3. Introducing solutions solutions.
I initially directed myself towards solutions to install on sales force laptop computers. The leader of the market s is BUSINESS MANAGER (AMARYLIS out of France) distributed in France by INTEGRE FRANCE. By far most powerful of the market, it offers two essential aspects
- function as a customer server under Windows 3.XX/95 and NT and is connected to the greatest data bases of the market: ORACLE, SQLBASE, SYBASE, INFORMIX, SQL SERVER.
- it is at the same time a useful tool for sales people, marketing, sales management, and marketing department ( see the main functionnalities )
Simple and at a relatively reasonable cost, it presents nevertheless a major disadvantage, I was almost assured to see it rejected by the majority of my clients.
As I already evoked, they are refusing any administrative work. They use their computer relatively little hardly ever to write their proposals and never go out with their laptop.
When I visit the exhibition Techniques de Vente et Marketing at the CNIT on October 1, 1997 I found what I seek.
It is about the last version of APPLE Newton equipped with BEE ONE, a software developed by a French people, Ludovic DURAND TEXT.
I immediately remember the Casio's Organizers used by sales people. Newton is hardly larger, but it is a genuine computer. In this version the character recognition is completely operational. No training like old Newton and use of a specific alphabet as on Palm Pilot. Write, it is all, and of a blow of pencil one send information in a 4d base .
It is Ludovic DURAND TEXT which developed this application, BEE-ONE whose allowing to connect Newton to a central 4D database and synchronize all together.
4. Reaction analysis. It was agreed with the sales manager to not make an official presentation of Newton/BEE ONE. The goal is veritably of studying the reactions and of presenting this solution among others.
Which act. I took advantage of a commercial convention to present the Newton, with Mr DURANT-TEXTE.
Even if it is not exactly the reaction that I wished to provoke, the gadget effect works well. Everybody wants to play with James Bond's toy and has been has impressed I was by the characters recognition absolutely reliable and instantaneous.
Afterward I explained quickly what i intended to do with this system (see the previous pages) in taking carefulness of don't present this project like an overcharge of work for them, but really like a tool who will help them in these process : distant connection to the intranet, possibility of showing some technical data to the customer, marketing, tools.
Stubborn people told me they don't need such Systems in order to sell. They have everything they need in their mind.... Obviously it was sales people ones hardly ever had no more than 1 customer in all their career (French Army) for the 20 last year. It is true that this kind of tool addresses rather to prospecting sales people. Even in this case there it is always also useful -at least for marketing department-.
Caricature. This kind of "Commercial Pastis", who meet its customers in the café with two Beers an a Pastis for at least twenty years is the nightmare of the marketing service. Generally he get a huge experience , the biggest customers and most of time make the greater business and consequently is very powerful. All goes well for him. Need nobody. Especially not that the funny guys of marketing change uses. He uses personal computer, rarely from word processing and hardly for the mail. So all the software tools are not for him. The company mobile telephone we gave them is considered like an instrument of surveillance and disturbance.No way to change this kind of people, the best his to be associated with him. Lunch with him at the canteen, pay him a beer after the job. This is the Budweiser reporting (KRÔNENBURG in French). It works ! One learns lot of things!
MCQ. I distributed a multiple choice question paper (converted here in HTML) before the presentation. I took advantage of inserting an opened question concerning expectations and needs regarding marketing.
Globally Newton system has been very welcomed. Possibilities with this system are tremendous . Costs stay again imprecise. The Newton the retail cost is about 6000 F. Development costs still have to be evaluated, our needs to be formalize. Let's find the budget !.
