On February 21, 2007 at 22:29, PHSJason said...
Are you suggesting that "ignorance is bliss"? If so,
then you are sadly misguided by your own wants/desires
and/or your ability to provide things that clients want/desire.
Just because a client doesn't ask for something by name,
doesn't mean they don't want it. I can guarantee that
if you give a client the choice, they will ask for it.
Absolutley not! I'm just want to make sure that we meet the client needs most importantly. The clients wants/desires and needs may be 2 entirely different things. Back to one of my earlier posts about using the right tool for the job
If you are marketing a system like EI and stating:
Then you better be able to do 95+%, and at this point,
it looks like EI can't even do the basic system I proposed.
Taking out features that we as integrators use like real-time
feedback for the "random" button and replacing it with
a system variable isn't better, it's faking it, and it
isn't reliable. What if I push "random" on the front
on the changer? How does your "fake" feedback handle
that? Re-designing the system based on your product doesn't
count. If you can't do true one-button interfaces, then
trying to sell the client out of a system that can is
not doing the client any favors. If you can't customize
the GUI, then trying to convice people that they don't
need this "feature" isnt helping them either.
I remember an old class on sales, discussing positive
versus negative competitive sales techiniques. One of
the points made was about when someone asks you about
a competitor, you can do several things.
1)You can tell them why you are better. You can empahsize
what you do well and how your abilities make you a better
value.
2)You tell them why the other guys aren't as good. You
can emphasize the negatives about the other company until
you have devalued them enough in the eyes of the client
that you now seem like a comparable value.
If you take the first route, you are showing why you are
a better product, plain and simple. If you take the second
route all you are saying is "we can't compete on thier
level, so we have to cut them down to ours".
If all you build are one-way IR systems, then this may
be a good solution, but if you do AMX/Crestron, this is
not even in the same league. My only grief is that if
you are going to claim your product is better(or 95+%),
than it better be. If you are going to claim that you
are the only product on the market that is network based
then you better be sure you are.
I agree wholeheartedly and pointing out the negative in your competitors or competitive product is the worst form of sales. Obviously #1 does the same as #2 without being negative.
The truth is I don't actually see EI targeting the AMX/Crestron dealer because they can't do the same things. AMX/Crestron are what they are because of what you can do with them.
To use Steve from EI's analogy (though I don't consider EI a Bentley) AMX/Crestron are the best - Ferrari, Lambo / Rolls, Bentley (pick your style) and call EI a Lexus - clearly they are targeting a different market. With C4 looking like Ford or GM
This is an industry where big claims are a dime-a-dozen.
Amen - aren't all industires though - must be the sales/marketing gene.
