SMB head to head

Vendor: Cisco
Sam Gerner, commercial sales director A/NZ
The key buying criteria of SMB customers is the advice of a ‘trusted advisor’. The buyer will work with this advisor to estimate the ‘value’ of the proposition. That value will usually come from the level of confidence that the proposed solution will deliver on the promise of the problem being solved, the cost saving being realised and the process efficiency gain being delivered.
For some SMBs this advisor will be an internal specialist individual or team. More often though, it is a value added reseller that has proven itself over time by delivering value through the recommendation of one or more previous IT&T solutions to that business. Or sometimes it is a telecommunications service provider or even an industry specialised consultant. Often it is a combination of two or more of these advisors. It is quite rare that the SMB will take the marketing message of the vendor on face value.
The defining characteristic of the SMB segment is that there simply is no single defining characteristic.

Distributor: Express Data
Ross Cochrane, chief executive officer
Simply, SMBs want to be treated with the same kind of value as enterprise customers. Often we see vendors bending over backwards for larger customers, but SMBs don’t get the same attention, even though vendors value the SMB market highly. This is a conundrum because it is very hard to meet these expectations from a commercial perspective. Managing expectations, which comes back to delivering on what you say you can do, is vital.
SMBs want known and consistent ICT costs as much as possible. Solutions that require minimal administration by the SMB are also attractive; such as managed services, turn key systems, etc. SMBs similarly want to know that their supplier has the backing of the vendors, so if something does go wrong they have assurance that the vendor will play an active role in helping solve the issue.
At the end of the day, SMBs are attracted to solutions that are designed for the specific needs of their business. We are in an age where mass customisation is achievable so this is an optimal outcome.

Reseller: Vertebral Solutions
Yasien Adams, director
Australian SMBs consider a number of factors when it comes to making decisions on IT Investment. First and foremost are financial concerns, which influence SMBs at every stage of the buying process. Typically, SMBs do not have strong cash flows and most prefer not to use finance arrangements such as rentals, leasing or loans. This means that whatever the IT solution, it must firstly fit within a SMB’s budget before any serious consideration will be given. Even with a solid business case and clearly defined benefits, if there is no cash flow the SMB customer will simply place IT on the shelf until they can afford to take the investment on board.
Closely linked to this is value for money. With limited time and resources, SMBs need to immediately understand the benefits and return on investment (ROI) of any IT purchase. Often they also consider how long it will take them to see the money they spend returned into cash flow. This ROI generally needs to come directly from the savings offered by a reseller’s solution.
SMBs also need to know that the IT solution is scalable and flexible to continue growing with their business. Ultimately, they are looking for long-term investment protection.
The final consideration for SMBs when it comes to purchasing IT is predictability and ease of use. To be successful with an SMB customer, resellers need to clearly outline the ongoing maintenance requirements of the solution once it is in place.

Consultant: Quantify Corporation
Barry Freeman, principal
In order for the sale of anything to occur, the buyer must have a need. That need can come about because of many things – an opportunity to improve business, a need to fix a problem, a desire to look and feel like a successful operation.
Once there is a need established, then buying criteria comes to the fore. The buyer knows some of the criteria already – “the solution must be shown to fix the problem or looks the way I expect it to look”. While others are discovered on the buying journey – “I didn’t know that the security of the network was as important as you have shown it to be, I now know that in any solution, I must have confidence that this security aspect is very
well managed.”
Understanding the right price or budget is often discovered during the buying journey, once the buyer learns more about what is important. Some of them are revealed to the buyer by the vendor, who has a feature that the competition does not have and is successful in revealing it to the buyer.
What is the buyer concerned about? Let’s begin by saying they are scared of anything to do with IT. Remember these are business people having to depend on something that they know little about. However, SMBs are concerned with buying a solution/support offering that will meet their needs and they want to be paying the least amount for it. They are also concerned with being supported when things go wrong.