General Consultant Discussion

Is there any better example of the state of today's ERP marketplace. This lead is coming from Sage PRO which means they're likely shopping against the reduced price offer that Sage is making to retain these users. First, $15,000 to $35,000 is some swing in pricing. Guess what number this customer is thinking of? And guess what number most consultants are thinking of? These two numbers are $20,000 apart... Second, full ecommerce, point-of-sale, inventory modules (plus presumably conversion of data?) for $15k?

Are you using CPA Online as a lead source or is this from some other service?

I think it is Findaccountingsoftware -- they may all be related. I don't subscribe and never have. They send these around as an email blast most mornings. I appeared to have fallen off the list for a few months but they seem to have added me back.

They probably dropped me due to: http://erplife.com/2009/12/22/buying-leads-sucks/

I think it's more indicative of the type of leads provided by CPA Online and similar sites. Having participated in this program during 2004-2005, 75% of the leads had unrealistic expectations. It's essentially a ""name your price"" service, where the goal is to see who's most desperate for the business. Unfortunately, most of the damage is self-inflicted. These sites often use a program to estimate purchase/implementation costs, and once a lead has a number in mind, it's very difficult to change it.

I agree. Back in my days of doing Accpac, we subscribed for one year and quickly found that: 1. You were ALWAYS competing with at least 4 other consultants / software solution. 2. Because of that, the sales process was always extremely long. 3. The prospects were setting unrealistic expectations. 4. We won very few deals.

We've won a few over the years. We make just enough money on average to justify keeping it, but its a hard decision. I have noticed the trend is for more and more unrealistic budgets. BTW, about the ONLY interest in serious SaaS I see is from Findaccounting listings, nothing we find organically. Even if you have no intention of paying or using them, they are a great source to judge the 'state of the state'. Right now lead flow is a trickle which says that our next year in this biz. relative to new deals is going to suck.

Just received this: I'd like invite you to attend the next Find Accounting Software webcast: SAS 101: Intro to Find Accounting Software. Find Accounting Software has been helping software developers and resellers obtain new clients for more than 10 years. Our members continue year after year based on the return they receive on their investment. This all new, 30 minute webcast will open your eyes to a whole new way of finding qualified leads. There's no cost to attend. Simply register here: http://www.sellaccountingsoftware.com/webcasts/ or respond to this email. We have three upcoming webcasts: Friday, September 23rd. 1:00 PM Eastern. Friday, October 7th. 1:00 PM Eastern. Friday, October 21st. 1:00 PM Eastern. If you're unable to attend at the times above, please let me know. I hope to see you there! Cody Worden National Account Manager (414) 456-0500 x16 FindAccountingSoftware.com helps you SellAccountingSoftware.com

We used to subscribe and it used to be one of our best lead sources on a cost per lead and cost per closed deal basis. As the site grew more popular we found the cost was increasing and the close rate was dropping, to the point where we found other means were a better use of funds. @Mark - I would suspect you get few SaaS leads because you are not in the SaaS business. We get 2-3 leads per month specifically looking for SaaS that we attempt to talk into the I-BN lease host model. Many are too small for our package, but we have closed 4 this year that came to us looking for SaaS and now have several VAR partners specifically targeting with our model.