Use the FORD method to build stronger relationships, faster

Relationships FORDRelationships make the world go around. They build businesses, blossom into friendships, and even make babies! Developing strong relationships quickly with strangers is something that I’ve often found challenging. My nature is to have a relatively small number of very close friends, and therefore I often keep my private life private. This means I also don’t ask others about their private lives – and that’s what keeps people at a distance.

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The Convergence of Voice and Data

Data

The world of a technology provider is an ever-evolving soup of acronyms, technology, products, and business methodologies. Whether it’s adding new services such as data back up and disaster recovery, or completely changing your business model from break-fix to managed services, staying current may seem impossible. Today, a lot of talk centers on “owning the customer”. This typically means owning all the end points on a network, such as displacing copy companies by offering managed print services.  With so many choices, it can be difficult to know which bandwagon to get on – you have to balance your time and money as you invest in technologies that will add value to your existing business and generate a profit.

The nature of data is changing.

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Generating More Revenue from Existing Customers

More money from existing customersI was recently asked how a business can generate more revenue from existing customers. The most obvious answer is to educate your customers on what you offer, and dig deeper to find more selling opportunities within their organization. In my opinion, this “easy” approach is the wrong approach.

Become the trusted advisor to your customers…

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Building Customer Loyalty

CustomerMy wife likes to tell the story of how her prom date, in the middle of a very nice expensive dinner, proceeded to lick his knife clean. My wife was horrified, and that first date became the last. The poor guy probably had no idea why he never got another date, as she certainly didn’t tell him. Many businesses treat their prospects as dates during the sales process, and if they don’t “lick the knife”, they might get them as customers. However, as with marriage, you have to continue to “date” your customer. This means you have to be thinking about making the customer happy, and treating them the way they want and need to be treated. If you fail to do so, your customer will leave you and probably won’t say why.
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How IT Can Build Partnerships with the Business Side of the Company

IT LoveI was recently asked to comment on how an IT manager can most effectively build partnerships with the business side of the company. Having a very technical background and a business background as well, I have had the benefit of sitting on both sides of the fence. To the IT director, the IT department is the heart and soul of the company; without IT the company would grind to a halt. To the rest of the business, IT is often looked at as a necessary evil. They don’t really understand what IT does, and they often don’t care. They just want their computers to run quickly, their printers to print, and they want their reports to contain accurate data that they need to get their jobs done. This dual perspective can create tension between IT and the rest of the company, with IT feeling unappreciated and the other departments feeling that they are at the mercy of IT.

For an IT director to be successful, he or she needs to bridge the gap between the technical side of the house and the operations side.

The following are some techniques that an IT director can use:

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