I. Preface
When I broke into the field of pre-sales consulting in 2000 in a haze, I hardly understood what pre-sales was and what work should be done, but just blindly believed that pre-sales technology is to help users solve problems and guide them to new needs. I still remember the initial work of CGC started from the bidding of multimedia projection projects in the education industry. I remember the first time I independently undertake the task of bidding, it took two days to make an outline, and then three days to complete the program preparation, fortunately the company won the bid, and from then on began their own pre-sales road. This is probably the first stage of my understanding of pre-sales work. Today, looking back at that process, the biggest lack of two aspects: First, the methodology of IT pre-sales, can not define the pre-sales work from a global point of view, using the methodology to guide their own work process; Second, the theory and practice of the disconnect, and less contact with the customer, do not clearly understand the customer's actual problems, can not use the theoretical framework to actually solve the customer's problems. In fact, at that time, I didn't even understand these, and I even thought I was pretty good at it. Of course, sometimes the mood is quite complicated, after all, the field of pre-sales consulting is too wide, and I obviously feel that I don't have enough knowledge to use it.
From the perspective of customer value, the main work of pre-sales consulting should be to recognize the problem (understand the business), analyze the demand and provide solutions. In the entire pre-sales consulting process, the current main lack of two points: one is the lack of work roadmap for pre-sales work guidance, almost no pre-sales work to promote the route to have a clear plan; the second is the solution should be how to write, to write what some of the contents of the fuzzy. In fact, as long as you understand the main work of the pre-sales is to recognize the problem, analyze the needs and provide solutions, the content of the program is clear. Of course, ill-defined responsibilities are also a common problem for most SMEs and start-up companies. There can only be a selective compromise, not fully reconciled.
In competition with many outstanding peers or colleagues, I have been in this profession for ten years, y feel the pre-sales consulting field of the profound and pre-sales consulting work of the great challenges, so far, I have been feeling unable to actually stand at a higher height for the customer to put forward feasible solutions, which is why I have been doubting their own reasons. I hope to use this proposal as a summary of my past work, but also as a basis for my own improvement.
II. Pre-sales technical support and positioning
Pre-sales technical consulting, as the technical support of the sales staff, its responsibility is to understand the customer's business in a professional way, analyze customer needs, management theory, customer needs, IT technology and the company's products combined to provide solutions, and
good company image, product image and service capabilities conveyed to the customer, so as to effectively beat the competition, to facilitate the signing of the contract. This will enable us to effectively defeat our competitors, facilitate the signing of contracts, and reasonably reduce the risk of the project.
I personally like to do people do things policy and guiding ideology: "ancient and modern to become a great cause, a great man, must go through three realms." "Last night, the west wind withered trees, alone on a tall building, looking at the end of the road," is the first realm; "the belt gradually broaden the end does not regret, for the I consume people emaciated," is the second realm; "the crowd to find him a thousand degrees, and suddenly turned back, the man but The final realm is that of "looking for him in a thousand places, but when I look back suddenly, the man is in the darkness of the lamp". This is not only the realm of poetry, the realm of learning, the realm of artistic creation, but also the realm of our life, the realm of career, the realm of life.
The same is true for pre-sales consulting. Pre-sales is as the company's technical representatives, its main responsibility is to collaborate with sales staff to make customers accept the company's solutions. But how to provide solutions, there are several different realms.
The first realm: from product to program. The company's product specification is modified into a solution for the user, this type of pre-sales consulting is not a minority, especially some of the products for the company. This realm of pre-sales consulting, may be more aware of their own products, and even have considerable technical skills, but also have a good user display and communication skills (of course, if these do not have that is really nothing), but can not stand in the customer value point of view to understand the product, through the understanding of the customer's business, to define the needs of the customer and explain the value of the product to the customer. This is the primary stage of pre-sales consulting, I think it is also more happy pre-sales stage, simple is happy.
The second realm: from demand to program. Through continuous learning and summarization, we have our own knowledge system and working methodology (consciously or unconsciously), and we can stand in the management consulting point of view and use a variety of methods to understand the customer's business, analyze the user's needs, and provide solutions. To reach this level is not easy, methodology, knowledge, skills and attitudes can not be missing, it should be said that this level of pre-sales consulting has been more successful - if there is no next level of the realm. This realm of pre-sales consulting from a higher degree of influence on the customer, can undertake some of the customer's management consulting work, such as product system planning and product design.
The third realm: the whole business promotion. After all, the essence of pre-sales consulting is still to promote sales, so in the business field must have their own ideas and thoughts. Pre-sales consultants in this realm have a clear understanding of the entire business promotion route, can make plans based on this roadmap, and according to the plan to influence the customer at different stages until the signing of the business contract, and even extended to the field of sales.
Based on the above description of the realm, it is not difficult to see an excellent pre-sales consulting should have the ability to: First, a systematic methodology (including business promotion); the second must have a wider knowledge system, including management, technology and business knowledge, especially to be familiar with their own products; Third, a good combination of skills, including the application of various types of tools, such as planning, research, communications, program writing, program presentation and other skills; in addition to the need to emphasize the attitude.
An excellent pre-sales, in addition to providing value to customers, should also find their own appropriate positioning in the company's value chain. The value chain refers to a series of activities carried out by a company in line with a specific model, or, in other words, the value chain is a link or chain of value-added products or services produced by the company, and each activity in the value chain increases the value of the product or service. From the perspective of the enterprise value chain, the creation and delivery of value consists of three stages:
Selecting value, through market segmentation, to determine the enterprise's market objectives and value positioning;
Delivering value, in accordance with the enterprise's business strategy, to develop products and services, and formulate the overall marketing strategy of the enterprise; and Communicating value, through the sale of sales, sales promotion, and other promotional efforts, to bring the enterprise's value to the market.
In the enterprise value chain, pre-sales consulting can influence the company's strategic choices through market research, and also participate in product development to provide value, and more often pre-sales engaged in value dissemination work. Therefore, a good pre-sales consulting should be mapped to all parts of the value chain.
Based on the above analysis, IT pre-sales consulting can be positioned as follows:
Value selection. Auxiliary, to assist the company's strategic value selection. Through industry research and market analysis, into the company's product system planning, service system planning and market development planning, in order to assist the leadership decision-making.
The preparation of solutions, based on customer needs to provide solutions. Through communication and exchange, understand customer strategy and business, analyze customer needs, and provide solutions on this basis.
Business process facilitator, assist sales to promote the business process. Work with sales*** to develop business promotion plans, influence customer selection through systematic methods, deep technical skills and rich presentation capabilities, and assist sales to promote the business process in the program, price and contract. Guarantor of project success, guaranteeing the successful implementation of the project. Define the scope of customer needs through business analysis, thus realizing the interface between customer needs and product development projects.
The secret to a successful pre-sales consulting program is to solve problems in a way that the customer understands, appreciates, and gives feedback. During the business development process, pre-sales consulting always adopts a top management perspective, and tailors the approach and business development line to the project situation to ensure the best impact on the customer.
III. Pre-sales Consulting Route Framework
The pre-sales consulting phase is the leading edge of sales realization and project implementation, and it includes everything from lead acquisition, requirements research, research and analysis, to the preparation of the project proposal and presentation to the customer to ensure that it is a paving stage for sales realization. In the pre-sales consulting stage, due to the possibility of facing many competitors, while in the customer and the customer has not reached a deep communication and understanding, so may encounter many difficulties and limitations, how to successfully demonstrate their ability to customers in this stage, that customers believe that their own is the best program, product and service providers, the project will continue to carry out the key. This is the key to the continuation of the project. Therefore, a global process roadmap framework and specialized knowledge and skills are very important at this stage.
In the project sales process, for pre-sales consulting, to provide solutions and promote the business process is the most important two functions, to complete the sales activities in the technical services and business promotion work, can be used in pre-sales consulting route as follows:
IV. Business strategy (which needs to be made explicit to the public at the top of the company)
Corporate mission - defines why the company exists. The corporate mission describes an enduring fact, an answer for an unlimited period of time
that provides the premise for all decisions made within the organization and provides guidance to internal and external personnel. ? Corporate vision - what the leader wants the company to become. A corporate vision describes an inspiring truth that can be achieved within a specific period of time, guides strategy and organizational development, and provides guidance primarily to internal personnel (some slogans are also available to external personnel). Corporate Competitive Strategy - a plan to defeat existing and potential competitors. Competitive strategy describes a company's strategically
chosen "value program," which outlines a series of initiatives to deliver a product or service that creates value over and above its cost. Competitive strategy is constantly being refined in response to market analyses, consumer experience, and experimentation, and is strictly limited to internal use.
A strategic construct abstractly describes the role that a company is playing or expects to play in the marketplace, and the key reasons why such a role creates value consistently over time. The strategic construct consists of:
Where to Compete - refers to selecting a number of target markets, products, and customers from a wide range of market engagements (i.e., numerous product categories, and various types of
consumers that may be attracted) in order to focus on a number of product or customer market segments. This centers on customers, products, geographic areas, channels, and the degree of vertical integration
How to compete - means to list all the possible ways in which the industry typically competes, and to try to use different basic
competitive means (e.g., using new technologies, or different basic means to meet customer needs).
When to compete - refers to the time-dynamic considerations of the strategy.
V. Business Model
The so-called business model refers to the core business logic of the enterprise to create value, including the combination of core businesses and their relationship to each other, and, simply put, how the enterprise realizes profitability.
There are many kinds of profit models, which have led to a large number of business model derivatives. Even within the same industry, companies can adopt completely different business models. Some companies can extend from upstream raw materials all the way to downstream distribution, which is a profit model, or a business model; while some companies focus only on the manufacturing business, and some concentrate on distribution. Through different combinations of these businesses, several different business models are derived from the market, and each business realizes value by virtue of its own business model. In fact, even if it is just the same business, there can still be different business models, for example, for companies engaged in sales, there is a direct sales model and a distribution model.
For an enterprise, what business model to adopt depends mainly on the strategy of the enterprise, that is, what kind of way the enterprise wants to make profits, including in which business areas to compete, through what kind of competition, etc. The strategy of the enterprise will directly determine the business model of the enterprise, including the business model of the enterprise. The enterprise's strategy will directly determine the enterprise's business model, and the business model will also directly determine the enterprise's competitiveness, or the ability to realize its strategy.
VI. Preparing Technical Solutions
The path to a solution is the process of describing the problem - analyzing the problem - solving the problem.
The process of preparing solutions is from business understanding to technical programming, that is, through business architecture analysis, understanding the organization's strategy, the organizational structure and functions of the relevant business, and key processes, so as to build the enterprise's application system architecture, and to provide technical solutions based on the application system requirements.