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	InfoMentis Announces New Partnership with imPROvise Atlanta, Georgia - InfoMentis, Inc., a global consulting and performance improvement company announced its partnership with Atlanta-based imPROvise. imPROvise helps companies to create professionals who are confident, quick-thinking and uniquely creative. "InfoMentis is pleased to partner with imPROvise, whose visionary commitment to the customer experience has inspired fun, fresh and highly practical methods for performance improvement and team building," said Steve Maul, Chief Learning and Strategy Officer, InfoMentis, Inc. "imPROvise is excited about partnering with an industry-recognized and well-respected company like InfoMentis. We have already seen great things happen as a result of our partnership and look forward to growing our relationship as the future unfolds," said Kevin Galloway, CEO of imPROvise. About InfoMentis InfoMentis is a global consulting and performance improvement company providing configurable programs that help our clients enable cultural change. We teach our clients how to more effectively get, keep and satisfy their customers and help them achieve bottom-line results. Our configurable courseware, e-Learning modules, consulting services, and collaborative productivity tools are designed to be adapted for role-based behavioral change for those in marketing, sales, services, support and management around the entire customer lifecycle. Headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia, InfoMentis has helped industry leaders around the world understand and embrace the value of determining predictable revenue streams. Through our unique offerings, they are able to recognize that an opportunity for growth is significant among organizations eager to differentiate. Founded in 1996, InfoMentis has provided performance improvement strategy, consulting and coaching to over 30,000 professionals in 46 countries and six continents. About imPROvise Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, imPROvise delivers workshops designed to take professionals out of the workplace and into an environment that is fun and enjoyable. Through imPROvises" interactive workshops, participants remain engaged, interested and even entertained while learning skills that will impact them in the workplace forever. For more information on InfoMentis, please visit www.infomentis.com For more information on imPROvise, please visit www.improviseonline.com Download the Article Download Entire Newsletter Achieving Success in Sales By Bob Frailey, Lynn Shively, Julie Perino, Vincent Mauro, and Mark Norato The need to improve upon our processes as competitive landscapes change and solution offerings evolve has become a necessity to achieving ongoing sales success. While the term "best practice" is considered by some to be a business buzzword describing a best-in-class way of execution, it's actually a philosophical approach based on continuous learning and improvement. Some InfoMentis' Client Partners offered what they consider to be personal best practices for achieving sales success: Best Practice #1 / Lynn Shively Remember that your buyers go to "Buyer Training." Just like you go to sales training, buyers are often smarter than we give them credit for. Learn the game they play and keep the following in mind: Smart buyers always put multiple competitors through an evaluation. They may assign an internal sponsor for each competitive alternative, so it may seem like you are winning but you are not. Smart buyers never let you know early on that you are winning; it weakens their negotiating power. They also never let you know you are losing because they may lose a bargaining pawn to use against the winner. They often price negotiate in reverse preference to their choice, so by the time they get to the winner, the price has been greatly eroded. They usually take the deal away from you at least once to see what you come back with and how badly you want the business. They know when your fiscal year, quarter deadlines and president club trips are, as points of leverage. Best Practice #2 / Bob Frailey To be successful in sales, it is important to have: An inquisitive nature and desire to really understand the customer"s business requirements. A healthy "paranoia" about the status of the deal. Don"t get "happy ears." Best Practice # 3 / Mark Norato Focus on the Right Drivers Being successful in sales as in most any other profession requires a high degree of proficiency in a number of different areas. The mistake most sales reps make is not recognizing and focusing on the key attributes that drive the majority of their success. Thus a great deal of time is spent on things that ultimately produce only marginal incremental returns. Vilfredo Pareto, an Italian economist, first articulated this concept in an attempt to explain wealth distribution, and it"s since been expanded to virtually every aspect of business. Pareto"s principal basically says that 80% of the effect comes from 20% of the causes. In business we see this in many ways. 20% of our customer base drives 80% of the revenue. The majority of product defects are caused by a small number of core problems, etc. In sales we typically see that 80% of the results are driven by 20% of the effort. So the key to more successful selling is to identify the 20% and spend 80% of your time here. It"s really that simple. Best Practice #4 / Julie Perino Become a great listener. When meeting with a customer or prospect, try listening 80% of the time and talking only 20% of the time. When you truly listen, you"ll identify ways to help that person through your product or service. Be your authentic self. People buy from people they like, trust and feel comfortable with. Think big but take it one step at a time. Best Practice #5 / Vinny Mauro Changing sales team behaviors is a process, not an event. Pick the things that have the biggest short-term impact and implement a skills development strategy to include training, reinforcement activities and most importantly, coaching. Every successful sales person may not need a manager, but every great sales performer needs a coach. Remember... Best practices do not have one template or form for everyone to follow. In the context of business management, a best practice is based on the concept that a good plan (and process) is being followed and that changes to the initial plan, dependencies and goals are tracked, documented and measured. Download the Article Download Entire Newsletter Sales Performance Coaching By Phil Bush "Coaching" brings to mind many different types of activities. The notion of Sales Performance Coaching (SPC) is one that we have pioneered here at InfoMentis. Our focus is that of "continual engagement" with the customer to accomplish several different objectives. Our success stems from our extensive experience in sales and sales management whereby InfoMentis has "lived" the concept of coaching on a long-term basis. Our belief is that without coaching, reinforcement of any methodology becomes very difficult. In our experience, you must have both proper training as well as an appropriate methodology to be successful. Best practices for sales performance coaching Include: Continual engagement = continual reinforcement The InfoMentis model for coaching is based upon the notion that workshop training is the beginning–coaching helps bring the methodology to life deal by deal. A good coach focuses on the "continual drumbeat" of emphasizing those points that are taught in our classes. When an Instructor teaches a point, it starts the process of change within each student. With coaching reinforcement, the process of changed sales behavior is focused on continually. The coach"s goal is to make sure that everyone who learns from InfoMentis gets the appropriate reinforcement to practice what they have learned and enters the "learning zone" with confidence. Work with each individual"s style. Coaching is not "one size fits all." Each person is different, and each situation requires a unique look. A coach"s goal is to ensure that we bring out the best in each sales person. We evaluate each person specifically to understand where they are strong and reinforce their strengths. We also want to help them where have issues or weaknesses, so they improve their execution on an overall basis. For example, if an individual is weaker in discovery than they should be, we help them by asking more questions about their discovery. Most sales people will determine that they need to spend more time on discovery via this type of coaching. Look at each situation dispassionately. One of the biggest advantages that a sales performance coach has is that they are not on quota! They are typically the only person in the room who is not, therefore they are the only person who can look at each situation objectively, and not focus on wanting or needing a deal–but instead, focus on the blocking and tackling of a deal to ensure that it is properly done. A good sales performance coach reviews each situation on its own merits, and focuses on ensuring that the mechanics are done properly. By taking this tack, the sales performance coach ensures that there is an objective view of each deal and points out steps that may help the sales person change the game and win the deal. Keep it simple. Coaching is a useful activity in assisting any sales person to be successful. However, a key element in coaching is to not force unnecessary work on a sales person who is already overburdened and stressed. A good coach will focus on simplicity of execution. Coaching is not about being the "methodology police." It"s about ensuring that the points made are proper, but simple. The sales person should walk away from the coaching session feeling more confident and feeling that they need to address one area or another to improve their chances of winning a deal, but not feeling that the coach just added a ton of work to their plate. Help the sales person come to their own conclusions! Questioning is a key part of coaching. It"s not just questioning about the deal, it is questioning so the sales person begins to realize on their own the issues they have to address to get the deal done; or that they should disengage and walk away. Much of the questioning of a good sales performance coach is "Colombo" questioning–where the coach knows the answer to the question before it is asked; the goal is to get the sales person to understand the issues that need to be addressed on their own. By asking questions that are obvious to the coach but not so obvious to the sales person, the sales person is encouraged to think outside the box and try new strategies to address issues surrounding their deals. Download the Article Download Entire Newsletter Warming Up for the Big Game Kevin Galloway, Founder and CEO imPROvise Have you ever given a presentation and later said, "I could have done a better job at that" or "I was not as prepared as I wanted to be"? It happens to us all. On top of that, how many times have you walked into a meeting and you were asked to give an impromptu presentation? Were you ready? Think about it... Would an athlete walk out onto the field or the court without warming up or stretching? Not unless they wanted to get injured or play to less than their full potential. Nor would an actor walk out onto a stage without warming up or stretching their mind, voice and body. Just like an athlete or an actor, you should warm-up and stretch before you walk into a meeting or presentation. Our minds and voices need this, especially early in the morning or if we have been hurried, traveling or stressed. (All of which often go hand in hand.) Furthermore, I am always surprised to find how many business people do not take the time to warm-up before a presentation. You have to prepare mentally, physically and vocally if you want to perform at your best. Now you might be thinking it is hard to find time to do this, but even just a little warm up can help. Below are a few tips and tricks to help you out before meetings and presentations. Get your mouth and voice jump started! If it is early morning, make sure you use your voice and stretch it out. There are so many variables to consider here such as the many muscles in your face that can get tired and stressed. There are a variety of vocal warm-ups to do from singing along to your favorite song or even just talking to someone who can help get things rolling. Just don"t walk into a presentation cold and make that the first words out of your mouth! Watch what you drink beforehand as well. Room temperature water is the best. Avoid anything that coats your throat like dairy products or sugary drinks. (At times when your throat hurts, warm tea and honey can be good for your throat, just don"t drink too much beforehand and make sure you give yourself plenty of time before hand to warm up.) Get stretched and relaxed! This is one of the harder things to do because it is often difficult to find a time and a place for it. But if you can actually take a moment to do some stretches and then relax for a moment it can be a great help to preparing yourself. Sometimes doing something as simple as the head roll, to loosen up can go a long way. Or grab a quiet moment for yourself with hot tea or perhaps a piece of fruit. Get you mind in gear! So often people walk into an early morning meeting or presentation and are still groggy from waking up, or it is late in the afternoon and everyone is tired from the day but still have a presentation to do. Whether your mind is foggy or bogged down, you have to get it back on track to be sharp and focused. If you are by yourself, rehearse your opener out loud. (Remember your opener is your chance to grab the attention of your audience. Use appropriate humor to establish common ground with your audience.) If you are with a team, try playing "One Word Story" with each other. Your team tells a story but each person may only speak one word at a time. Go in order in a circle and try to have a beginning, middle and end with complete sentences. Have someone pick a random topic before each game and see how quick your team can be while staying logical. Last but not least....Clear your mind and leave your troubles at the door! Never bring your problems into the presentation or meeting. Remember, taking the time to prepare will not only enable you to perform to the best of your ability, but also enable you to be more creative, adaptable and flexible in your efforts. Download the Article Download Entire Newsletter Best Practices for Channel Maintenance Programs By Mike Dubrall & Gerard Frey Selling maintenance through a channel of resellers is hard work. Sales messages are complicated, the administration of the programs can be oppressive, and sales crediting is often an agonizing discussion over who gets compensated for what and when. It's no wonder that vendor sales people quickly turn back to selling hardware and software products as soon as possible. Yet, as industry revenue growth slows, vendors are feeling pressure to improve performance. Many companies are going through their business with a fine tooth comb looking for opportunities. Often, this process puts a spotlight on maintenance programs, which are commonly an under-utilized and under-performing asset. The potential reward for improvement can be significant. If the capture rate on renewals of a popular software product can be increased by 10 percent, millions of dollars might drop to the vendor"s bottom line – not to mention the additional revenue for resellers. Attach and renewal rates on maintenance contracts through the channel have historically been highly variable, but certainly much lower than comparable rates from direct sales. The reasons are varied, but most stem from the lack of a focused business-like approach to improving performance. Vendors must develop a better understanding of the issues (administrative mostly) and the opportunity -- then execute accordingly. Based on our client work in this area, InfoMentis has identified five best practices for channel maintenance programs. Understand your company"s channel goals, and where they stand versus the maintenance goals. All too often, maintenance and channel organizations fail to take each other"s goals and strategies into account when they promote maintenance. This results in channel friction and slows sales activities. There are many appropriate goals: create additional buying events for resellers, grow high-margin revenue, increase channel and/or customer satisfaction, develop closer relationships with end users, etc. Executives must identify the most important and create the appropriate hierarchy of departmental objectives and incentives. Develop a clear segmentation strategy. Not every reseller wants to sell maintenance and not every end user represents a profitable sale. Vendors must segment the opportunities taking both into account. Users are typically segmented according to their size or revenue potential (under 50 seats, over 500 seats, etc.), and resellers by their ability and enthusiasm (wants to sell, can"t sell, wants to try, etc.). Vendors must understand the varying business models of their resellers and proceed accordingly. A one-size-fits-all program will fail for everyone. Get agreement on the financial model. The incentives for resellers to sell maintenance must be large enough to overcome their fear of administrative overload. Vendors must have a clear understanding of the opportunity size and the probability of resellers achieving reasonable sales goals. This means understanding the economics of the first (capture) sale, which is typically easy, and also the economics of the renewal, where success is often more elusive. How much is it going to cost the reseller to gain the margins from these sales? How much is the vendor going to earn? Who has to do the most work? Who has the best chance of success? In the end, vendors must understand the behaviors that are necessary–and compensate accordingly. Invest in program infrastructure and sales tools to learn, sell and deliver automatically. The best channel maintenance programs are heavily automated–and do not require manual intervention to initiate billing. Many vendors have found that their channel renewal rates double when they move to a system that automatically notifies the reseller 30 days before a contract needs to be renewed, provides an invoice that the reseller can review, edit and forward to a customer, and then allows the customer to pay automatically through monthly charges or even credit cards for smaller users. In this way, the sales process is concurrently automated and overlaps the administrative process, easing the burden for channel partners. Have a specific process for measuring performance. While it is common for software vendors to manage their maintenance operations as a line of business (LOB), it is still rare to break out the results by channel and customer segments. This lack of review makes it more difficult to identify problems and all but eliminates the potential for incremental improvement in the channel maintenance infrastructure. Someone must be accountable for channel maintenance results (separated from overall results) and management must take the time to create the proper systems and conduct appropriate reviews. Whether this responsibility resides in the maintenance side of the house or the channels side depends upon the answer to #1 above. Channels are growing, and there is little that vendors can do to stop them. By 2010, they will account for 70% of all IT sales (Gartner), which means that trillions of dollars will be flowing through the channel back to their vendors. As the industry shifts to the indirect model, maintenance must shift with it. It"s time for a fresh look, and a recommitment to making maintenance a more important part of your channel strategy. Download the Article Download Entire Newsletter Maximizing Performance in your Professional Service Organization By Scott Fletcher Best practice is defined by the American Society of Quality (ASQ), the world"s leading authority on quality, as "A superior method or innovative practice that contributes to the improved performance of an organization, usually recognized as best by other peer organizations." Technology companies face increased competition and challenges in the delivery of professional services. Simply meeting past performance will not result in the level of improvement required in today"s market. Professional services revenue is the fastest growing line of business in most technology companies and a major contributor to total company revenues. Below is a list of five of the top best practices implemented by professional services organizations that delivered world-class performance in productivity, costs and revenues. These organizations have implemented strategies, operations and processes that have enabled them achieve a position of superiority. The best practices of "the best of the best" have resulted in: Billable utilization rates above the industry average of 68% Attrition rates below the industry average 13% Discounting below the industry average 17% Gross profit margins above the industry average 35% Professional Services Sales Methodology Most professional services organizations have an implementation methodology, but very few have a methodology for selling their services. Whether it is an eloquent sales methodology or a simple sales process, at a minimum it should consist of: Process for discovery and qualification Planning and execution tools Process for measuring Every professional services organization that has implemented a sales methodology has achieved dramatic improvements in all the measurements of sales performance. Utilization Management The average billable utilization rate across all professional services positions is 68% (based on a calculation of 2,080 annual hours). Companies that have achieved higher utilizations rates all focus on minimizing the non-billable activities. These companies pursue the reduction with the passion that every 2% increase in billable utilization translates into $10,000 of additional revenue per consultant. The on-boarding process, compensation plans and delivery methods are reviewed and improved frequently, as everyone is focused on improving the utilization metric. Sell without Sales People / Leverage Trusted Advisor Relationship The pinnacle of any business relationship is what many call a trusted advisor. Prospects and clients with whom you have achieved trusted advisor status are more likely to: Seek your advice Accept and act on your recommendations Involve you in more strategic, complex issues Introduce and refer you to other sources of business The typical sales rep to consultant ratio is 10 to 20 consultants for every sales rep. Unleashing the power of leveraging the consulting organization to uncover and activate opportunities is the secret that has enabled select technology companies to achieve break-through performance in selling professional services. Rates and Discounting The average published professional services rate across all positions was $214 per hour in North America. Discounting off the published rates averaged 17%. Companies that have achieved higher average rates and reduced discounting focused on the following: Published rates are not under priced Discounting policies are established and enforced Negotiation skills are developed Business value is linked to their professional services solution – SELL VALUE Blended Resource Management Sub-contractors contribute over 10% of the revenue within a professional services organization. Over 50% of North American professional services organizations engage off-shore resources for delivering services. Both pools of resources offer leverage points for improving revenues and margins. Best practice is a powerful management tool because it overcomes paradigm blindness. It opens up organizations to new processes, skills and tools. Without incorporating best practices, you place your professional services organization at a competitive disadvantage to those who have embraced them. Download the Article Download Entire Newsletter