed.
Choose the Right Thing from the Get-Go
When you select the proper PC specs, for clients as IT consultants, you can save a lot of money on changing installation and support costs. Many software and hardware vendors say their products are entirely compatible with specific operating systems, but that is not always the case.
IT Consultants: Save Your Clients Time and Agony
If you involve yourself in selecting hardware pieces and software programs from the beginning, particularly those that are preinstalled with new PCs, you can really save your clients a lot of time and potential pain.
Hardware and Software Solutions
With computer purchasing, often bundled packages with hardware and software are a great way to get the most value, and IT consultants should recommend them to clients. When your client buy hardware components and their upgrades with new PCs instead of shopping for them separately, they can save a lot of time and money.
What is the Value of Components?
Part of your challenge as IT consultants is knowing the exact value of components and upgrades. What are they worth? Which components will cause major support issues? Your firm can truly save the day if you can tell clients what they need to know about hardware purchasing.
Submitted By: Computer Consulting Kit
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
IT Consultants Should Recommend Buying Video Monitors with PCs
Even though PCs and monitors have no compatibility problems, IT consultants should recommend buying video monitors alongside PCs because of the deals many vendors offer when these items are purchased simultaneously.
What Are IT Consultants and Their Clients Actually Spending?
IT consultants should always price PCs both with and without monitors to find out actual costs to clients and themselves. Then they can look to see if there is on-site warranty coverage with PCs. Basically, if a client’s monitor has to be replaced during the on-site warranty period, the PC vendor will arrange to ship a replacement monitor.
What Are the Benefits of Warranties?
Warranties provide some attractive benefits that IT consultants can stress to their clients:
1. You don’t have to store and retain packing materials, which means you don’t have to worry about saving original boxes or buying return shipping supplies.
2. You save time with freight logistics. Clients of IT consultants don’t have to find a shipping center because the PC vendor will include shipping labels for a specific freight carrier.
3. Clients of IT consultants save money on freight costs. If the PC vendor supplies the labels, clients don’t have to pay for return freight. This can save at least $25, if not more.
The third bullet point affects your IT consultants’ clients’ out-of-pocket costs, but the others can save time on labor-intensive chores.
Buying a monitor under warranty as part of a package deal with a PC can save IT consultants and their clients time and money.
Blogged By: Computer Consulting Kit
What Are IT Consultants and Their Clients Actually Spending?
IT consultants should always price PCs both with and without monitors to find out actual costs to clients and themselves. Then they can look to see if there is on-site warranty coverage with PCs. Basically, if a client’s monitor has to be replaced during the on-site warranty period, the PC vendor will arrange to ship a replacement monitor.
What Are the Benefits of Warranties?
Warranties provide some attractive benefits that IT consultants can stress to their clients:
1. You don’t have to store and retain packing materials, which means you don’t have to worry about saving original boxes or buying return shipping supplies.
2. You save time with freight logistics. Clients of IT consultants don’t have to find a shipping center because the PC vendor will include shipping labels for a specific freight carrier.
3. Clients of IT consultants save money on freight costs. If the PC vendor supplies the labels, clients don’t have to pay for return freight. This can save at least $25, if not more.
The third bullet point affects your IT consultants’ clients’ out-of-pocket costs, but the others can save time on labor-intensive chores.
Buying a monitor under warranty as part of a package deal with a PC can save IT consultants and their clients time and money.
Blogged By: Computer Consulting Kit
Sunday, August 19, 2007
IT Sales: You Need to Sell Your Expertise
If you want to achieve IT sales, you need to start selling your expertise and stop focusing on products.
Add Value with IT Sales
Plain products by themselves will not make your computer consulting business successful. When you sell commodities rather than your expertise with IT sales, you end up in pricing wars and unable to bundle in your real solutions.
You need to think about where you can add value and sell services. You need to stop getting customers and start looking for long-term clients willing to enter into an agreement with you as an outsourced IT department. When you offer low, low prices in a specialized niche, you can’t be respected and trusted or get really good IT sales.
Your Expertise Will Make You Stand Out
Hundreds of area consultants can do general work, but you are a specialist and know the industry better than they know it. There are most likely only a couple people in your area capable of doing what you do, and you will be less likely to come across price-sensitive buyers as a result.
Your Experience Means You Get Higher Rates
When you don’t have to worry about competing with price, you can add to your margins. Your clients will know they have to pay more for your expertise and specific solutions.
The Bottom Line about IT Sales
Whenever you are creating promotional messages about your company, think about selling your expertise and not your preferred brands or products.
Blogged By: Computer Consulting 101 Professional Kit
Add Value with IT Sales
Plain products by themselves will not make your computer consulting business successful. When you sell commodities rather than your expertise with IT sales, you end up in pricing wars and unable to bundle in your real solutions.
You need to think about where you can add value and sell services. You need to stop getting customers and start looking for long-term clients willing to enter into an agreement with you as an outsourced IT department. When you offer low, low prices in a specialized niche, you can’t be respected and trusted or get really good IT sales.
Your Expertise Will Make You Stand Out
Hundreds of area consultants can do general work, but you are a specialist and know the industry better than they know it. There are most likely only a couple people in your area capable of doing what you do, and you will be less likely to come across price-sensitive buyers as a result.
Your Experience Means You Get Higher Rates
When you don’t have to worry about competing with price, you can add to your margins. Your clients will know they have to pay more for your expertise and specific solutions.
The Bottom Line about IT Sales
Whenever you are creating promotional messages about your company, think about selling your expertise and not your preferred brands or products.
Blogged By: Computer Consulting 101 Professional Kit
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Read the Fine Print with Notebook PC Warranties
Notebook PCs have become very inexpensive in the past five years. However, they present an interesting warranty service issue that needs to be addressed. For example, if a keyboard, mouse-equivalent (tracking-stick or touch-pad) or a display goes defunct on a notebook PC, you will not be able to find inexpensive replacements at local retail stores.
Look at Warranties Very Closely
As a virtual CIO for your clients, you decide which brands and models of notebook PCs you will recommend. This means your responsibility is to look at warranties to see what is and what is not covered.
As an example, notebook PC hard drives are not like desktop hard drives, and you need to know if you will be able to replace hardware inexpensively if you encounter a problem.
Uncommon Parts?
When you act as a virtual VIO for your clients, you have to know that you will probably not be able to find a replacement notebook PC hard drive at a warehouse club or office supply store in your area. Even if you do manage to find one, the price is probably going to be twice the cost of a desktop PC hard drive. This means that warranty coverage for this type of item is incredibly valuable and even necessary for notebook PCs.
The Main Idea with Notebook PCs
Notebook PC hard drive replacements are much stickier than desktop PC hard drive replacements. Replacing hard drives on notebook PCs can be expensive in terms of soft costs and the cost of the part itself. Make sure you look at warranties to see the value your clients will be getting so you can plan ahead.
Added By: Joshua Feinberg
Look at Warranties Very Closely
As a virtual CIO for your clients, you decide which brands and models of notebook PCs you will recommend. This means your responsibility is to look at warranties to see what is and what is not covered.
As an example, notebook PC hard drives are not like desktop hard drives, and you need to know if you will be able to replace hardware inexpensively if you encounter a problem.
Uncommon Parts?
When you act as a virtual VIO for your clients, you have to know that you will probably not be able to find a replacement notebook PC hard drive at a warehouse club or office supply store in your area. Even if you do manage to find one, the price is probably going to be twice the cost of a desktop PC hard drive. This means that warranty coverage for this type of item is incredibly valuable and even necessary for notebook PCs.
The Main Idea with Notebook PCs
Notebook PC hard drive replacements are much stickier than desktop PC hard drive replacements. Replacing hard drives on notebook PCs can be expensive in terms of soft costs and the cost of the part itself. Make sure you look at warranties to see the value your clients will be getting so you can plan ahead.
Added By: Joshua Feinberg
Sunday, August 12, 2007
IT Sales: Sell Knowledge and Not Commodities
When you are trying to get to IT sales and are marketing to strangers, you have to focus on selling your knowledge if you want to succeed. You are not selling products; you’re selling you and everything you have to offer as a total IT solution to your clients.
Where Can You Add Value?
You need to stop selling products and start selling your company’s value. This means not trying to achieve IT sales with people that just want to treat you like a commodity.
You can’t compete on price when you are unable to bundle in services that add value. The only way to grow your company is to get IT sales of services and change your marketing strategy so it is about getting long-term clients rather than customers. You need to sell yourself at competitive rates in order to get people to pay attention and achieve IT sales.
Your Expertise is Important
There are probably hundreds of people in your area capable of doing easy IT tasks, but you need to provide specialized services and prove you know this industry better than all the others. There are only a few other people that can offer the same things you do in your region, so you need to make this clear to prospects to get IT sales and get rid of price sensitivity.
Your Experience and Niche Means Higher Rates
As soon as you stop dealing with price-sensitive buyers, you can add some to your prices. B2B clients will expect to pay more for your specific expertise and will know you can best help their businesses. Every marketing and advertising message you put out should sell You, Inc. and not your brands. This is the only focus to have if you want IT sales.
Submitted By: Computer Consulting Kit
Where Can You Add Value?
You need to stop selling products and start selling your company’s value. This means not trying to achieve IT sales with people that just want to treat you like a commodity.
You can’t compete on price when you are unable to bundle in services that add value. The only way to grow your company is to get IT sales of services and change your marketing strategy so it is about getting long-term clients rather than customers. You need to sell yourself at competitive rates in order to get people to pay attention and achieve IT sales.
Your Expertise is Important
There are probably hundreds of people in your area capable of doing easy IT tasks, but you need to provide specialized services and prove you know this industry better than all the others. There are only a few other people that can offer the same things you do in your region, so you need to make this clear to prospects to get IT sales and get rid of price sensitivity.
Your Experience and Niche Means Higher Rates
As soon as you stop dealing with price-sensitive buyers, you can add some to your prices. B2B clients will expect to pay more for your specific expertise and will know you can best help their businesses. Every marketing and advertising message you put out should sell You, Inc. and not your brands. This is the only focus to have if you want IT sales.
Submitted By: Computer Consulting Kit
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
IT Sales: Are You Offering Something Special?
When thinking about IT sales, you have to figure out which benefits you can offer clients that will set you apart from the competition.
An Example of Benefits-Focused Sales
As an example, say you are a consulting company that moved into a new location in a 27-story building that has high-end firms. There are a lot of other buildings within a two-minute walk that fit the same description. Is this something you can use to your advantage with IT sales? In truth, yes. Your consulting firm could take over that whole neighborhood if you can get things done better, faster and cheaper than those that are not right in the vicinity.
What is Your Unique Benefit?
You can sell service agreements as part of IT sales that have a response time guarantee attached. Because you are right where your clients are, you can make big promises and be on site within 60 minutes of an emergency during regular business hours. Offer benefits like $100 off a bill if you are a minute late.
If you have enough clients in your immediate vicinity and your staff is there as well, you are working in an area resembling a corporate campus and will have no travel time. Your staff utilization rates will go way up.
How Do You Find Your Target Businesses?
If you are in a situation like the one above, you can do a survey to find out about local businesses. Mail something to every owner or CEO in the building and in neighboring buildings and even offer something for free – like a dozen bagels or something comparable – if they return the survey.
The IT Sales Survey
Your survey should ask basic questions such as, “How many PCs do you have?” and “How many employees do you have?” Also ask prospects they get their IT support currently and what their biggest business problems are. Surveys get people to tell you what they want and insure interest in what you have to offer.
IT Sales: Get to Know People That Know Everyone
You should establish a friendly relationship with the local shoe repairperson, delivery people mail carriers, UPS and FedEx drivers and anyone else that regularly interacts with you targets. They often will be able to lead you to the person you need to call about IT sales.
The Main Idea about IT Sales
If you want to sell based on a guarantee and your proximity to local businesses, you have to brand your whole business based on those concepts.
Added By: Joshua Feinberg
An Example of Benefits-Focused Sales
As an example, say you are a consulting company that moved into a new location in a 27-story building that has high-end firms. There are a lot of other buildings within a two-minute walk that fit the same description. Is this something you can use to your advantage with IT sales? In truth, yes. Your consulting firm could take over that whole neighborhood if you can get things done better, faster and cheaper than those that are not right in the vicinity.
What is Your Unique Benefit?
You can sell service agreements as part of IT sales that have a response time guarantee attached. Because you are right where your clients are, you can make big promises and be on site within 60 minutes of an emergency during regular business hours. Offer benefits like $100 off a bill if you are a minute late.
If you have enough clients in your immediate vicinity and your staff is there as well, you are working in an area resembling a corporate campus and will have no travel time. Your staff utilization rates will go way up.
How Do You Find Your Target Businesses?
If you are in a situation like the one above, you can do a survey to find out about local businesses. Mail something to every owner or CEO in the building and in neighboring buildings and even offer something for free – like a dozen bagels or something comparable – if they return the survey.
The IT Sales Survey
Your survey should ask basic questions such as, “How many PCs do you have?” and “How many employees do you have?” Also ask prospects they get their IT support currently and what their biggest business problems are. Surveys get people to tell you what they want and insure interest in what you have to offer.
IT Sales: Get to Know People That Know Everyone
You should establish a friendly relationship with the local shoe repairperson, delivery people mail carriers, UPS and FedEx drivers and anyone else that regularly interacts with you targets. They often will be able to lead you to the person you need to call about IT sales.
The Main Idea about IT Sales
If you want to sell based on a guarantee and your proximity to local businesses, you have to brand your whole business based on those concepts.
Added By: Joshua Feinberg
Sunday, August 05, 2007
IT Consultants and Credit
When you have an IT consulting business, you can’t give new clients credit quickly. And when you decide to give them credit, you have to keep the credit lines low until they have established a good history with you.
The Importance of Low Credit Lines
With new IT consulting clients, you should probably start them out – even with a credit application and references – with $500 or $1,000 worth of credit. You can’t risk losing $5,000 or $10,000 until they prove they can pay small invoices.
If IT consulting clients need a lot of work before they have established higher credit ratings you should probably get larger deposits from them and also make yourself able to accept credit cards. Don’t offer too much credit though, because you can quickly lose money if something goes wrong.
You Need Written Agreements
If you are selling products – hardware, software and peripherals – you can’t afford to give too much credit to IT consulting clients. You also have to make sure to get written agreements for your company, because verbal agreements are amateurish and not for today’s business world.
You need to make clear to IT consulting clients what you will be doing, how you will do it, when you will do it, what it will cost and what you expect in terms of a payment schedule. You also need to limit this explanation to four or six sentences. Larger IT consulting projects will need proposals that are multiple pages-long.
The Main Idea
You need to get written agreements and offer low lines of credit to new IT consulting clients. Type up a few sentences to make sure you and your clients are speaking the same language.
Submitted By: Computer Consulting 101 Professional Kit
The Importance of Low Credit Lines
With new IT consulting clients, you should probably start them out – even with a credit application and references – with $500 or $1,000 worth of credit. You can’t risk losing $5,000 or $10,000 until they prove they can pay small invoices.
If IT consulting clients need a lot of work before they have established higher credit ratings you should probably get larger deposits from them and also make yourself able to accept credit cards. Don’t offer too much credit though, because you can quickly lose money if something goes wrong.
You Need Written Agreements
If you are selling products – hardware, software and peripherals – you can’t afford to give too much credit to IT consulting clients. You also have to make sure to get written agreements for your company, because verbal agreements are amateurish and not for today’s business world.
You need to make clear to IT consulting clients what you will be doing, how you will do it, when you will do it, what it will cost and what you expect in terms of a payment schedule. You also need to limit this explanation to four or six sentences. Larger IT consulting projects will need proposals that are multiple pages-long.
The Main Idea
You need to get written agreements and offer low lines of credit to new IT consulting clients. Type up a few sentences to make sure you and your clients are speaking the same language.
Submitted By: Computer Consulting 101 Professional Kit
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