Selling and marketing services is not easy and differs from product marketing, but it also has much in common. Cliff and Berenice discussed this at the Cambridge Product Managers Network on 29 September 2014.

1. Product Management Principles in
a Services Company
Berenice Mann (Proactive Marketer)
Clifford Dive (Argon Design)
Thanks to our sponsors

2. “we're brilliant
guys and we can
do clever stuff for
you”

3. I’m so brilliant

4. So where are the
customers?

6. Intangible
No two jobs the same
Mutual uncertainty of
◦ What the customer wants
◦ What you’ll give them
What are we selling? (“....brilliant guys....”)
CTOs who want to do exciting (risky) stuff
rather than boring (profitable) stuff

7. Getting discovered
What do we do? (“Anything anyone will pay us
for”)
Who are the customers? (“We work across
markets with anyone who’ll pay us”)
Messaging (“...we’re brilliant guys...”)
Credibility (“...we can do anything...”)

8. Selling to mates
Referrals
Traditional outbound
sales (cold calling,
company lists,
walking the floor at
trade shows,
networking)
Bluebirds

9. Selling to mates
Referrals
Traditional outbound
sales (cold calling,
company lists,
walking the floor at
trade shows,
networking)
Bluebirds
• Cheap,
effective
• Not scalable
• Can decay with
time

10. Selling to mates
Referrals
Traditional outbound
sales (cold calling,
company lists,
walking the floor at
trade shows,
networking)
Bluebirds
• Cheap,
effective
• Can scale
• Unpredictable
• Difficult to
control

11. Selling to mates
Referrals
Traditional outbound
sales (cold calling,
company lists,
walking the floor at
trade shows, naive
networking)
Bluebirds
Have to find
the right
person in the
right company
with the right
need at the
right time

12. Selling to mates
Referrals
Traditional outbound
sales (cold calling,
company lists,
walking the floor at
trade shows,
networking)
Bluebirds
If someone
calls you, and
you do what
they’re looking
for, the
conversion
rate is good

13. Selling to mates
Referrals
Traditional outbound
sales (cold calling,
company lists,
walking the floor at
trade shows,
networking)
Bluebirds

14. Usual answers:
Social media
SEO
Shows
Hire a brilliant sales guy
All of the above, but they are not a
panacea on their own

15. Business model
◦ Be big and famous (CCL)
◦ Be a niche player
◦ Product/IP/Services combo (bait)
Repeat business
◦ Do a good job
◦ Account management
◦ Choose the right sort of customer
◦ Build relationships, share, take the long view

17. Before we can start we need to
understand what we are
Define the
offering(s)
Identify the
customer

18. Before we can start we need to
understand what we are
Define the
offering(s)
Identify the
customer
• What do we do
(or would we
like to do)?
• What makes us
special?

19. Before we can start we need to
understand what we are
Define the
offering(s)
Identify the
customer
• Who are they?
• Where are they?
• What do they do?
• Do they exist?
• Can/will they pay?
• How can we help
them?

20. What do we need to do to bring the offering to
the customer?
Any pre-requisites?
◦ Can we deliver the offering?
How do we get the message to the customer?
◦ Can we deliver the message?

21. Sales, marketing and delivery working as a
team
Marketing create the messaging and raise
profile
Sales create and follow up leads and reinforce
the message
Delivery team
◦ Strategic R&D coordinated with the “product” and
the message
◦ Develop expertise and demos

22. Be proactive
◦ Don’t just provide the service but predict, identify
and create the broad offering
◦ Thought leadership – identify and communicate
what the next problem will be and have the answer
today
This is broadly similar to the process of
bringing a product to the market

23. Confidence that we have
◦ key skills
◦ experience
◦ good job in agreed timeframe
With social media we can go further, engage
with customer rather than broadcast
Is that how your company uses social media?

24. Strong brand
Customer focus
Marketing
campaigns
Work the shows
better
Show strong track
record

25. Strong brand
Customer focus
Marketing
campaigns
Work the shows
better
Demonstrate a
strong track record
• Vision
• Clear, strong
messaging
• Everyone on
board
• Convey
excitement/vision
to build brand

26. Strong brand
Customer focus
Marketing
campaigns
Work the shows
better
Demonstrate a
strong track record
Really!

27. Strong brand
Customer focus
Marketing
campaigns
Work the shows
better
Demonstrate a
strong track record
Content is King!
• thought
leadership
• position key staff
Key aims: –
• raise profile
• inbound inquiries

28. Strong brand
Customer focus
Marketing
campaigns
Make the most of
trade shows
Demonstrate a
strong track record
Strategy!
• Appointments in
advance
• Target appropriate
prospects
• If there aren’t any,
why are you there?
• FOLLOW UP!

29. Strong brand
Customer focus
Marketing
campaigns
Work the shows
better
Demonstrate a
strong track record
• Case studies
• Endorsements
• Genuinely happy
customers

30. Don’t leave this to chance
Sales people are not knights in shining
armour who will singlehandedly ‘save’
your business. They need:
◦ Support from marketing (profile, brochures,
inbound marketing)
◦ Tech support
◦ Operations/delivery to be reliable and of
consistent good quality
◦ Vision from the management team/board and
filtering all the way down – everyone on
message!

31. CEO – you can sell better than your sales guy?
Have you:
defined an appropriate target market?
communicated your enthusiasm and key
knowledge on to other staff?
equipped them properly to sell your
product or service?
backed them up with appropriate marketing
strategy and campaigns?
expected miracle results with no
investment?

32. Once upon a time there was a technology
consultancy, that wanted to transfer
skills and experience from the US smart
meter rollout into the European market
Europe was starting to think about smart
meter rollouts
Different countries - different needs:
infrastructure, comms channels,
timescales – one size doesn’t fits all!
= opportunity!

33. 1. Market research to assess opportunities available
and key customers to target (lead list!)
2. Use info to develop new messaging and campaigns
3. Devise and conduct a PR campaign to support new
VP European Sales. (why?)
◦ Raise profile in new market with thought leadership
◦ Introduce key members of team before approaching
companies
◦ Create awareness and position the company

34.  Skills and experience in smart
metering and sensing – lots of clever
people who knew ALL about this
stuff!
 Track record –
8M US smart meters with their
technology inside
New licensing agreement with National
Grid smart meter for the UK

35. Proposition – why buy off the shelf meters
and crowbar them into your requirements
when you can design from scratch and get
exactly what you need?
For less money!
E.g. Enel in Italy and National Grid in UK.

36. New headline message
“The world-leading supplier of smart grid and
metering technology”
No frills, clear, true, defendable message that
the exec team were comfortable with – all on
board!
Developed by marketing and sales and exec
team ‘final say’ for exact wording

37. Redesign website – clear focus!
support ideas and positioning
provide content utilities could relate to
 New content support
key message
 Highlight thought
leadership
 New case studies to
demo expertise
 CTA!
 Tagging and links

38. New print collateral
New PR agency with European
offices – foot on the ground in
relevant countries & translation
Develop thought leadership -
trade articles, research and press
releases
Drive activities for key trade
show, ‘Metering Europe’
Extend communications to social
media to boost reach, encourage
engagement, drive to website
Twitter · 28 Jan 2011
Congratulations to our partners
Onstream for their Meter
Manufacturer and Innovation of the
Year awards: http://bit.ly/eeIa6U

39. The Campaign was focused & effective
Coverage in Pan European trade journals,
general press e.g. FT
Raised overall profile in target market
Resulted in inquiries and advanced bookings
for meetings at key show
For the first time utilities sought the
company out at Metering Europe
European Sales office busy
CEO = go-to person for media comment,
raising company and personal profile
Board happy! -“punching above our weight”
- marketing investment paid off

41.  Number 5 in list of key
influencers in Greenbang
Report 2010
big achievement for a small
company
 Report was also picked up
by the FT
 6 month survey - greater
recognition and related to
smart grid/metering
“… is expected by the
report’s authors to
grow significantly as
the UK launches its
massive smart meter
roll-out.”

42.  Worked with a number of European Utilities
following the campaign
 Formed new partnerships to develop
technology
 Forged links with key influencers and
journalists
 Grew from 25-40 people over 2 years
 Other benefits? – Recruitment!