How To Sell High Tech To Small Biz

To better assess the kinds of services you should offer with your proposal, you should have an understanding of how proficient the employees are with technology, what kind of problems they require help with and what they'd like to do on their jobs that technology can help them achieve. You can do this by conducting an employee survey.

Ask each employee to rate their proficiency and satisfaction with the technology they're now using on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 as the lowest rating. Questions that will give you an overall view of their competency and needs might include: How proficient are you with technology overall? Do you experience a lot of problems with your computer? Are you happy using your computer/technology?

Identify the applications and equipment that are causing them the most difficulty and draft your proposal for training and support around those.

Don't forget to find out how the business presents itself publicly. This may sound like a very simple and rudimentary procedure, but it's an important one. Collect any newsletters, brochures, marketing material, ads and public relations material that the business has distributed to learn as much as you can about your client and how he or she presents themselves to their own clients. Don't forget to check their Web site. Once you have an awareness of the range of the business' offerings, its services and mission, you'll be better able to recommend solutions that the client company has not already identified for itself.

Use the meetings in which you're collecting information about the company to dispense a little information yourself. Play the role of an educator. Clients who are not already technically aware often possess unrealistic notions of what technology can do for their business. To avoid disappointment later, be sure the client fully understands up front what to expect of the solutions you recommend.

And don't mince words. It's very important to let small-business clients know that technology is not the means to all ends or a "silver bullet." It's a tool, (albeit a very important one) you're putting at their disposal. And prepare them to expect some difficulties. As a consultant, you may be used to DLL conflicts, revisions, patches, hot fixes, and crashes but your small-business clients probably are not. They will get very frustrated when these things happen and may even blame you for the problems. They don't care that the answer to their problems is in a hot fix, update, service pack, or download. They'll just want it fixed.

This is where service offerings come into play. Educating your customers about technology and what it can and cannot do will increase the understanding between you and your client when things go wrong. Point out the need for a service contract up front and assure your availability if and when they do need you. Once the sale is made, don't be a stranger. Go back and visit periodically to see how the solution is working. Obtaining continual feedback and input from your client and their employees will keep lines of communication open and enable you to better deal with issues as they arise.

It's important to analyze the relevant business processes of your client before implementing a technology solution. If your client has unsound business processes or workflow, you won't be fixing the real problem by simply throwing technology at it. You'll just be technologizing a bad process. Your expertise is technology integration and may not be business management. But as best you can, ensure your technology solution enhances good business processes.

For instance, I've seen businesses that do not keep good records. Bills, invoices and other documents are often scattered in various files and are not neatly, and meticulously, tracked. Creating an automated document management solution for this type of client may make matters worse, just giving the company one more place to lose records. First encourage your client to establish a formal record-keeping system--analog--and then digitize the system later. Sometimes it's better to leave money on the table.

When you've finished your research and identified solutions for your client, it's time to develop your plan for implementing them.

Some practical things to keep in mind as you develop your plan of action are:

Put on paper target dates and steps you will take to begin and finish the project. You'll not only guide yourself, but your client will appreciate the security of knowing how your work will progress. Don't limit yourself and provide unrealistic goals that look good on paper, but are not humanly possible.

Budget different times for different types of projects. Installing a 10-user network is much different than installing software on five computers--and you should make your client is aware of this. Allocate enough time in your plan for any errors that may occur, including time for installation and support.

And expect the unexpected. Recently, one of my small-business clients was having problems with a Packard Bell desktop computer. When I looked at the computer, I realized the motherboard needed to be replaced. I guessed it would take a half an hour for installation, plus a few days to order the part through a local service center. It took more than three weeks! Packard Bell actually sent two motherboards. Neither worked. When I went to the service center to pick up yet another motherboard, no one could find it (a day wasted). Getting a refund took several more days. Finally, I ordered a new computer for the client via OnSales auction site and it was another 15 days before it arrived. This may be an extreme example, but we can't control taxes or the deaths of motherboards.

Before initiating an installation, ensure you've received all the hardware and software you need and that it works properly. One of the most disappointing and frustrating things for you and the client is when you're at a client's site ready to work only to find out the product you ordered is defective, or missing! Set it up and beta test it first.

If you need access to locked or otherwise inaccessible areas (password-protected computers, locked closets and doors, etc.) make sure your client has provided it. This is especially important if you're doing an installation after hours on and on weekends.

Remember, small-business owners are very busy and have their own clients to service, therefore, be prepared to have your nicely planned project altered and changed--without warning.

Manage the client's expectations and provide sufficient support to ensure continued satisfaction.

Small businesses, much more than larger businesses, can't afford to have technology failures. Since they often don't have the resources to retain an in-house IT department, you'll need to provide outstanding, fast and knowledgeable support. Your client will want to know you'll be there when they need you.

Since you know that technology will fail, it's very important that you assure them in as much detail as possible what will happen when it does and provide a backup plan.

Consider a fall-back plan. You can often accommodate one using the legacy equipment at a client's site. For instance, I installed a proxy server for a client but when it broke down, no one at the firm could get Internet access. Instead of waiting until the server was fixed, we were able to get the company back online using the modems I'd left in the individual employees' computers. We simply connected telephone lines to each modem and they used the usual dial-up networking connection on each PC until the problem was resolved. This was my backup plan--and it worked. Result: The client was happy.

If possible, try to provide your client with a working demo/installation of your solution before the full installation. They'll be able to convince themselves your recommendations are sound and be more forgiving when things go wrong. If problems develop at the demo stage, you can solve them before they escalate. Try to install solutions you are familiar with and know will work. A cutting-edge or a 1.0 solution may cause you and your clients more headaches than it's worth.

You can avoid a lot of headaches if you ensure that users of your technology solutions are trained to use them. Training is one of the best forms of support you can offer your clients.

Don't force your clients to call up 10 vendors to get support; they'll prefer to make one phone call to one person--usually you. If you are not able to provide them with convenient and timely support, you may wish to consider:

Get to know your clients, not just on the surface but have a knowledge of their plans and dreams, their dislikes and likes--begin to think and know what they'll need before they do. They don't have time to understand all the nuances of technology. Help them to understand the big picture and how technology fits into their business. For each solution you provide, give them a workable plan, with dates, times and flexibility.

Finally, support them like you would a friend. First impressions do count, but keep the second, third and fourth impressions just as good or better than the first one. Support is the "follow up" impression.