by Andy Kowl, editor
It's January, so chances are you have planned your strategy for achieving success in 2010. The question is, what criteria did you give the most weight to?
I have noticed so many similarities in targeting new customers, I wonder if everyone is reading the same report or using "common knowledge" to decide on their best prospects.
It reminds me of 10-year-olds playing soccer. And regardless of the age of the soccer player, in soccer there is not much scoring.
Have you ever watched 10-year-olds play soccer? They are old enough to know that different players have different roles. At the least, they know that some players are assigned to defense and some to offense. Coaches tell them which part of the field is their domain.
But when the ball is put in play, they all run to the ball. Offense, defense, assignments? Out the window.
Having inhabited the world of RFID the last few years, at first the common knowledge was all you needed to do was sell Walmart suppliers and all would be fine. So many companies were chasing Walmart suppliers, I was told dozens of times by otherwise savvy executives that it was the only market that existed.
It was even worse for those chasing U.S. Dept. of Defense suppliers. In 2005-7 we heard a drumbeat of DoD, DoD, DoD. I knew a couple of companies that were founded solely to serve this market. Turns out it was all smoke and mirrors – the DoD not only didn't enforce their loudly announced mandates, they virtually abandoned them and have been doing most of the RFID tagging themselves.
Are some companies successful selling defense suppliers? Sure, but those start-ups are defunct and the DoD chant has ended a few years back . . .
, , , to be replaced in 2007-8 by Pharma, Pharma, Pharma. Everybody "knew" the road to riches lay directly through the pharmaceutical industry.
In '08-09 it morphed to Healthcare, Healthcare, Healthcare, one that has staying power today. At least in Healthcare there are, indeed, more widespread adoptions.
As I write this riding on Amtrak, I wonder how many of you are trying to sell railroad clients? I've passed a few electric-generating facilities—have you approached any with your smart IT solutions? Do you have a sales plan for the new construction I've seen along the way? Everyone has a book and satchel or suitcase—what IT solutions do you have for publishers or luggage manufacturers. They may not be the flavor of the day; but maybe you won't be battling 100 competitors, either.
I'm not sure which "soccer ball" everybody is running to this year. One candidate, which picked up popularity last year more than before, is the apparel market. Healthcare is still hot. Regardless of which bouncing ball everyone chases, will you join that pack and run with them? If like other soccer games the likely score is around 2-0—ask yourself if so few scores (closed sales) are worth bothering with. Unless you have an outstanding, easy-to-see advantage to offer that market, maybe you should be starting your own game.
