The Real Reason ERP Sales Are Down: Buyers Aren’t Morons – Software Companies Are
The abrupt, if not totally unexpected, news of SAP AG’s (SAPG.DE) chief executive Leo Apotheke’s departure brings all sorts of Monday morning quarterbacking opportunities.
SAP’s troubles are not unique. Most ERP software companies are struggling to get their mojo back after enjoying an unprecedented run of ever increasing annual new license sales.
InfoWorld has essentially the same observation with a post that predicts SAP’s future depends on how they treat their customers. Read it here.
But SAP is only one software company – and pretty much all software companies are suffering from this lack of customer benefit focus – having instead turned to treating the customer as a portable ATM machine that dispenses yearly maintenance fees.
Software VARS aren’t blameless either. Most hold tightly to their ancient model of overpriced canned training, installation and upgrade services - all mechanical procedures with relatively small value add.
The past 10 years were filled with customers looking for the next great ERP software. Companies routinely reviewed their options – and when they perceived a better accounting solution was available they switched.
So what happened? Read the rest of this entry »
NetSuite Strives For Verticals – Reports Another Loss and Average Annual Per Customer Revenue of $38,000
Netsuite reported earnings yesterday (read the entire Netsuite earnings call transcript here).
San Mateo, California-based NetSuite reported a quarterly net loss of $6.5 million, or 10 cents per share, compared with a year-earlier loss of $4.5 million, or 7 cents.
Revenue at NetSuite rose 4 percent to $43 million which largely met analyst expectations.
Some interesting items from the call. Read the rest of this entry »
Sage Presidents Circle 2009 Wrapup
For three days – from January 25 to 27, 2010 – I had the honor of mingling with the elite Sage Business Partners who earned awards for sales achievements. My reason for being there was to pick up a Sage Spirit Award (not a sales award) that Sage awarded this year to two Business Partners.
This award was being given for the first time this year to two partners who best exemplified the characteristics of being a diverse, vibrant and constant contributor to the Sage business partner community
Here’s my wrap-up of the event – containing the good and bad – but mostly good. Read the rest of this entry »
Sage ERP X3 V6 Launch Notes
I just sat in on the Sage ERP X3 v6 launch which was simulcast over the web from Paris. Update: Sage have posted the complete video of the Sage ERP X3 launch online.
Sage ERP X3 was acquired by Sage in 2005. Prior to branding as Sage ERP X3 it was known as Adonix. They claim 2,700+ users — probably mostly overseas (As I’m in Glastonbury CT that would be non – USA customers – though I believe there are a several in the USA) and 150 partners. The US launch of V6 is scheduled for Q2 2010.
The overall theme of the launch today was that Sage ERP X3 is easy, simple, fast to implement, users like it. Sage indicates that in competitive selling situations they win about 1/3 of the time ( I’m unsure if that means globally or only in a region — it was hard to tell from responses because I was remotely connected and couldn’t see which Sage person answered).
Sage ERP X3 is one of two ERP accounting products Sage has designated as a global offering. That means it’s intended to be used in all regions where Sage operates. The other ERP is Sage Accpac.
According to Sage they sell Sage ERP X3 50% direct and 50% through VARS. Sage further said that as of now they have no rules of engagement (????) for when to sell direct and when to sell through a VAR. This seemed really odd for me and a recipe for conflict. Read the rest of this entry »
10 Predictions for 2010
The new year is here and with it is the hope and anticipation of an even better year than 2009!
With that in mind I have 10 predictions for 2010. Because I work primarily with Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 accounting software you’ll find that most of the predictions have to do with Sage or MAS90/200.
My predictions are based only on my gut hunches and careful observation at public seminars – in other words I don’t have any inside confidential information.
Score a win for any of these predictions if they’re announced in 2010. Most of the changes that I predict will be multi-year efforts meaning that I don’t expect them to be both announced and completed in 2010.
Wondering How To Use Social Media To Promote Your Business? Meet Scott Jordan.
Many people wonder how Social Media can be used in their business. They think it’s cool to share things with their friends but aren’t really convinced that it can be used to create sales.
The best example that I’ve seen of someone using social media to promote their business is Scott Jordan.
He’s the owner of Scottevest which make jackets for geeks with lots of pockets to hold their cell phones and other gear.
Take a look at Scott’s Facebook page to get an idea of the type and quantity of things that he posts that help him generate business (he claims much of his new sales increases have been driven by Twitter/Facebook).
Some things that I think are noteworthy. Read the rest of this entry »
You Know That Thing I Said About Not Winning Awards – Well We Did
ERP Lifestyle consultants are all about keeping customers happy and not about winning awards.
So then how did I manage to squeak out an invitation to President’s Circle with Sage January 2010?
According to Paul Johnson of Sage I was selected from a pool of 140 partners who’d been nominated for the inaugural Sage Spirit Award.
This new category was created by Sage to honor business partners that embody the five Sage principles of agility, innovation, simplicity, trust, and integrity. In other words it’s meant to recognize people who don’t sell millions in software but have other characteristics that Sage has determined justify them being honored.
I wrote about the Sage Inaugural Spirit Award on my main site so I won’t get into it in detail here. Suffice it to say that I was completely surprised and honored to receive the call from Paul Johnson.
Now on to Arizona (assuming they accepted my reservation) where I’ll see if I can use my scary social media skills to become the first Sage Business Partner ejected for live blogging about what goes on at President’s Circle. Full press release after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
Buying Leads Sucks
This morning I awoke to a message in my email inbox (click the full image on the left to get an idea of what I’m talking about).
The email is from a company that serves as a lead gathering source for ERP VARS ( and probably software publishers too ). They’re certainly not the only company offering this service but since I happen to be on their email distribution list I’ll use them as an example.
This lead they’re offering is a person looking to be better trained for future job opportunities. A noble request – but not exactly the type of lead most VARS would be looking for.
Which started me thinking. Are “pay leads” something VARS should be chasing? Maybe there was a time in the past that they worked. Are they still a valid marketing tool?
Services like the one that sent the email work by having end users submit contact information online – usually doing so in exchange for some type of free white paper or other assistance with finding an ERP solution.
These prospects are then matched with one of several consulting firms who’ve paid to receive the names of companies looking for help in their area of expertise.
At least that’s how it’s supposed to work. Read the rest of this entry »
Let’s get SaaSy – or maybe not
At the recent IT Alliance conference held in Palm Springs California there were quite a few sessions on Software As A Service (aka SaaS).
SaaS is loosely defined as running an application on a remote server that someone else managed. To access the application all that’s typically required is a web connected computer. Often the power of the computer is irrelevant since the processing power has been offloaded to the remote server.
The concept of offloading local processing and data storage isn’t new. Remember the days of mainframes and timesharing?
Part of the reason companies moved to desktop computers was speed. Just 30 years ago remote connections were slow and costly. Today those same connections approach local network speed and the cost has been minimized.
Now that connections are cheap — and the labor to maintain and constantly upgrade multiple desktop computers is expensive – the pendulum is swinging back toward remote computer processing or SaaS.
So the million dollar question most consultants are asking is where they fit within such a SaaS model. If the publisher is selling the application and collecting a monthly maintenance fee then where does the VAR fit in. What’s the model that allows the VAR to earn a fair recurring revenue stream from their installed client base.
Ask ten different people and you’ll get ten different answers. Read on for how I’d tackle SaaS. Read the rest of this entry »
MAS200 Var Outsells Epicor And You Can Too – Here’s How
The VAR who submitted this post requested that it be removed.
The original content contained a description of how he assisted a client with the purchase of MAS200 in a sale that he ultimately won against both Epicor and Great Plains Dynamics. Read the rest of this entry »
