Introduction to Solution Marketing (Steve Robins) ProductCamp Boston May 2013

© 2011
www.SolutionMarketingBlog.com
Introduction to
Solution Marketing
Steve Robins
May 4, 2013

© 2009-2013 The Solution Marketing Blog
C B O N D
limits
compe++on
company
yourself
services
products

Beyond

Products:

Solu+on

Marke+ng

THE Solution Marketing Blog

www.SolutionMarketingBlog.com p4© 2009-2013
What is “it”?
What’s Happening What’s Needed
•  Customers want it •  Solutions make life easier
•  Help customers•  But most customers
can’t do it on their own
•  Technology is increasingly complex and
customers lack in-house resources, time,
expertise
•  Apple, IBM and Chuck e
Cheese sell it
•  Each offers complete solutions to
customers…
Apple iPad ecosystem, IBM industry
solutions, Chuck e Cheese birthday
package •  Provide discipline, rigor,
consistency – best
practices•  Most tech companies
claim to have it
•  Seems like everyone sells solutions today
•  But none of them know
what it is
•  But there’s not a common definition
•  Sales thinks they’re
selling it…
•  Many sales teams use the Solution Selling
methodology
•  Help Marketing to work
with Sales
•  Provide a solution
methodology for
Marketing
•  …but they’re doing it
without Marketing.
•  But Solution Selling does not provide
strategic guidance for Marketing
•  It can be confusing •  There’s little discipline around solutions
•  Solution Marketing Blog,
Group, Consulting
“It” = Solutions

What’s Happening What’s Needed
•  Customers want it •  Solutions make life easier
•  Help customers•  But most customers
can’t do it on their own
•  Technology is increasingly complex and
customers lack in-house resources, time,
expertise
•  Apple, IBM and Chuck e
Cheese sell it
•  Each offers complete solutions to
customers…
Apple iPad ecosystem, IBM industry
solutions, Chuck e Cheese birthday
package •  Provide discipline, rigor,
practices•  Most tech companies
claim to have it
•  Seems like everyone sells solutions today
•  But none of them know
what it is
•  But there’s not a common definition
•  Sales thinks they’re
selling it…
•  Many sales teams use the Solution Selling
methodology
•  Help Marketing to work
with Sales
•  Provide a solution
methodology for
Marketing
•  …but they’re doing it
without Marketing.
•  But Solution Selling does not provide
strategic guidance for Marketing
•  It can be confusing •  There’s little discipline around solutions
•  Solution Marketing Blog,
Group, Consulting
What is “it”? Solutions is It.

• 
Provide a solution
methodology for Marketing
• Discipline, rigor,
practices
• Help Marketing to work with
Sales
• How:
• Solution Marketing
Blog
• LinkedIn Group
Steve Robins
Ÿ  VP of Marketing, FirstBest Systems
Ÿ  10+ years in solution marketing
–  Expertise in solution, industry and product
marketing
–  Experience: FirstBest Systems, Solution
Marketing Strategies, EMC Documentum, KANA,
The Yankee Group
Ÿ  Founder, The Solution Marketing Blog,
Top-rated solution marketing blog
Ÿ  Inbound Marketing Certified
Professional
s.robins@solutionmkt.com
LinkedIn.com/in/SteveRobins1
Twitter.com/SteveRobins
SolutionMarketingBlog.com

Solutions Everywhere
Device
+
Software
+
Content
+
Cloud
Device
+
Software
+
Content
+
Cloud
Kid food
+
Adult food
+
Entertainment
+
Activities
+
Party gifts

Solutions Everywhere

Agenda
Ÿ  Introduction
Ÿ  Beyond products
Ÿ  Solution marketing
–  Solution
–  Education & engagement
–  Value
–  Access
Ÿ  Building your solution marketing strategy
–  Discovery
–  Strategies for solutions, education & engagement, value, access
–  Case studies
Ÿ  Next steps, Q&A

Beyond
Products

The
Solu)on
Impera)ve

Typical Company Wants…
Company
Tech-
nology
Customer

What is a Solution Anyways?
so·lu·tion
noun səә-ˈlü-shəәn
General definition:
a: an action or process of solving a
problem
b: an answer to a problem
so·lu·tion
noun səә-ˈlü-shəәn
Business definition:
A complete and integrated
offering that includes everything
required to solve a customer
problem

Services
Typical Customer Wants…
Customer
---
Pain
Points
Tech-
nology
User
Process
Content/ Data
Complete Solution
Everything to solve the customer’s problem

Complete Solution
User •  User interfaces
•  Training
•  Support
•  Best practices
•  Domain expertise
Process •  Process optimization
•  Reengineering
•  Workflow
• Integrated experiences
• ROI studies
• Security
Content/
Data
•  Content
§ Documents
§ Images
§ Video
§ Music
§ Books
•  Data
•  External data sources
•  Data security, data policies
Technology •  Hardware/ infrastructure
•  Software platforms
•  Applications
•  Complementary technologies
•  Integrations
•  Custom coding
Services •  Strategy
•  Project management
•  Risk management
•  Custom coding
•  Integration services
•  Communications services, hosting
•  Support

Why Solutions?
Ÿ  Increasing complexity of technology
Ÿ  Limited in-house IT to support systems
Ÿ  Avoid in-house/SI build or integration
Ÿ  Business users drive tech decisions but don’t
understand the technology
Ÿ  Mature markets

Why It Matters
Early Adopters
Visionaries
Innovators
Technology
Enthusiasts
Early Majority/
Pragmatists
Late Majority
Conservatives
Laggards
Skeptics
Time
Customers want technology
and performance
Customers want solutions and convenience
Relative%ofCustomers
End of Life
Early Life Bowling
Alley
Sources: E.M. Rogers, G. Moore
The Solution Opportunity
Main Street
The Tornado
The Chasm

Solu+on
Marke+ng

Customer-‐Centric

Marke)ng
for
Today

What is Solution Marketing?
so·lu·tion mar·ket·ing
noun səә-ˈlü-shəәnˈmär-kəә-tiŋ
The process of defining,
educating, and providing access
to complete and integrated
solutions
that deliver value
by helping customers to solve
their problems.

Solution Marketing Adds Value To
Marketing, Sales and Product Management
Frictionless
Sales
Social Media
Field
Enablement
Marketing
Support
Product
Management

The 4 P’s – All About the Company
Place
Product
Pro-
motion
Price
Company
“Build it and
they will come”
Outbound,
interruption
marketing
Cost-plus;
margin is king
Best channels
for us to sell
the product

Strategy, Metrics
Place
Product
Pro-
motion
Price
Company
Solution Marketing – All About the Customer
Customer
---
Pain
Points
Solution
Access
Education
Engagement
Value
End-to-End Marketing for Today
Customer-Focused Marketing
“How can I solve
my problem?”
“How can I
learn more
about it?”
“How will it help me and
what is my total sacrifice
to get this solution?”
“Where can
I find it?”

Building
Your
Solu+on

Marke+ng
Strategy

Discovery

Strategies
for:

Solu)ons

Educa)on
&
Engagement

Value

Access

360o
Discovery
What
markets

and

solu0ons
should
we

target?

What
will
each
solu0on

do
and
include?

How
will
we
educate
and

engage
with
poten0al

users
and
buyers?

How
will
we
incorporate

and
communicate
value?

How
would
the
user/buyer

like
to
buy
and
use
the

solu0on?

Internal

•  Revenue

•  Current
oﬀerings

•  Core
competencies

•  Solu4on
maturity

•  Sales-‐readiness

External

• Under-‐solved

challenges

• Top
market,
solu4on

opportuni4es

• Segment
size

• Market
drivers

• Compe44on

Solu+on

Requirements

•  Use
cases

•  Revenue

•  Business
challenges

•  Industry/func4on

trends

•  Key
components

•  Buy
vs
build

•  Tes4ng

Persona

•  Titles

•  Business
challenges

•  Career
goals

•  Thought
process

How
to
connect

•  “Hang-‐outs”
–

communica4on

channels,
pubs,

trade
shows,
social

media

•  Industry
jargon

•  Inﬂuence
levers
(ex

case
studies?)

Value

•  Before/aRer
process

•  Before/aRer

challenge/gain

•  Customer’s
value

drivers
-‐

dollar
impact

•  ROI

•  Purchasing
habits,

budget

Access

•  Best
channels

•  Op4mal
role
of

VARs,
SIs,
direct

sales,
buying
on

contract

•  Preferred
delivery

models…
SoRware?

SaaS?

Business

Process

Outsourcing?

User
Personas
Customer
Value
Solution
Access
Portfolio
Strategy
Solution
Development

Solution Needs Hierarchy
Components
&

integra+ons

Business

value

Solu+on
descrip+on
–

what
it
does

Target
audience
and

business
problem

Intelligence:

templates,

rules
etc
Mature
Less
Mature
2
3
5
1
4

Solution Strategy
•  General strategy:
•  Target markets/functions, solutions
•  Solution maturity
•  Partner
•  Buy vs build
•  Completeness: Platform > Framework > Templates > Application
•  Portfolio management
•  Revenue goals
•  Cross-functional team
•  Metrics for success
•  Cross-functional alignment, organizational support
•  Development/engineering/product management
•  Channel/SI partners
•  Marketing
•  Sales
•  Support
•  Services

BIZ
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION

PowerAdvocate Offers Complete Solutions
Ÿ Business challenge:
Optimize procurement in the energy
sector (power plants)
Ÿ Company challenge:
Differentiate the company from larger
players like Ariba

BIZ
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION

PowerAdvocate Offers Complete Solutions
Ÿ  Products: SaaS solutions for
procurement
spend, cost, market, sourcing
Ÿ  Services: Industry experts
provide services to lower
costs
Ÿ  Data: Market-specific
procurement data and
analysis
Differentiator: industry-specific data
Solution Assessment
User þ
Process þ
Content/Data þ
Technology þ
Services þ

Education & Engagement: Message
Targeted

Consistent/

True

$
Value-‐

Driven
Jargon
Relevant

Insured
Agent
Carrier
Loss ratio

Education & Engagement: Strategy
Market

Educa+on

Market

Engagement

Field

Enablement/

Sales

Challenge
& How to
Fric+onless

Sales

Demand

Gen

Buy
Now!

Tuning the Solution Message
Technical
Message
Business
Message
GeekSpeak Credible
Does it exist?Vague
HighLow
Low
High
BIT
Business
Mgr.
CFOJanitor
A
“SOA
architecture
enables
integration with
legacy systems”
“Helps your
company”
“Shortens
mortgage cycle
time”
“Increases
profitability”

Value = Benefit - Cost
Benefits (Improvement)
Ÿ  Profit, expense, revenue drivers
Ÿ  New business
Ÿ  Time savings
Ÿ  Productivity improvement
Ÿ  Headcount reduction
Ÿ  Soft benefits
Total Cost of Ownership
Ÿ  External…
–  Software
–  Hardware
–  Services
Ÿ  Internal…
–  Training
–  Change management
–  Desktop upgrades
–  IT management
Value
to the user
or buyer
$Dollars
Perceived
Benefit
Value
© 2011 www.SolutionMarketingBlog.com
Total
Cost

Value = Benefit - TCO
Value-Based Pricing
BusinessBenefit($)
CBA
Poor Value
Unneeded
features
Fair Value
Price matches
benefit
High Value
Lost software
revenue
Assume that vendor charges fair price
for features provided
D
Customer
Benefit
Fair Value
Price matches
benefit
Lost revenue
Unneeded features
Customer
Benefit
Customer
Benefit
Customer
Benefit
Price
Solution use-case drives benefit and value

BIZ
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
RESULT

Microsoft SharePoint Delivers Value
with 50% of the features
Share information with other
people in the enterprise

BIZ
CHALLENGE
RESULT
SOLUTION

We
don’t
claim
we
do
everything.

If
we
do
50
percent
of
the

func)ons
that
these
other

companies
do,
but
they’re
the
ones

customers
really
want,
that’s
ﬁne.

The
magic
is
that
end
users

actually
like
to
use
the
soLware.

”
“
Chris Capossela
Senior Vice President
Information Worker Product Management Group , Microsoft
NY Times 8/2/2009

BIZ
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
RESULT

Significant growth at expense
of mainstream ECM vendors
Lesson: Customers gain value by
buying only the features they need
E

Access
Ÿ Be flexible
Ÿ Provide seamless experience
Ÿ Enable frictionless sales
Ÿ Complete/close the sale quickly
Ÿ Ensure success thru “the last mile”

A
Cau+onary
Tale

Solution Marketing Failure
Ÿ  Solution
–  Don’t give customers what they want
Ÿ  Education/Engagement
–  Blame your offering’s failure on communication instead of admitting it was
just a really bad idea
Ÿ  Value
–  Base your pricing on what works for you, not for customers
–  Nearly double prices for your best customers
–  Decrease customers’ perceived value of your solution
Ÿ  Access
–  Make it more difficult to do business with you – split your offering into 2
websites
–  Dis-incent customers from buying both of your services

BIZ
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
RESULT

Ÿ Convenient, inexpensive
access to entertainment

BIZ
CHALLENGE
RESULT
SOLUTION

Ÿ Inexpensive
Ÿ All-you-can-eat
Ÿ Video by mail
Ÿ New: streaming
Ÿ New pricing plans, July 2011:
streaming vs. video by mail
Ÿ Focus on what’s good for Netflix,
not the customer

BIZ
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
RESULT

$494
$544
$594
$644
$694
$744
$794
$844
$894
$944
14
16
18
20
22
24
26
28
3/2010 6/2010 9/2010 12/2010 3/2011 6/2011 9/2011 12/2011
Revenue($Millions)
Subscribers(Millions)
Unique subcribers Revenue
Subscriber trend Revenue trend
$75
$107
$155
$176
$238
$263
$113
$69
Stock price Sources: NetFlix, Google

BIZ
CHALLENGE
SOLUTION
RESULT

Netflix Dictates Customer Access

Next
Steps

Ensure Alignment
Throughout the Extended Enterprise
Ÿ  Goal: Customers get what they were promised
Ÿ  How Do You Achieve This?
–  Consistent messages across entire company and ecosystem
–  Sales – longer sales cycles; solution training; specialized sales teams
–  Support from engineering/product management, services, tech support, consulting
teams
–  Executive support
Customers
Suppliers/
Partners
Tech, SI
Partners
Front
Office
Marketing
Sales
Service
Back
Office
Manufacturing
Engineering

Getting Started
1.  Begin internal discovery
2.  Know the customer
3.  Define the business problem
4.  Move from feature/benefit à business
value
5.  Think about solution completeness
6. Bonus: how are market/tech forces changing
solution requirements?

Strategy, Metrics
Place
Product
Pro-
motion
Price
Company
Q & A
Customer
---
Pain
Points
Solution
Access
Education
Engagement
Value
Solution Marketing
Services
Customer
---
Pain
Points
Tech-
nology
User
Process
Content/ Data
Complete Solution

Thank You
LinkedIn.com/in/SteveRobins1
Twitter.com/SteveRobins
SolutionMarketingBlog.comVICE PRESIDENT OF MARKETING
S t e v e r o b i n s
www.SolutionMarketingBlog.com

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Solu+on
Marke+ng
Pros

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Introduction to Solution Marketing (Steve Robins) ProductCamp Boston May 2013

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