Thanks for clarifying - yes, I see how I missed the point on your first message - sorry about that!
I do ask two questions to start every prospect call: "Why are you looking at CRM and what are you hoping to get out of it?" and "Why are we talking today? Why not last year? Why not next year?"
The answers to that second question is relevant here - for most prospects, it used to be "new management" or "new focus on growth" or "new head of sales". More and more these days I find the answers to be variations of "we're struggling to stay on top of things" and "we need to evolve our business".
The interesting thing about this is that it seems to indicate an evolution of CRM from a trigger point request to a fundamental need for companies (even small businesses like I deal with) to get their acts together. They are internally coming to this realization.
This is good from an adoption standpoint because it takes less convincing to make sure they understand they need to pay attention and treat it seriously and have a Project Champion and all the rest of the good things. It sometimes is less good from the sales side because, without a hard trigger or driver, it sometimes takes a bit to get them over the hump of pulling the trigger and purchasing / starting the project.
We do everything we can to help them move past this but for some companies, it is always a cost issue because they aren't truly committed to it as an investment. Worse, many companies "just want the software" and they are, 80% of the time, destined for failure with their roll out because they think they can slam it in and be successful and, as you well know, that's not the best attitude to start a CRM project.
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Peter Wolf
Azamba Consulting Group
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Original Message:
Sent: 10-30-2019 10:52
From: Jerry Norman
Subject: Cost vs Investment
Peter, "nobody's buying CRM" wasn't quite what I meant, although it sounds like it now when I reread it.
The underlying point of my observation was that too often a big, "obvious" need to improve a system very often doesn't happen until a change agent arrives at the firm. This doesn't apply to fast-growing enterprises, but it definitely does for long-established ones.
ERP is definitely not CRM, and incentives for CFO/Controller are far different from performance-judged sales management. So these dynamics look different.
I am curious to know how CRM prospects answer your initial qualifying question, "Why are you talking about this now? What changed?" Did a new salesperson arrive who had good experiences elsewhere using CRM? Excepting those looking for email mktg or new website, what are the top operational problems they want to change? If they needed to change 3 years ago, why didn't they?
I don't mean to make a big deal out of this. The phenomenon I originally mentioned struck me then and underlined to me how much skepticism and fear of change drive management decisions.
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Jerry Norman
President, 90 Minds
Smartbridge Partners
512.419.1444 x112
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Original Message:
Sent: 10-30-2019 02:12
From: Peter Wolf
Subject: Cost vs Investment
I am not seeing that in my typical weeks, Jerry. If anything, CRM is on fire right now - growing by customer demand as companies are feeling squeezed by competitive pressures enabled by the internet.
Most of the businesses that I speak to these days are already sold on the idea that they need "something" to counteract this massive pressure. It's not always CRM that's the right fit - sometimes they just need an email marketing tool or a better website and I try to direct them to the right place.
My original post was not meant to indicate "no one is buying CRM". It was more about the mindset of those who know they have a need but see the solutions as a cost instead of an investment to get them moving forward.
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Peter Wolf
Azamba Consulting Group
Original Message:
Sent: 10-30-2019 02:03
From: Jerry Norman
Subject: Cost vs Investment
At this point in the CRM adoption cycle, I think the same dynamic is in play as I recognized in Sage 100 market 10 years ago: nobody buys it unless there's been a significant change in management, or sometimes a major customer meltdown. In prospects moving up from an ancient system or Quickbooks, it never happens unless there is a new GM, CFO, or Controller; existing management can't quite pull the trigger. If an established company that needs CRM but doesn't yet have it, the problem is the management. Too sad.
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Jerry Norman
President, 90 Minds
Smartbridge Partners
512.419.1444 x112
Original Message:
Sent: 10-29-2019 14:18
From: Peter Wolf
Subject: Cost vs Investment
Boy is that spot-on Myron.
None of us like to see ourselves as in ruts but it can happen all too easily. Particularly when times are going well and you feel like you have it all figured out.
I read a great essay once (can't remember who wrote it or where I read it) that suggested the businesses have a natural lifespan and that the average lifespan is progressively getting shorter and shorter as the world becomes smaller and smaller.
I think it relates to your idea about the ownership getting crusty. When we stop innovating, we are the walking dead.
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Peter Wolf
Azamba Consulting Group
Original Message:
Sent: 10-29-2019 13:49
From: Myron Stevenson
Subject: Cost vs Investment
Excellent post Peter!
This is probably not limited to technology within the company. If management/ownership has been in the business 30+ years, unless they have updated their business view and management approach, their practices are outdated. They view their business, customers, competitors, employees - EVERYTHING with the same perspective they had years prior. They are unable to account for change and haven't adjusted to it.
The number one mistake I see owners make within our customer base is that they hold onto their business too long. As they age, change is harder to implement. Like their ownership, these business age and the changing landscape passes them buy. The investment in technology or any worthy investment protects the value of their business. Don't invest and that business value will decline significantly more the cost to preserve it.
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Myron Stevenson
Consultant
Clearis Consulting, Inc
Duluth, MN
218-525-6720
Original Message:
Sent: 10-29-2019 13:10
From: Peter Wolf
Subject: Cost vs Investment
The obvious response to the situation with this prospect is "Pete is a terrible salesperson." Which I ask myself every day so I understand where that question is coming from. :)
In this case, this company's problems and decline stem from their reluctance to spend anything on technology as it all "costs too much" and it has made them non-competitive.
The world we live in has made technology indispensable to forward-thinking business owners and management teams. Good times ahead for technology consultants if they can differentiate properly!
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Peter Wolf
Azamba Consulting Group