Today, let's briefly talk about some of the experience of collaborative ordering in the software business.
To review and summarize the project-based software development we have done over the years, to do this type of project-based software development, we must first find ways to get the project. Given our company's years of accumulation in several industries, there are naturally some ways to get some software projects in the industry. Among them, solution sales should be regarded as one of the most important methods, and it is also the basic method for new software projects and medium and large software projects. To do this well, in fact, it is necessary to work together for the same goal in sales, pre-sales, and after-sales, coordinate operations, continuous tracking, and smash to the end .
In some of my past project experiences, the scenes of collaborative singles in the true sense seem to be numbered after careful consideration. What is more impressive is the collaborative single-handling experience in a software project in a certain city three years ago. Regardless of the sustainability and scale effects of the subsequent projects, and regardless of the size of the project, from the point of view of project orders alone, I personally think that it can be shared with you.
The whole project took 10 months from receiving the news at the beginning of the year to winning the bid at the end of October of that year. There were more than 15 visits and solution exchanges to customer units A, B, C, etc., basically every customer exchange We have done recording and analysis of customer visit logs, at least 5 major revisions of the solution, and 3 major prototype developments, from the initial fully static prototype to the prototype embedded in the real system to the later approach to reality The prototype of the system submitted a relatively satisfactory answer sheet for the bid defense demonstration. Even this prototype which is close to the real system has laid a good foundation for the realization of the goal of rapid online trial operation within a month after winning the bid.
Speaking of this project, in fact, there have been many twists and turns, and many mistakes have been made. The first mistake is that you are not fully prepared before the first communication with the customer, know little about customers and competitors, and still think about problems and make plans according to the past thinking, and feel good about yourself, which leads to When the customer first had a formal communication, the customer was appraised as almost incomplete and defeated.
After the first failure, the sales, pre-sales and related personnel made a serious summary and reflection, and adjusted the solutions in time, and communicated with customers again in mid-March of that year, which restored the decline of continued failure. At the same time, company leaders, sales staff, and pre-sales staff have also visited customers one after another, taking multiple measures to coordinate the progress. It wasn't until the first complete prototype came out in early April and the breakthrough in related key points that it basically captured the hearts of the main stakeholders of the customer, and began to gradually show our solution sales advantages compared with long-planned competitors. . After that, it is naturally the continuous adjustment of the solution, the continuous optimization of the prototype, and the control of key nodes and elements such as bidding and bidding. Naturally, the close cooperation between sales and pre-sales and after-sales is inseparable.
Summarizing the collaborative ordering experience of the project, I have a few inspirations:
(1) For projects, especially new projects and large projects, there are a bunch of wolves around, and competitors are eyeing, and it is easy to be in dire straits, sales and pre-sales , Close after-sales cooperation and coordinated operations are the basic foothold for surprising success.
(2) In the process of project development, we must always pay attention to the personal needs and project needs of customers and related parties. In many cases, personal needs are the motivation of project needs, and project needs are the embodiment of the realization of personal needs.
(3) Finding a golden person at a key stage, key link, and key opportunity can often achieve a multiplier effect with half the effort.
(4) Prepare solutions carefully and meticulously. At the same time, prepare for pre-sale communication to convince customers of their own solutions. In the communication, it takes some skills to use the rhythm of the communication that is good for their own solutions and those that are not good for competitors. .
(5) You must be patient, able to withstand the darkness and loneliness before dawn, but also have perseverance, continue to follow the pre-sales process, always pay attention to changes and actively respond, once you really invest in it, you must have a willingness to stop. Determination and courage.
Finally, when it comes to pre-sales work, we must clearly realize: pre-sales is not just a matter of pre-sales personnel, nor is it just a matter of sales personnel, but a process where everyone is moving towards a goal together!
The three levels of pre-sales work include: overall planning of pre-sale work, pre-sale process and pre-sale communication. The following picture is compiled based on relevant information earlier:
