5 Organisational Capabilities to be
Successful in Selling Software Solutions
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

Who is Ed Paice?
Ed can help you close more business!
Ed works with Software Authors and Resellers across multiple
technologies – specifically to drive increased sales, including
companies such as Microsoft and IFS.
Ed has 25 years in the software industry with JBA, Infor and SAP
selling software solutions to end companies in the UK, EMEA and
the USA. A top performer as an individual and sales leader with a
personal best year of $12.7m of revenues as a salesperson, Ed
knows what it takes to be successful.
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

5 Capabilities
Following some detailed analysis of organisations (both
successful and unsuccessful) in the software solutions space,
it is clear that there are 5 core capabilities that an
organisation requires if it is to be successful on an ongoing
basis.
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

5 Capabilities
Executive Focus
Sounds obvious doesn’t it – however
1. Executive Focus very many organisations fail at this first
hurdle. A classic is where a company
takes on a new product, expecting the
sales force to cross sell it to their
customers or into new markets.
Without Exec focus the marketing &
sales efforts are both diluted and
potentially confused – instead of
increasing revenues they remain flat or
even fall!
Have you introduced new products
and services and seen them fail?
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

5 Capabilities
Strategic Focus
This is where most companies flounder
1. Executive Focus – understanding their core capabilities,
2. Strategic Focus value propositions, markets, clients and
the value that they bring to the market.
The second challenge is then being
able to effectively communicate this to
their prospects – such that the prospect
understands why they should do
business with you!
Does everyone in your business
really know what your strategic
focus is?
Can they communicate it effectively?
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

5 Capabilities
Tactical Marketing
Simple lead generation activities – but
1. Executive Focus how come the cost per lead varies so
2. Strategic Focus much?
3. Tactical Marketing I have seen competing companies with
a Cost per Lead ranging from £300 to
£1600 !
Do you know what your cost per
lead is? Are you getting value from
your tactical marketing activities?
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

5 Capabilities
Sales Management & Sales
Effective Sales and Sales Management
1. Executive Focus is at the heart of a new business driven
2. Strategic Focus organisation. But how effective is your
team – and how do you measure sales
3. Tactical Marketing effectiveness?
4. Sales Management & Sales Best in class organisations use KPI’s
such as mean time to closure, Revenue
per sales-head as well as the obvious
ones of measuring funnel dynamics
and salespeople.
How good is your sales engine?
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

5 Capabilities
Pre-Sales
Too many deals are lost by poor Pre-
1. Executive Focus Sales. If you are going to engage in a
2. Strategic Focus bid then make sure the pre-sales team
are up to being the best in your sector.
3. Tactical Marketing
This doesn’t just mean knowing the
4. Sales Management & Sales product – or even how to demo it!
5. Pre-Sales It means everything from having the
right pre-sales engagement model to
rehearsals and using your coach.
Is your pre-sales capability the best
in your sector?
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com

Call Ed now…
Call Ed now on +44 (0) 797 172 96 44
Or email him on edward.paice@googlemail.com
To talk about increasing your sales performance
Go-on contact him now – to talk about how to over-achieve against
your business plan
For more information, go to www.edpaice.com and join organisations
like Microsoft and IFS who use Ed to help drive more business
Ed Paice – Helping software companies close more business
Copyright Ed Paice 2009 All rights Reserved www.edpaice.com