Hardware and Networking

Enterprise Hardware and Networking

Sample Customer Pain Points, Value Propositions, and Benefit Statements

To achieve sales success, it is increasingly important to provide prospects with quantified, personalized value propositions (business cases).  Value-based tools automate the creation of high quality business cases.  Common value-focused tool capabilities for business hardware sellers, include:

  • Customer needs analysis
  • Select or configure products based on customer needs
  • Estimate costs
  • System performance comparisons
  • TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) analysis
  • Alternative solution comparisons (including the cost of doing nothing)
  • Calculate ROI
  • Create customer-specific documentation (presentations, proposals, business cases)

Customer-facing web-based marketing tools (demand generation tools) are often referred to as “ROI calculators” and often only contain a couple of the above components.  Tools used internally (by sales staff or partners) are typically more comprehensive.

The table below summarizes:  1) Sample Customer Challenges or Pain Points which are familiar to many hardware buyers.  Effective tools assess customer needs and present solutions (your products) that solve them. 2) Sample Solution Value Propositions that automation tools can personalize and thereby make more compelling. 3) Sample Benefits that business value tools can quantify (must be done credibly), making your business cases substantially more effective.

Configurator Tool iPad

 

 

 

Industry

Sample Customer Challenges / Pains

Sample Solution Value Propositions

Sample Benefits To Quantify in the Tool

Application Development

Development languages, environments, tools, software construction components, business rules management systems, model-driven development software, web design and development tools

Example Vendors: Microsoft .NET, IBM WebSphere, Rational, Java/J2EE/EE, Ruby on Rails, PHP, Python, Perl, Oracle, BEA Systems WebLogic, JBoss (Red Hat), SAP NetWeaver, Adobe, Pegasystems, Borland, TIBCO, Compuware

    • Lack development tools to support requested software capabilities
    • Development efficiency and capabilities not leading-edge
Enable faster and higher quality development and testing of software
    • Development productivity
    • Software quality
    • Cost savings
    • Software-enabled business benefits
    • User satisfaction
Middleware

Business process management (BPM), application integration (application servers, commerce platform servers, and transaction processing monitors), and platform middleware

Example Vendors: Captaris Workflow, EMC Documentum, Global 360, IBM FileNet, Open Text, Pegasystems, Oracle, SAP, TIBCO, webMethods, BEA Systems, SeeBeyond, GXS, Sterling Commerce, ATG, Escalate Retail, Comergent, Coral8, Progress

    • Current platform capabilities can’t support desired technology environment
Improved integration, enhanced IT capabilities, and lower software development costs.
    • Improve alignment with IT strategy
    • Improve adoption of IT capabilities and best practices
    • Reduce development and software costs
    • Improve business process efficiency and effectiveness
Data Management and Integration

Master data management, data quality, metadata, process modeling, monitoring and management, workflow, business rules, automation, electronic forms, BAM (business activity monitoring)

Example Vendors: Evolutionary Technologies, CA, IBM, Information Builders, SAP Business Objects, Informatica, Trillium, OpenLink, BEA, Software AG webMethods, Talend, Initiate Systems, TIBCO

    • Data is still too siloed
    • Data structures are not consistent
    • Systems are not easy to integrate
    • System development costs are too high and lead times are too long
Consistent access and delivery of data across the spectrum of data subject areas and data structure types in the enterprise to meet the data consumption requirements of all applications and business processes
    • Reduce development and integration costs
    • Improve data access
    • Reduce new system lead times
    • Improve data quality
    • Improve compliance with data standards
Database and Storage Management

Non-relational database management, database development and management tools, data protection and recovery software, storage replication software, archiving software, file system software, storage management software, storage infrastructure software, storage device management software

Example Vendors: EMC, HP, Sun, Hitachi, EDS, Network Appliance, IBM DB2, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, SAP, BMC, CA HP, Quest, Embarcadero, Acronis, NetApp, Barracuda, Carbonite

    • Inadequate support for big data (scalability issues)
    • Can’t support and manage growing data analysis demands
Improve storage device management and performance, data access, and data protection
    • Improve system performance, reliability, and scalability
    • Lower storage costs
    • Improve data access
    • Improve quality of data analysis
IT Operations Software

Application management, availability and performance, network/OS management, configuration management, IT service desk and IT help desk, asset management, job scheduling

Example Vendors: Microsoft, IBM Tivoli, BMC Software, CA Unicenter, HP, LANDesk, Novell ZENworks, Symantec Altiris, Cisco Systems

    • Inefficient IT operations
    • Manageability and service level issues
Improve provisioning, capacity, performance and availability of the computing, networking and application environment
    • Reduce IT TCO
    • Improve service levels
    • Reduce downtime
    • Improve adoption of best practices and standards
System Software

Operating systems and subsystems, availability and clustering software, application and user session virtualization, virtual machine software

Example Vendors: HP-UX, IBM, Microsoft Windows, Novell, Red Hat Linux, Oracle Sun, Citrix, VMware, Xen

    • Current system lacks desired standards and capabilities
    • Resource usage not optimized
Higher-performance foundation on which applications, middleware and other infrastructure components function
    • Reduce IT TCO
    • Improve performance
    • Improve manageability
    • Improve software compatibility
Security

Identity and access management, antivirus software, e-mail encryption, e-mail security, enterprise single sign-on, security information and event management, URL filtering, user provisioning, web-access management, data rights management

Example Vendors: McAfee, Symantec, CA, Trend Micro, Microsoft, Cisco Systems, NetIQ, VeriSign, IBM, Unisys, Citrix, Novell, EMC, Check Point, AVG, Kaspersky

    • Threats are always evolving
    • Executive pressure to minimize vulnerabilities
    • System access is cumbersome
Improve secure access to resources, reduce security vulnerabilities, improve security monitoring and management
    • Reduce risk
    • Lower TCO
    • Improve compliance
    • Improve system access
    • Improve monitoring and management
    • Improve adoption of security best practices

 

AnalysisPlace builds highly-effective sales and marketing tools that help hardware vendors articulate their value propositions to their prospects.  Contact us to discuss tool solutions that can help your company obtain more qualified sales leads, improve sales close rates, and cut sales cycle times.