IM-eBook-Making Your Customers’ Goals a Reality-Revised-01.08€¦ · By working to make a customer’s goals a reality, VARs truly do add value to each and every company they partner

MAKE YOUR CUSTOMERS’ PRO AV GOALS A REALITYIDENTIFYING CLIENT NEEDS AND SELECTING THE RIGHT PRODUCTS AND VENDORS

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As a value-added reseller (VAR), you are in a unique position to offer your customers industry-leading technology that can greatly benefit their businesses. By working to make a customer’s goals a reality, VARs truly do add value to each and every company they partner with.

In the pro AV space, a wide range of technologies is enabling customers in every vertical to enjoy benefits such as increased ad sales and brand awareness, improved customer service, and reduced costs. Not surprisingly, the market is growing at a rapid rate. According to InfoComm, the global pro AV industry is expected to hit $114 billion in 2016, with digital signage making up the largest slice of that total. Close behind are video conferencing, networked meeting rooms, and video walls.

Of course, the pro AV market is not without its challenges. In certain verticals, VARs encounter a lack of customer awareness around the various types of pro AV technologies and how businesses are using systems to reach their goals. In others, customers are familiar with the technology and interested to discover how it might benefit them.

In both of these cases, you have an opportunity to serve as the pro AV expert for customers of all kinds. Educate them about the potential business benefits of pro AV, and position yourself as a reliable source for these and other systems. Help guide your clients to the best products and vendors for their goals, and you will gain lifelong customers in the process.

INTRODUCTION

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Although each customer’s challenges, opportunities, and overall goals are unique, following a set of best practices for meeting a client’s needs will be helpful. Here, we explain each step in the process, from understanding your client’s goals to recommending the best technologies.

First, identify the client’s needs

Recognize the pain points for the specific verticalThe pro AV market includes such a wide range of verticals, it’s vital that you fully understand the various challenges and typical “pain points” that each individual customer is likely facing. For example, a house of worship will experience much different concerns than a corporate office or higher education campus.

Familiarize yourself with the most common pain points for the verticals in which you operate the most. Then, learn how to speak the language of that specific vertical. For example, many corporate customers are going to be seeking video conferencing, digital signage, and meeting room solutions. Meanwhile, a house of worship may be more focused on lower-cost display technology, such as projector systems, and basic recording devices.

Understand what the client really needsWhat are your customer’s goals for its pro AV technology? What will make the installation a success? This might be better customer engagement and service, increased ad sales, decreased perceived wait time for visitors, or any number of other goals. As a VAR, you must take the time to fully understand what each client wants to accomplish.

MEETING YOUR CLIENTS’ NEEDS

A great way to approach your customer’s needs is to use the S.M.A.R.T. technique. This acronym will help you to fully understand your customer’s goals for its pro AV system, while also ensuring that any technology you recommend is well-suited for each goal. S.M.A.R.T. stands for specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely:

With these points in mind, you will be more likely to stay focused on the particular goal at hand, as well as what steps it will take to get there.

Specific – The end goal should be a precise objective, such as “improve sales.” Measurable – The end goal can be measured, e.g., “grow sales by 10 percent in 12 months.”

Achievable – Can the goal actually be reached?

Realistic – Is the goal worthwhile for the company?

Timely – Is now the right time to aim for this kind of goal, or are there other factors that might prevent success?


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Tailor your pitch to the person of contactWhen preparing your pro AV pitch, be sure to tailor it to your contacts at each company. Depending on their roles in the implementation, their questions, concerns, and goals may be different. For example, consider the business owner versus the CFO or chief marketing officer. With a new pro AV system, the owner may want to focus on the overall business benefits, while the CFO might be most concerned with ROI. Meanwhile, the chief marketing officer may have questions about specific content and sales opportu-nities. Consider each distinct perspective to get a sense for each stakeholder’s pain points and their overall, department-specific goals for the technology.

Ask the right questionsNo VAR is a mind reader; that’s why you must ask detailed questions about your customer’s business, existing technology investment, long-term goals, and more. Here are some key questions to get started:

Can you give me a high-level overview of how your company operates?

What are some of your company’s big-picture goals for the coming years?

What are your business goals (e.g., improve sales, help grow business, and so on) for this pro AV installation?

What are your department-specific goals for this project?

How is AV technology currently used here?

How might pro AV be used/expanded here in the coming years?

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Next, establish yourself as a pro AV expert

Get to know the industryHere is your opportunity to become a true expert in your field. Take the time to fully familiarize yourself with the pro AV industry, including the core technologies and their various components, common customer challenges and needs, emerging trends and innovations, and the leading technology vendors. Read pro AV trade publications and websites, and join industry organizations to ensure that you’re always aware of the latest news and innovations.

Speak your customers’ languageDepending on your point of contact, their pro AV lingo may be very different. Be sure to use keywords that are appropriate for each stakeholder. As you familiarize yourself with the industry, tailoring your language to each person will become second nature.

For example, consider the differences between technology-focused keywords and those that have more to do with project development:

If your audience is IT or the CIO, they will likely be more interested in the technology focus, while owners and other management-level stakeholders may be primarily concerned with the project development side.

Technology keywords: 4K, interactivity, bandwidth, touchscreen, IT convergence, BYOD and mobile, big data

Project development keywords: timelines, resources, budget, ROI, total cost of ownership (TCO)


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Payment terms: Are all payments due up front, or does the vendor offer flexible financing options?

Buying requirement(s): For example, are VARs required to purchase multiple units at once?

Quality for the price: Price point isn’t always directly indicative of quality; here is where your research on expert and user reviews will come in handy.

Price

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Training: What types of product training does the vendor offer, both for VARs and for the end-user? This can be a significant distinguishing factor because high-quality training can help make your business a success now and for years to come.

Ongoing support: If you or your customer has problems with a specific piece of hardware, will the vendor step in to help? Be sure to look for a manu-facturer partner that will stand behind its products and offer support when necessary.

Programs

1 How easy is it to simply work with the vendor? How have other VARs reviewed the company’s buying process (including ordering, delivery, customer service, returns, and so on)?

Process

1 High-quality customer service and support are vital in the technology world. You should rest assured that your company is going to be backed up by people who actually care, so be sure to partner with a vendor that makes you feel heard.

People

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Finally, find the best vendors

Do your researchPut some time into finding the best vendors for your specific product offering. Ignore the buzzwords, and focus on the facts: Compare price and specifications of products against other leading manufac-turers. (And remember: The lowest price is not always your best option.) Research important factors such as their reputation in the industry and total years of experi-ence. Go online to read expert product reviews from publications such as CNET, and then look for reviews from former and current end-users. Finally, do some legwork to discover how easy it is to purchase products from and work with each vendor. You’ll want to find manufac-turers that make this process smooth and seamless because you may be working with them for years to come.

Next, talk to each vendor’s tech support department. Note how much time and effort it takes to get a technician on the phone, and then ask him or her about typical technical support protocol. Notice how helpful and knowledgeable the tech seems—these seemingly small factors could really help or hurt your day-to-day relationship with the company.

For hardware in particular, such as LCD displays and mounting equipment, comparing products and their specifications side-by-side is especially important. Prioritize the “Four Ps”:


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Try the products for yourselfAlthough online research and phone calls can give you insight into the quality of a given manufacturer, nothing beats actually working with the products yourself. When possible, take a product for a test drive, whether at the manufacturer’s showroom, during a tradeshow, or through your industry connections. Explore all its features, the user interface, and the design. Note all its standout features, as well as any potential issues that emerge. Consider how the technology would work in the real world—especially in your customer’s specific environment, whether it’s a busy healthcare clinic or a small retail boutique.

Consider partnering with a technology distributorToday, many VARs benefit from partnering with a technology distributor, which can help ensure you have access to the highest-quality products and are connected with the industry’s best manufacturers. With the support of a distributor, your relationships with leading vendors are already solidified, and you can rest assured that you will have the service and support you need to be successful.

Another benefit lies in the research phase. Technology distributors take product and manufacturer vetting out of the equation. These firms devote significant time and resources to market development research, product testing, and industry forecasting, which means you devote less time to identifying and vetting manufacturers and individual products before recom-mending them for your own customers. Instead, your focus can be on finding new customers and ensuring that their pro AV systems are meeting their unique goals.

In the dynamic, fast-growing pro AV market, it’s important to develop a strong understanding of your customer’s challenges and goals, as well as the technologies that can help them succeed. By partnering with a reputable technology distributor with plenty of pro AV experience, you will be connected with industry-leading manufacturers and the best-in-class products your customers require—while enabling yourself to focus on growing your business.

Look for a technology distributor that is well-established in the pro AV field and is backed by leading manufacturers. With the right distributor partnership, your business will be well-positioned for success, both today and for years to come.

FIND A PARTNER

Irvine, Calif.-based Ingram Micro Inc. is the leading technology distributor within the pro AV and digital signage market, offering a unified line card that features the most comprehensive portfolio of in-demand and emerging pro AV and digital signage products and solutions. Ingram Micro’s Pro AV and Digital Signage business unit (BU) offers channel partners, AV professionals, and vendors specialized partner support and business enablement resources, as well as access to a dedicated team of seasoned marketing, sales, business development, and technology professionals.

ABOUT INGRAM MICRO INC.


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IM-eBook-Making Your Customers’ Goals a Reality-Revised-01.08€¦ · By working to make a customer’s goals a reality, VARs truly do add value to each and every company they partner

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