Our panel this morning at SkySwitch Vectors was about what we in the media see in the tech space. I ended up discussing how we need to emphasize selling results or outcomes. I posited that the main thing an MSP does is to provide technology to customers for outcomes while making the tech invisible. (Remember this!)
Millenials and Gen X & Y are all thought to be tech savvy, but they are app savvy. They can’t fix a TV or a computer (even change a video card) because they grew up with the iPhone. These folks need technology provided as a service that makes the tech just simply work. We are talking about User Experience!
Baby Boomers who are retiring or building new businesses also need a great User (Customer) Experience (UX/CX).
At Vonage’s event today, the tweet from Elka Popova shows that communications should be about customer and employees experiences. Vonage goes on to explain that “business communications are not optimized for business success“. Data silos and other problems get in the way with business success.
Another issue in the space is that we sell from the inside. In other words, we don’t start with the customer experience and work in. We “save money” by helping eliminate redundant jobs – in the contact center and in the office. We talk about phones and lines, but not about who is calling and what do they need.
About seven years ago a few providers were in a new space called Rich Communications. One had intelligence about who was calling and who they talked to – and offered the caller a short cut to resume that conversation. It is this type of data use for user experience that needs to be employed for market penetration.
We have lots of conferencing platforms but all are the same – dial a number put in a PIN. It’s 2019, why doesn’t it just know the Caller ID and put them in the correct meeting? Why can’t the platform just dial everyone that accepted the invite? So many ways to differentiate that are technologically in our means but not applied.
In two other posts – HERE (Obstacles) and HERE (3 things) – I discussed problems the UC providers face. This could be viewed as post #3 in that series. Phones get in the way of sales. What models? Lease or buy or HaaS? Why are we still stumbling over phones? In the last 15 years, we have sold it this way. It hasn’t been that successful. Why not try another way?
Lastly, at Vonage they have finally worked through their Value Proposition HERE. Vonage makes it easier for orgs to have conversations with customers they love. Vonage sells building blocks that allow customers to tailor and evolve customer experiences.
We sell technology. Unfortunately, we sell products, not solutions. We need to sell outcomes, results, employee experiences and customer experiences. It isn’t about the phone system; it is about conversations and results. And it doesn’t matter which AAS you are talking about – CPaaS, UCaaS or CCaaS. Take the tech out – managed services are about taking the tech out of the user’s hair. Let’s try that in sales too!
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