October 2019 Office Technology by Business Technology Association

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CONTENTS Volume 26 • No. 4

FEATURE ARTICLES 10

Managed IT Services Leveraging vendor partners to make the journey

P R I N C I PA L I S S U E S Lexmark BSD Roadshow Manufacturer holds training event in Kansas City

by Brent Hoskins Office Technology Magazine

by Elizabeth Marvel Office Technology Magazine

For those office technology dealers seeking to enter the burgeoning managed IT services arena, there are a growing number of vendors focused on helping dealers with implementation, administration and the sales process. Are you ready to move forward?

Grand Slam BTA East hosts event in New York City

by Elizabeth Marvel Office Technology Magazine

Focused on training attendees to leverage its products and solutions for success, on August 27 Lexmark hosted the third of six 2019 Business Solutions Dealer (BSD) roadshows in Overland Park, Kansas, a Kansas City, Missouri, suburb.

DEALERS HELPING DEALERS Software Support How do fellow dealers manage this service?

Compiled by Brent Hoskins Office Technology Magazine

BTA East hosted its Grand Slam event Sept. 12-13 at the Sheraton New York Times Square in New York City, New York. The event featured a keynote address, “Joining the Conversation,” led by Chris Messina, a technologist and the inventor of the hashtag.

Alphabet Soup Add AI, ML & IoT to your long list of acronyms by Dennis Amorosano Dendog Strategy Insights LLC

How do you charge clients for supporting the software you sell? Do you charge by the hour, the call, a set number of support hours or an annual help-desk contract? What is included in the support services? This article includes answers to these questions from BTA dealers.

SELLING SOLUTIONS Focus on Priorities Lead with the success others would attribute to you

A lot has changed since I was a kid who loved the acronyms that came up in my alphabet soup; this is also the case for the office technology industry. Today, there are a new set of acronyms making their way onto the stage that are destined to have an even greater impact than those of the past.

by Tibor Shanto Renbor Sales Solutions Inc.

One thing about salespeople that you can count on is they usually find what they are looking for while ignoring other things. If you tell your reps to go out and find people with pain they can cure, that is what they will do, ignoring all other opportunities not painted as pain.

COURTS & CAPITOLS 24

Stock or Assets What form should the sale of your business take? by Robert C. Goldberg BTA General Counsel

Consolidation of the industry continues with suppliers, venture capitalists and dealers purchasing businesses to expand their footprints and market share. Sellers often reach out to the BTA Legal Hotline to discuss the forms their sales should take.

D E PA R T M E N T S Business Technology Association

• BTA Highlights

Executive Director’s Page

BTA President’s Message

Advertiser Index

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S PAGE

I Would Be Offering Managed IT by Now

y cover story in the April issue of Office Technology profiled three dealerships focusing on their managed IT services operations. In this issue, I similarly profile three vendors. Each provides products and/or services, as well as support/guidance, to dealers, helping make the process of managed IT implementation more palatable. It seems to me that many dealers are hesitant about moving forward with managed IT, understandably concerned about facing the unknown. What is not unknown, of course, is the state of the imaging industry. Our industry has a great heritage. It has made many dealers very wealthy. However, the volume of printed pages is in decline. It seems almost daily that I read or hear some reminder about the need for dealers to diversify their product and services offerings. The message is simple: Short of acquiring a competitor, in order to grow your dealership, you must implement additional revenue streams with an eye on profitability. If I owned a dealership, assuming it was large enough, I would have implemented a managed IT services operation by now. I know, as a non-dealer, that’s easy for me to say. But, as an observer of the industry, it appears to make plenty of sense. It’s a good fit for dealers, especially in today’s world and the state of technology in our lives; think “the internet of things.” However, I would have implemented my managed IT operation — perhaps initiated with the acquisition of a managed services provider (MSP) — after plenty of research on how to best proceed. I should acknowledge that I know profitability may be slow in coming. Any managed IT game plan would reflect an awareness

of that reality, but with the expectation of the residual, monthly income that will build up over time. My initial motivation, in part, would be competitive posturing. That is, I know that many dealers and, to some degree, manufacturers themselves (think Konica Minolta’s All Covered), have already entered the managed IT arena. I would also have been mindful of the interest some/many of the thousands of MSPs have in the imaging business. Consider this quote from cover story interviewee West McDonald, vice president of business development at Tigerpaw Software: “As printers become more replacement units versus serviceable units, which we’re seeing, then it doesn’t take too long before MSPs start to look at that as a viable opportunity. I would say to office technology dealers, ‘Don’t give them a head start.’” Of course, West is referencing the blurring line between MSPs and dealers, with each increasingly entering the other’s domain. Even with the infringement of MSPs, BTA Channel dealers have the competitive edge. Their companies are larger in size and are far more sales oriented. Their customer bases are much larger. And, of course, dealers have an entrepreneurial drive that many MSPs may not possess. Looking forward, consider the possibility that managed IT will become commonplace among office technology dealerships. Cover story interviewee Brian Suerth, president of Technology Assurance Group (TAG), offers this prediction/advice: “Absolutely, it’s going to happen and it’s going to happen sooner rather than later, in order for office technology dealers to enjoy the types of revenues they had historically. They need to diversify — starting yesterday, versus today. And it’s not just IT. It’s telephony, it’s video surveillance and everything else.” n — Brent Hoskins

Executive Director/BTA Editor/Office Technology Brent Hoskins brent@bta.org (816) 303-4040 Associate Editor Elizabeth Marvel elizabeth@bta.org (816) 303-4060 Contributing Writers Dennis Amorosano, Dendog Strategy Insights LLC www.dendogstrategy.com Bob Goldberg, General Counsel Business Technology Association Tibor Shanto, Renbor Sales Solutions Inc. www.tiborshanto.com

Business Technology Association 12411 Wornall Road Kansas City, MO 64145 (816) 941-3100 www.bta.org Member Services: (800) 505-2821 BTA Legal Hotline: (800) 869-6688 Valerie Briseno Marketing Director valerie@bta.org Brian Smith Membership Sales Representative brian@bta.org Photo Credits: Bigstockphoto. Cover created by Bruce Quade, Brand X Studio. ©2019 by the Business Technology Association. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without the written permission of the publisher. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of published material. However, the publisher assumes no liability for errors in articles nor are opinions expressed necessarily those of the publisher.

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BTA PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

BTA Creates David Quint Scholarship

n August 1, one of the industry’s best, Dave Quint, passed away in Waterloo, Iowa. He was only 57. Dave was a long-time Business Technology Association (BTA) volunteer who ultimately served as 2015-16 BTA national president. He will be greatly missed by the BTA community. Dave was a strong supporter of the BTA Scholarship Foundation. Knowing this, the BTA Board of Directors has approved a $50,000 contribution from the association to fund a new, perpetual scholarship in his name: the David Quint Memorial Scholarship. This $2,000 scholarship will be presented each year to a son or daughter of a BTA member dealership employee. As with all BTA scholarships, recipients will be determined by an independent, impartial evaluator. “The scholarship program that BTA offers is one of the better benefits that [the association] offers,” Quint said in a 2014 interview. “It’s something we’ve used in our dealership for many years ... It adds value to my employee benefits package with a very minimal cost. We’ve been offering it for a very long time ... It’s a great, great benefit.” The BTA Scholarship Foundation was established in 1968 and is supported by continuing contributions from individual dealers, as well as manufacturers and distributors. Each year BTA awards one $3,000 Bob Goldberg Scholarship, one $2,000 David Quint Memorial Scholarship (starting with the 2020-21 school year) and several $1,500 and $1,000 scholarships to qualifying children of full-time employees of current BTA member dealerships. Since the 1984-85 school year, the association has

presented 1,446 scholarships to deserving students, totaling $1.635 million. To apply for a BTA scholarship, an applicant must be a son or daughter of a full-time employee of a current BTA member dealership and a full-time student maintaining a class schedule of at least 12 hours (nine hours for graduate students) of college credits throughout the school year covered by the scholarship. These credit hours must be at an accredited two- or four-year college, university or technical/trade school. The application asks students to submit information on school activities; leadership positions; work experience; recognition and awards; and community involvement. The application process also requires students to send their transcripts and write an essay. The 2020-21 scholarship application will be available in November at www.bta.org/ Scholarships (you will need your username and password to access the application). All applications must be postmarked by May 1, 2020. BTA has also prepared a flyer promoting the BTA Scholarship Foundation to post in your break room or to hand out to employees. You can download the flyer from the scholarship page on the BTA website as well. BTA appreciates the contributors to the BTA Scholarship Foundation. If you would like to make a tax-deductible contribution to the David Quint Memorial Scholarship fund, visit www.bta.org/DavidQuintMemorial. To contribute to the Bob Goldberg Scholarship fund or the BTA Scholarship Foundation, visit www.bta.org/Scholarships and look for the online donation links located at the top of the page. To donate by mail, send a check made out to the BTA Scholarship Foundation to: Business Technology Association, 12411 Wornall Road, Ste. 200, Kansas City, MO 64145. n — Bob Evans

2019-2020 Board of Directors President Bob Evans Function4 Sugar Land, Texas bobevans@function-4.com President-Elect Tim Renegar Kelly Office Solutions Winston-Salem, North Carolina trenegar@kellyofficesolutions.com Vice President David Polimeni RITE Technology Sarasota, Florida dpolimeni@ritefl.com Immediate Past President John Eckstrom Carolina Business Equipment Inc. Columbia, South Carolina johne@cbesc.com BTA East Don Risser Advanced Laser Printer Service & Supplies Inc. Emigsville, Pennsylvania drisser@alpslaser.com Aaron Rubin Docutrend Imaging Solutions New York City, New York arubin@docutrend.com BTA Mid-America DJ Hastings Hogland Office Equipment Lubbock, Texas dj@hoglandofficeworks.com Mike Nerland Elite Business Systems Sioux Falls, South Dakota miken@elitebusinesssystems.com BTA Southeast Michael Hicks Electronic Business Machines Inc. Lexington, Kentucky mhicks@ebmky.com Adam Gregory Advanced Business Solutions LLC St. Augustine, Florida adam@goabsinc.com BTA West Dan Bombard Yuma Office Equipment Yuma, Arizona daniel@yumaofficeequipment.com Mike McCurdy Integrated Technologies Inc. Twin Falls, Idaho mikem@itechinc.com Ex-Officio/General Counsel Robert C. Goldberg Schoenberg Finkel Newman & Rosenberg LLC Chicago, Illinois robert.goldberg@sfnr.com

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Managed IT Services Leveraging vendor partners to make the journey by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

ou don’t have to go it alone. For those office technology dealers seeking to enter the burgeoning managed IT services arena, there are a growing number of vendors focused on helping dealers with implementation, administration and the sales process. Are you ready to move forward? If so, consider the resources and expertise of the various vendor partners poised to help you make the journey. While there are many options, following is a brief look at three vendors working with office technology dealers seeking to reap the rewards of managed IT. Perhaps their comments will put your mind at ease and inspire you to take a closer look at the opportunity. Continuum To date, around 150 office technology dealerships have turned to Continuum as their primary partner in pursuit of the opportunity. Continuum offers an intelligent software platform backed by expert services teams via a subscription-based model. The platform features cybersecurity, remote monitoring and management (RMM), backup and disaster recovery (BDR), and integrated SOC, NOC and help-desk services. Those 150 dealers are doing quite well, says John Schweizer, vice president of office technology at Continuum. “Our most aggressive partners — in terms of growth characteristics and recurring revenue — are among the office technology dealerships that embrace the program,” he says. “They have the customer bases and what it takes.” Schweizer has high expectations for the dealer channel. “There are tens of thousands of managed services providers [MSPs] in the U.S. and roughly 2,000 office technology dealerships,” he says. “In the end, I think the dealers are going to be the winners. They are going to create better equity events for themselves by expanding their horizons via managed services.” Those “equity events” will come with Continuum doing most of the work by way of its network operations center (NOC) and help desk. “We typically solve about 85 percent of the tickets that come our way,” Schweizer says, referencing

the dealer’s managed IT customer issues. “We do all of the routine heavy lifting as well, such as patching. Plus, because we’re servicing millions of endpoints, we see the issues that come up well before other people see them — and we have figured out how to solve them at scale, oftentimes through automation.” The partnering dealership does play a key role. Managed IT services have to be sold, of course, and the remediation of some IT issues must be handled on-site. “The dealership will need a Level II Engineer; you can often ‘graduate’ that individual from among your existing technicians,” Schweizer says. “If needed, that engineer can call us for help once on-site.” The dealership will also need someone to manage the “ticketing system” inside a solution that is “IT oriented,” Schweizer says, noting that this employee will be the primary contact for Continuum’s NOC and help desk. “Lastly, from a sales standpoint, you need a subject-matter expert, or what we often refer to as a vCIO,” he says. “When you have a minimum of these employees in place, you can have a very successful managed IT practice.” Profitability takes time. “When appropriately implemented and focused, we can get you to around a break-even point — or even a little positive — in year one,” Schweizer says, noting that time will ultimately bring a recurring revenue stream, leading to a 15% or higher EBITDA on managed IT. He also emphasizes that the amount of recurring revenue is often greater than that of imaging device placements. “The average small business that engages your dealership in managed IT is going to provide you an aftermarket recurring revenue stream equivalent to 20 net-new MFPs.” Technology Assurance Group (TAG) Some dealers have an ineffective, unprofitable managed IT services operation in place. Others are apprehensive about entering the arena, unsure about how to get started. In either case, Technology Assurance Group (TAG) can help, says Brian Suerth, TAG’s president. Dealers who become “members”

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of TAG can look to the combusiness away in that range. “ ... Dealerships do not pany as a resource on how to The good news is that deal— among other things — sell, erships do not have to do have to do anything beyond price and market managed anything beyond going into going into their own IT, and onboard customers. their own customer bases, customer bases ... Office TAG has a number of stratestarting with the customtechnology dealers have a gic vendor partners, includers with which they have huge advantage. They have ing Continuum and Tigerpaw the best relationships. Ofthousands of customers Software Inc., that provide fice technology dealers have versus MSPs with an average of 25.” members rebates, discounts a huge advantage. They have and special benefits. thousands of customers ver — Brian Suerth “We are a training and sus MSPs with an average of Technology Assurance Group consulting company for 25. TAG has a proven track those who sell technology,” record of helping dealers Suerth says, noting that TAG helps dealerships that have al- successfully market and upsell IT into their customer bases.” ready moved forward to “accelerate their businesses and become more profitable at delivering and deploying” managed Tigerpaw Software Inc. IT. “For those who are only now getting into managed IT, we As noted, among TAG’s strategic partners is Tigerpaw. help with the implementation process,” he says. “The first “We’ve had a partnership with Tigerpaw for more than 20 step is, we give guidance and consultation on the technology years,” Suerth says. “The company provides the PSA [professolutions out there to build the managed IT technology stack sional services automation] software that a managed serthat they are going to resell.” vices provider needs to run their business.” West McDonTAG also provides education to help dealers understand ald, vice president of business development at Tigerpaw, the underlying economics of managed IT, Suerth says. “We acknowledges the enduring relationship: “TAG has been a are the only entity in the industry that has analyzed $5 billion Tigerpaw partner for as long as anyone here can remember.” of financial statements over 20 years,” he says. “If we don’t Such relationships — and, more specifically, “integrahave the analytics, nobody does. We provide insight into tions” with other vendors — help to set Tigerpaw apart from how to price their solutions and sell managed IT, and teach a others in the office technology industry, McDonald says, multistep process designed to reach an 85% close ratio.” noting that his company’s Tigerpaw One solution integrates In addition, Suerth says, TAG provides sales, marketing with Continuum’s RMM, among others. In the imaging inand lead-generation campaigns, as well as compensation dustry, “critical integrations” are often limited to around plans and hiring assistance for both salespeople and techni- 10 to 15, where “in the managed services world, we have cians. “Our relationship is a highly interactive, very inten- hundreds,” he says. “Dealers looking to build a managed sive engagement,” he says. “We have one-on-one, regular IT practice need to find a partner that is already deeply inconsultations with multiple individuals within the organi- grained within that ecosystem.” zation, whether they are owners or in operations or sales.” Tigerpaw’s heritage is in managed services. As such, the TAG’s mission is to help dealers achieve profitability, Tigerpaw One solution is designed to address the inherent Suerth says, noting that most dealers who have already characteristics of managed IT. “The way that business autoentered managed IT are “failing” in terms of profitability. mation works for managed IT and other services is far differ“It’s new to them,” he says. “They’re losing money on their IT ent from how you manage your office equipment practice,” business, and they’re subsidizing it with the revenue from McDonald says. “If you’re going to do it properly, for that their copier business. Within two years, we can help them piece of your business, you need to work with Tigerpaw — get to about 20% EBITDA. We have about a half-dozen mem- or somebody like us — to make sure that you are managing bers that are at more than 30%.” that business correctly; everything from the CRM piece to What is the “sweet spot” in terms of company size for deal- accounting to how service tickets are generated and executers to target? Companies with between 20 and 60 employees, ed with complexities that have nothing to do with pages and Suerth says. “There are hundreds of thousands of companies everything to do with hours, remote management and parts in that range in this country, and they’re all being serviced for devices that dealers have never looked at previously.” by MSPs or independent computer consultants — ‘one or two In the printing industry, “you have to understand certain guys with a truck’,” he says. “So, in 100% of the interactions things, such as volumes, toner levels and error-code mesof acquiring new business, you’re taking somebody else’s sages in order to physically maintain devices,” McDonald 12 | w w w. o f f ic et ec hno lo g y m a g.c om | Oc t ob e r 2 0 1 9

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questions. They’re going to continues. “The same is true “If you actually work out want to know how they can in managed IT from a serdo certain things. We have vices perspective, but it’s acthe revenue by user in physical teams that are tually much more nuanced managed print, it’s about dedicated to ensuring the and layered. Plus, it’s a very $17 to $24 per user every dealer’s success.” different workflow compared month ... In the managed A dealer’s entrance into to managed print; it is more IT services space, it is the managed IT arena will complicated. The tools proanywhere from $90 to $150 pay off, McDonald says. “If vided by Tigerpaw One are per user every month. That’s huge.” you actually work out the robustly built to handle those revenue by user in managed workflows, primarily from a — West McDonald print, it’s about $17 to $24 management perspective.” Tigerpaw Software Inc. per user every month, not McDonald emphasizes including the equipment,” that Tigerpaw provides the training dealers need to succeed in managed IT with the he says. “In the managed IT services space, it use of Tigerpaw One. “We invest heavily in complimentary is anywhere from $90 to $150 per user every training and human support,” he says. “In the Tigerpaw One month. That’s huge.” n Brent Hoskins, executive director of the package, all of our components are included. There is no upBusiness Technology Association, is editor selling. So, once you’re a customer, all of the training and of Office Technology magazine. He can be support is included. Because Tigerpaw One is very robust, reached at brent@bta.org or (816) 303-4040. the people administering the product are going to have

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NuWorld ad Oct 19.indd 2

NBS / BTA | October 2019

9/24/19 8:08 AM

Grand Slam BTA East hosts event in New York City by: Elizabeth Marvel, Office Technology Magazine

TA East hosted its Grand Slam event Sept. 12-13 at the Sheraton New York Times Square in New York City, New York. The event featured a keynote address, “Joining the Conversation,” led by Chris Messina, a technologist and the inventor of the hashtag, as well as a dealer panel, “How Dealers Are Growing Net-New Business,” moderated by Darrell Amy, Convergo. The schedule also included five additional educational sessions and an evening at ONE Mix/Dine at One World Trade Center. The additional educational sessions were: “The Crucial Role of Sales & Marketing Alignment to Your Dealership’s Future,” led by Lindsay Bohon and Josie Heskje, GreatAmerica Financial Services Corp.; “Vendors Find the Urge to Merge Irresistible,” led by Charlie Brewer, Actionable Intelligence; “Coaching for Results,” led by Brad Roderick, TonerCycle/ InkCycle; “Highlights from the BPO Research Dealer Survey,” led by John McIntyre, BPO Media; and “Cybersecurity-as-aService,” led by Brian Suerth, Technology Assurance Group. The exhibiting sponsors: ACDI, Agent Dealer, ARLINGTON, Brother (breaks sponsor), Cartridge Warehouse International, Clover, Compass Sales Solutions, DCS, ECi, ecoprintQ, Epson, ESP AMETEK, FORZA, FP, GreatAmerica, Hytec, Image Star, Imaging Solutions Direct, Keypoint Intelligence, Kyocera, Laserfiche, LEAF, Lexmark (lunch sponsor), LMI, Mars International, Miracle Service, Muratec, NA Trading and Technology, NEXERA, OKI, Panasonic (keynote sponsor), PCS VoIP, Polek & Polek (ONE Mix/Dine sponsor), Q2, RingByName, SalesChain, Static Control, Supplies Network, Technology Assurance Group, TIAA Bank, Tigerpaw (breakfast sponsor), TonerCycle/ InkCycle, Toshiba, TROY Group, Unitone, WatchGuard, Wells Fargo, Xerox (reception sponsor) and Zultys. The next BTA event, Capture the Magic, will be held Nov. 4-5 in Coronado, California. To learn more, see the ad on pages two and three or visit www.bta.org/BTACoronado. n Elizabeth Marvel is associate editor of Office Technology magazine. She can be reached at (816) 303-4060 or elizabeth@bta.org.

Clockwise from top left: Messina presents his keynote address; 2019-20 BTA East President Mike Ardry serves as the event’s emcee; the Grand Slam event consisted of a keynote address, a dealer panel, five additional educational sessions, time to visit with peers and exhibiting sponsors, and an evening at ONE Mix/Dine on the 101st floor of One World Trade Center; attendees enjoy the reception and views of New York City at ONE Mix/Dine; and Alan Albergaria (left) of Automated Business Systems, Warwick, Rhode Island, visits with Kevin Thibeault of Lexmark during a break between sessions.

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BTA East Oct 19.indd 1

9/26/19 3:16 PM

Joining Conversations I

The educational session presenters were (clockwise from top left): Bohon; Heskje; Brewer; Roderick; McIntyre; and Suerth.

Clockwise from top: Amy (left) moderates the dealer panel with panelists (left to right) Robert Hilyard of Hilyard’s Business Systems, Wilmington, Delaware; Samantha Lahey of Benchmark Business Solutions, Lubbock, Texas; and Harry Spaight of HGi Technologies, Miami, Florida; 2019-20 BTA President Bob Evans (left) presents the Past President’s Award to 2018-19 BTA President John Eckstrom; Eckstrom presents the 2019 BTA Channel Champion Award to Oscar Sanchez, president and CEO of KYOCERA Document Solutions America Inc.; and Eckstrom presents the 2019 Volunteer of the Year Award to 2019-20 BTA Mid-America Vice President Greg Quirk.

n his keynote presentation, “Joining the Conversation,” Chris Messina walked attendees through the recent history of computing and how the changing nature of interfaces are broadening the reach of computing technology. He also shared the story that he alone can tell as the inventor of the hashtag, widely used in social media as a means to help people connect by making social media conversations — trending topics — more relevant. In addition to founding startups, Messina has designed products and experiences for Google and Uber. However, he is best known for giving away many of his creations, including the hashtag. In 2005, he co-organized the first BarCamp, leading to “unconference” events in more than 350 cities around the world, whereby attendees share and learn in an open environment, engaged in dialog usually centered around design and technology. It was the launch of BarCamp that inspired and gave rise to the purpose of the hashtag. Messina, who has never been employed by Twitter, told of the day in 2007 when he walked into Twitter’s headquarters to propose the idea of using the hashtag in social media posts so they could be indexed and become searchable/discoverable by others. “You can see Biz Stone, who is one of the co-founders, essentially looking at me, taking my proposal,” he said, sharing a photo that was taken in the meeting. “Then the next thing he says is: ‘This is stupid, this is never going to work, this is the nerdiest thing ever.’ “Even though Twitter, in the beginning, thought this idea would never work, it’s sort of hard to argue with the success that it has seen in its adoption,” he continued. “Every day, more than 200 million hashtags are created, which is the equivalent of basically 2,300 hashtags created every second — a number I can’t even fathom.” As noted, Messina also discussed the changing nature of computing technology, focusing primarily on the latest interfaces, most recently expanding beyond touch-screen smartphones to voice-controlled smart speakers. “I think voice is essentially going to become the next big innovation,” he said. “It’s even more accessible than touch; you can create content in lots of different formats in different places with bidirectional interaction.” Voice interaction with devices marks the “first time that computers are actually starting to lean toward us, as opposed to requiring us to change the way that we communicate or interact with computers,” Messina said, noting that users can now simply tell computing devices what they want. “This is going to open up computing to a whole new host of people who previously thought that computing was too hard, too frustrating and too much work.” While emphasizing the importance of using social media in business, Messina pointed out a reality about voice computing that every business owner should consider. “You may already have a healthy business where you build long-term relationships; you’ve earned the trust of your community,” he said. “But if you’re not on social media, if you’re not participating somehow, then you won’t be able to reach a younger demographic or find new customers. Because, increasingly, with voice computing, people are going to ask Alexa or Google Assistant to just tell them what the answer is; they are not going to do lot of searching. So, the more you are available, the more trustworthiness you’ve demonstrated on the internet, the more likely it is that you’re going to actually be shown in these new interfaces as they become more popular.” n — Brent Hoskins www.offi cetechnol ogymag.com | Oc tob e r 2019 | 19

BTA East Oct 19.indd 2

9/26/19 3:16 PM

Alphabet Soup Add AI, ML & IoT to your long list of acronyms by: Dennis Amorosano, Dendog Strategy Insights LLC

hen I was a kid, I used to love alphabet soup; all those interesting words and acronyms would pop up seemingly out of nowhere. A lot has changed since then, which is also the case for the office technology industry. During my early days in the industry, the dominant acronyms were CPM (copies per minute), PPM (pages per minute) and MTBF (mean time between failure). While all of these acronyms are still around, the nature of technology evolution is such that a once simple set of acronyms has now been amended to include things like API, ACT, CPU, DNS, DHCP, IPv6, LDAP, MEAP, NAS, SMTP, TCP/IP and VoIP, to name a few. If you were expecting me to define all of these acronyms in this article, think again. For those who have been in the industry a while, these are acronyms you have likely encountered and they should be somewhat familiar. If not, be thankful you have a digital specialist or network engineer to deal with what can often seem like a foreign language. While the acronyms outlined above are representative of technologies and capabilities that have ultimately become standard across the hardware in today’s industry, there are a new set of acronyms making their way onto the stage that are destined to have an even greater impact than those of the past. As with any new set of technologies, it is not the technology itself that is of great importance with respect to our interaction with customers; it is the business outcomes afforded by the technology that matter, as this is where true value lives. Let’s look at AI. By now I am sure you guessed this to be artificial intelligence. AI is one of the most important innovations to impact the technology landscape. It is already having a profound effect on our lives as we interact with AIbased systems on a daily basis — in many instances, in a completely transparent way. As indicated in an April 2019 Business News Daily article by Adam C. Uzialko titled “How Artificial Intelligence Will Transform Business”: “In business, artificial intelligence has a wide range of uses. In fact, most of us interact with artificial

intelligence in some form or another on a daily basis. From the mundane to the breathtaking, artificial intelligence is already disrupting virtually every business process in every industry. As artificial intelligence technologies proliferate, they are becoming an imperative for businesses that want to maintain a competitive edge.” While self-driving cars and Terminatorlike predictions get most of the attention related to AI, the reality is that we are already seeing this technology, in its many forms, make its way into the office technology industry. From smart devices that are capable of serving up Alexalike interactions to software technologies that adapt to user behavior and activity, AI-based systems are beginning to make their way to market and the benefits they offer relative to employee productivity are significant. Machine learning (ML), a type of AI, is the most common incarnation of AI we see in today’s market. As defined in the article referenced above: “These types of artificial intelligence are algorithms that appear to ‘learn’ over time, getting better at what they do the more often they do it. Feed a machine-learning algorithm more data and its modeling should improve. Machine learning is useful for putting vast troves of data — increasingly captured by connected devices and the internet of things — into a digestible context for humans.” We see ML making its way into many software technologies used to handle repetitive tasks. One such example is in the document capture market, where ML technologies are being used to identify content contained within both paper and electronic documents and take specific action related to such content. This is ideal in areas like accounts payable, where invoice data can be captured and payment processes automated based on the nature of such information. Of course, ML-based systems have “learning loops.” As a result, in cases where the systems make mistakes, the correction of such mistakes are fed back into the system, helping the software to gain accuracy over time. With training, it is expected that many of these systems can deliver accuracy well above 90%.

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Amorosano Oct 19.indd 1

9/26/19 3:30 PM

Toshiba ad Oct 19.indd 1

9/13/19 4:35 PM

Gartner assesses that 20.8 billion conThe implications for ML are signifinected things will be in use by 2020, cant and it is quickly finding its way into ... The opportunities while total spending on IoT devices and software solutions including capture, related to AI, ML and services reached $3.7 trillion in 2018. content management and in a breed of IoT ... will open new That is a lot of things. new software purpose-built for verticalavenues of business that The office technology industry is just a industry applications and business prowould not have been small contributor to these numbers, howcesses. There is little question we will also ever the implications for IoT devices withsee this technology eventually make its thought possible just in the industry is significant. With the way into many of today’s MFP functions. a few short years ago. ability to connect to and remotely manage No alphabet soup discussion would be devices comes the ability to also harvest complete without the internet of things (IoT). It may not be the most compelling name, but the IoT device operational data. When used effectively, this data is is reflective of technologies that can be network-connected being used to analyze customer usage patterns and, in combiand remotely managed. The range of things falling into this nation with AI, is leading to predictive maintenance capabililandscape is enormous and ranges from home automation ties. For customers, this ultimately means greater reliability technologies to aircraft engines, from medical equipment and uptime, which becomes increasingly important as MFPs to sensors and, yes, to printers and MFPs. In fact, virtually play a prominent role in mission-critical business processes. At its most basic level, the emergence of new technologies every MFP sold today has the ability to connect to the IoT and, as such, affords dealers, manufacturers and customers and their related acronyms brings new opportunities. In fact, I would argue that the opportunities related to AI, ML and the potential of managing such technology remotely. To put IoT into perspective from a business standpoint, IoT — if harnessed by traditional industry players (including dealers) — will open new avenues of business that would not have been thought possible just a few short years ago. While the technologies are different, the process of entering new markets and exploiting such innovation is similar. What is unique, however, is the implication for customers, as AI, ML and IoT are all poised to help them make dramatic leaps in the effectiveness of operating their businesses. As with any new technology or innovation, it will be interesting to see how things unfold in the market and the ways in which such technologies make their way into products and services. Of equal interest will be the ways in which manufacturers and dealers capitalize on such innovation in an effort to capture customers in an ever-increasing competitive landscape, and build new sources of revenue and profit. While I wait for my alphabet soup to cool, I can already begin to see a new set of acronyms coming to the surface. Better eat quickly! n Dennis Amorosano is the president and founder of Dendog Strategy Insights LLC, a management consulting firm focused on strategic planning, new business development and go-tomarket execution. Providing services in the areas of strategic business planning/execution, new business development, content creation/marketing automation and technology sourcing support, Dendog Strategy Insights brings 30 years of technology marketing, sales, product planning, software engineering and professional service experience. Amorosano can be reached at damorosano@dendogstrategy.com or (631) 252-0102. Visit www.dendogstrategy.com. 22 | w w w. o f f ic et ec hno lo g y m a g.c om | Oc t ob e r 2 0 1 9

Amorosano Oct 19.indd 2

9/26/19 3:30 PM

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www.offi cetechnol ogymag.com | Oc tob e r 2019 | 23

Laserfiche - BPO ads Oct 19.indd 1

9/25/19 10:29 AM

COURTS & CAPITOLS

Stock or Assets What form should the sale of your business take? by: Robert C. Goldberg, general counsel for the Business Technology Association

onsolidation of the industry continues with suppliers, venture capitalists and dealers purchasing businesses to expand their footprints and market share. Sellers often reach out to the BTA Legal Hotline to discuss the forms their sales should take. The correct answer involves multiple variables. If the seller has a C corporation that has not elected subchapter S status, a stock sale is most likely preferable to the seller. The reason for this is that a sale of assets by a C corporation will be taxable both at the corporate level and again when distributed to the shareholders. If the shares of stock of a C corporation are purchased, the sale will not be a taxable event for the corporation and the shareholders will receive capital gains treatment. Capital gains tax rates are less than personal tax rates. Thus, the purchase price for the business will net less to the seller if assets are purchased rather than the stock of a C corporation. Purchasers shy from stock purchases as stock represents both the assets and liabilities. Although there are legal provisions to protect the purchaser, an asset purchase avoids many issues. So, what is being sold in an asset purchase? Business assets refer to any items of value owned by a company, such as tangible goods like inventory, contracts, office furnishings, phone numbers, websites, company names, customer lists, leases, maintenance and support agreements, real estate and vehicles, as well as intangible items like intellectual property and goodwill. Before an asset sale can be made, a business owner must complete an asset purchase agreement (APA). An APA has several purposes. First, if the buyer and seller entered a letter of intent, the APA incorporates the terms from the letter into a binding agreement. An APA is used to describe the assets to be purchased, thus ensuring there is no confusion later on about what exactly is being bought. Next, it sets forth the terms in which the goods will be transferred, including information like dates and similar details. Finally, it lays out the rights and responsibilities of both the buyer and seller. Before an APA can be deemed valid, both parties must read, agree to and sign the agreement. When developing an APA, there are a number of important elements to include in the contract. One of the first things the agreement will identify are the parties entering into the agreement. Some corporate entities may have numerous subdivisions and it is important to specify which are involved. The APA must also include what is being purchased in great detail, being as descriptive as possible. Whether the assets include a

conference table and chairs or a specific piece of equipment, it is important to provide as many details as possible to help eliminate any confusion and misinformation. This is typically done in schedules attached to the APA. Of course, the agreement should also discuss price. In addition to specifying the price that will be paid by the buyer to the seller, you will want the agreement to detail how the assets will be paid for. In many cases, a buyer will pay for the assets in full at the closing of the agreement. Often there is a holdback to protect the buyer from claims. If the transaction involves any warranties or representations, you will also want to include this information in the APA. There are a number of advantages of an APA. One of the biggest benefits is that the buyer is able to choose the assets and liabilities he (or she) wants to acquire. This usually means less risk for the buyer, as there are no hidden liabilities that could result in financial repercussions down the road. Another major perk of an APA is that a buyer is able to allocate the purchase price of the assets so they reflect the market value. This can result in higher depreciation, which results in future tax savings. A high allocation to goodwill will also benefit the seller. Buying a business through an asset acquisition is often less complicated, as neither party is required to comply with federal and state securities laws and regulations. Selling or buying a business is a significant transaction that, if not done properly, can cost you. Seek knowledgeable assistance to avoid costly mistakes. Of course, if you have any questions, call the BTA Legal Hotline at (800) 869-6688. n Robert C. Goldberg is general counsel for the Business Technology Association. He can be reached at robert.goldberg@sfnr.com.

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Goldberg Oct 19.indd 1

9/26/19 3:24 PM

Continuum ad Oct 19.indd 1

9/6/19 8:31 AM

BTA HIGHLIGHTS BTA would like to welcome the following new members to the association:

Dealer Members Advanced Copier Systems LLC, Broken Arrow, OK AOP, Lake Charles, LA Braden Business Systems, Indianapolis, IN Business Copy Associates, Saugus, MA CRSA Document Solutions, North Augusta, SC Docucomm, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada EverWorx, Denver, CO IBE Digital, Garden Grove, CA InkLogic Inc., Newport, CA Jersey Mail Systems LLC, Freehold, NJ Ken-Kor Consulting Inc., Chicago, IL Vendor Members Miramar Copies Inc., Oklahoma City, OK Star2Star Communications, Sarasota, AZ Zultys Inc., Sunnyvale, CA For full contact information of these new members, visit www.bta.org.

For the benefit of its dealer members, each month BTA features two of its vendor members in this space. Originally founded in 2001, Zultys is a pioneer in voice-over-IP (VoIP) technology, being one of the first companies to deliver a truly SIP-based PBX to the market. The company is a global provider of a true all-in-one unified communications solution. Innovative, reliable and scalable, its IP phone systems integrate voice, video, data and mobility — in a single premisebased appliance or in the cloud — to optimize collaboration for businesses of all sizes. Zultys delivers a powerful, feature-rich communications system that is easy to use, deploy and maintain. It is headquartered in Silicon Valley, California, with offices around the world. www.zultys.com

Building My Business Webinar Series Free to BTA members, BTA’s monthly Building My Business webinars, presented by industry experts, are designed to help dealers improve the management of their companies, take full advantage of market opportunities and, ultimately, improve their bottom lines. Past webinars, including PDFs of PowerPoint slides and videos, are also available to members in the Building My Business archives. Visit www.bta.org/BMB for more information.

Star2Star Communications was founded in 2006 with a passion for revolutionizing the world of business communications. For small and large businesses, the company unifies and simplifies complex communications activities. Star2Star offers the world’s only full-spectrum communications solution. Its customers enjoy high-quality calls, 99.99% uptime reliability, advanced unified communications features and more. Star2Star is 100% committed to the channel, its partners and their customers. The company takes care of the heavy lifting of providing, implementing, installing and maintaining communications. www.star2star.com

For information on BTA member benefits, visit www.bta.org/MemberBenefits.

A full list of BTA vendor members can be found online at www.bta.org.

For more information, visit www.bta.org. 26 | w w w. o f f ic et ec hno lo g y m a g.c om | Oc t ob e r 2 0 1 9

Highlights Oct 19.indd 1

9/26/19 3:32 PM

PRINCIPAL ISSUES

Lexmark BSD Roadshow Manufacturer holds training event in Kansas City by: Elizabeth Marvel, Office Technology Magazine

ocused on training attendees to leverage its products and solutions for success, on August 27 Lexmark hosted the third of six 2019 Business Solutions Dealer (BSD) roadshows in Overland Park, Kansas, a Kansas City, Missouri, suburb. The locations for the other 2019 roadshows: Atlanta, Georgia; Irvine, California; Lexington, Kentucky; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; and New York City, Craig Raisor New York. Each roadshow averages 25 to 35 attendees; 36 dealership employees took part in the Overland Park show. Craig Raisor, North Central District sales manager at Lexmark, kicked off the roadshow with an introduction to the company and its products, as well as sharing the purpose of the roadshows. “Our goal is to equip you with a differentiated story, a story that not everyone Gary Davis is talking about, a story that is going to help you get into new accounts and go deeper within your current accounts,” he said. “That’s our simple goal and we want to bring that value to you so you can go win.” In his introduction, Raisor noted that Lexmark provides the products of choice for several vertical industries, including 10 out of 10 top U.S. retail pharmacy chains, nine out of 10 top global retailers, eight out of 10 top global banks, eight out of 10 global manufacturers and eight out of 10 top U.S. federal agencies. Raisor highlighted one major reason for success in these verticals — Lexmark’s focus on “intentional engineering.” He explained this concept, noting that Lexmark machines are built to last, with solid steel frames. They have embedded onboard weather stations that look at humidity, temperature and more, allowing them to optimize for and reliably print on complex media in any environment. Lexmark products have more than 120 advanced sensors so they can avoid paper jams, know when to replace supplies without waste and streamline service. They are also easy to service, as most devices can be easily accessed from their front covers. Finally, Raisor said, the company’s products have extra memory and processing power so they are futureproofed for software updates and can allow for multitasking. The roadshow took a more in-depth look at the health-care vertical during the afternoon with a session by Gary Davis,

executive consultant for global health care at Lexmark. He gave attendees a quick overview of the health-care industry, its goals and how Lexmark dealers can help customers achieve those goals. Davis explained that the health-care industry today takes a “triple-aim approach” — it wants to improve the quality of care, lower costs and transition from a sick-care model to a wellness model with the goal of keeping people healthy. “You can see similarities between the [wellness] model and what we’ll go through with cloud services, preventative services and IT infrastructure,” Davis said. “That is, we don’t want to be responding constantly to breakdowns, interruptions and unreliable IT equipment and applications. We want to prevent that; we want to head that off at the pass.” He explained that health-care companies are still in a somewhat transactional system, so they are incentivized to be as efficient as possible. But, Davis said, they are moving toward a more predictive model. “They’re still in a transactional system, in part,” he said. “But they need to prepare for the future and restructure their organizations, hire different kinds of talent and so on to be more predictive so they keep people well and healthy. So, you’ve got to understand that and understand the pressure of trying to be the best they can be in the current business model, while moving toward a brand-new model that carries a lot of risk for them.” To help health-care companies, Davis made a suggestion to dealers. “They want things that improve workflow, that solve their problems,” he said. “They want a wellness approach to infrastructure. A lot of them just want to hand it off and say, ‘I don’t want to worry about it. I want you to not only integrate with my applications, but I want you to integrate with my help desk and service desk so it’s out of sight, out of mind for me so I can focus on more strategic investments.’” This focus on giving customers what they need — not only in the health-care industry, but in all industries it provides products for — is what drives Lexmark, Raisor said. “What defines our company’s DNA is our focus on the customer,” he said. “Our mission is to create customers for life. We do that by listening and tailoring the right mix of products and solutions to help you enable your customers to reduce costs and streamline business processes.” n Elizabeth Marvel is associate editor of Office Technology magazine. She can be reached at elizabeth@bta.org or (816) 303-4060. w w w. o f f i c e t e c h n o l o g y m a g . c o m | O c t o b e r 2 0 19 | 27

Lexmark Oct 19.indd 1

9/26/19 3:35 PM

DEALERS HELPING DEALERS

Software Support How do fellow dealers manage this service? Compiled by: Brent Hoskins, Office Technology Magazine

ollowing is another of the questions submitted by a dealer member as part of BTA’s Dealers Helping Dealers resource, and several of the answers received. These answers and many others can be found in the members-only section of the BTA website. Visit www.bta.org/Dealers HelpingDealers. You will need your username and password to access this member resource. How do you charge clients for supporting the software you sell? Do you charge by the hour, the call, a set number of support hours or an annual help-desk contract? What is included in the support services? “We charge by the hour per the wage of the help-desk average instead of the cost of a field technician. This recoups the hours and the phone usage costs. Software is configured as part of a CPC calculation for software sold/upgraded and included in the contract for support. Support services start with triage, diagnosis of the issues, clarification of what the end user has or has not done, and then an attempt at over-thephone resolution before dispatching a technician to minimize overall costs against the contract.” Jeremiah Shepard, general manager of technical services Dove Print Solutions, Florence, South Carolina “We add a nominal connectivity support monthly charge to our service contracts on top of our normal rates. We also charge a rate per hour for customer phone help and remote service through our help desk. We also provide IT contract pricing separate from MFP service contracts.” George Grover, customer support specialist MMIT Technical Services, Urbandale, Iowa “We charge per hour.” Van Seretis, managing partner Premium Digital Office Solutions, Parsippany, New Jersey “For our document management solutions, it is a set number of support hours they purchase up front. For managed network services/IT support, it is by contract — anywhere from one to three years. As far as what is included, for document management solutions the hours cover implementation, development,

training and support. For managed network services/IT support, we cover the installation, updates and troubleshooting of the products.” Katie Grayham, accountant Business World Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas “We have been working in IT for just over two years. We started with blocks of hours either on-site or remote. We sell backup and anti-virus independently. Then we do a flat rate per workstation — a minimum of five per company. Included in this is monitored anti-virus, monitored cloud backup and unlimited remote and on-site support. No parts are included.” David Perry, president Integrity Business Machines, Conway, South Carolina “Normally we sell a yearly contract that does not have a set amount of hours. As long as your base is big enough, the winners will far outweigh the losers. If the customer does not opt for a contract, it is billed hourly.” Joe Coler, vice president of service Atlantic Tomorrow’s Office, New York City, New York “We offer a help-desk support contract of four hours for $495 a year, which is nonrefundable and autorenews when the four hours are used up or on the anniversary date. Optionally, without a help-desk support plan, we have a two-hour minimum of $300 and $150 per hour for every additional hour.” Gabe Rood, CDIA+ project manager, IT services Modern Office Methods Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio “We charge an annual fee up front with our customers. If any work needs to be done outside the scope of work, we charge by the hour with a one-hour minimum.” Kevin Oberman, vice president of sales Copiers Plus Inc., Fayetteville, North Carolina Do you have a question for your fellow dealers? If so, email it to brent@bta.org with the subject line: “Dealers Helping Dealers.” BTA will then share your question with the full dealer membership with a request for guidance from your fellow dealers. n Brent Hoskins, executive director of the Business Technology Association, is editor of Office Technology magazine. He can be reached at brent@bta.org or (816) 303-4040.

28 | w w w. o f f ic et ec hno lo g ym a g.c om | Oc t ob e r 2 0 1 9

DHD Oct 19.indd 1

9/27/19 10:49 AM

SELLING SOLUTIONS

Focus on Priorities Lead with the success others would attribute to you by: Tibor Shanto, Renbor Sales Solutions Inc.

ne thing about salespeople that you can count on is they usually find what they are looking for while ignoring other things. If you tell your reps to go out and find people with pain they can cure, that is what they will do — go out and find people with pain and ignore all other opportunities that are not painted as pain. There is not much point in talking about a solution until there is a problem that needs to be solved, so it is better to learn how to focus on priorities instead of pains. Disqualify to Fly The process most people call qualification goes like this: Your reps ask a number of perfunctory questions to establish the quality of the opportunities inherent in a given account. When a prospective company ticks enough of the boxes, it is qualified. You need to change this process right away and reprogram your reps to disqualify prospects, as the current qualification approach tends to set the bar somewhat low and it takes valuable time that can be spent with real prospects. Add to this your reps’ propensity to look at things with rose-colored glasses (i.e., what would never qualify the first week of a quarter looks absolutely promising as they pass the halfway mark and these prospects are approved by their managers). Teaching your reps to disqualify accounts may seem counterintuitive, but it leads to better opportunities. Sure, the overall number of opportunities may decline, but the quality of opportunities and revenues will rise. The amount of time reps spend developing their skills and territories will also increase, as they no longer have to chase marginal things. Look at Priorities Rather Than Pain There is a way you can apply this mindset of disqualifying anything but the best opportunities and still grow. Stop telling your salespeople to look for buyers with pain and have them look at priorities — the buyer’s priorities, not yours, your manager’s or the company’s — instead. Buyers who admit they are in pain or are acting to address their pain make up the smallest segment of the market. Everyone knows this and they are actively chasing the same segment (which may explain the declining number of B2B reps who are exceeding their quotas). But there are only so many fish in the barrel to shoot. To make quota, your reps need to engage with buyers who are focused on their priorities in the absence of pain. Sure, you can kick someone in the shin, but that will not make him (or her) a buyer — it just brings him pain.

Your reps’ market experience reinforces this. Each time their messages are rejected, they take that rejection to heart and share some of the blame on products and pricing. This quickly leads them to conclude that the only sales to be made are to those who are in pain — which is the home of declining opportunities. Priorities Will Emerge Teach your reps to talk about priorities. People who have immediate pain will relate that pain and share their priorities, and people without pain or no need for instant results will also share their priorities. At the risk of stating the obvious, “priorities” are not a list of features a prospect looks for in a product. Instead, they are business priorities that are usually defined by the accomplishments those priorities lead to. This means that the issue that sells, or what the prospect is willing to engage in, needs to be grounded in business — and nothing else. You can help your reps focus on priorities and fully capitalize on opportunities by using short-term opportunities. Some short-term opportunities are part of the regular cycle, while others are specific to that company, regulatory events or other common triggers. These are easy to identify and respond to, but they are not always rooted in pain or need. Getting traction with buyers around something other than pain, needs or solutions should expand your reps’ “vocabulary” and courage. With practice, your reps will have the ability to pursue and engage with “pain-free prospects,” leading with examples of business impacts that your company has been able to deliver for customers with similar priorities. This is where your reps can engage on desired and achieved outcomes that are independent of products. For many salespeople, this is like walking www.offi cetechnol ogymag.com | Oc tob e r 2019 | 29

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products as the hidden enablers, not the a tightrope across Niagara Falls. Talking front-and-center features. Subject-matter shop without talking product? What is a You should be experts can talk about the subject; product seller to do? reviewing all jockeys are left to ride features in a race of The answer is usually in the CRM; all opportunities that business priorities. reps need to do is look. And while many do, cross the starting line What counts for your buyers are their they use the same useless filters they use to of your pipeline, priorities. Stop leading with pain and, intarget buyers, looking for which pain and stead, lead with the success others would features led to their success. This leads to whether they are wins, attribute to you, not a feature or spec they the same opportunity-limiting loop — pain losses or no-decisions. can buy cheaper elsewhere. n above everything else — while missing evTibor Shanto is the principal at Renbor Sales erything that is not pain. Solutions Inc. He has been a sales leader for more than I can never understand why people feel the need to take 25 years, helping companies including Bell Mobility, sides. They either review all their losses or all their wins (but Imperial Oil, Pitney Bowes and others increase results not both), or they review all pipeline opportunities. And, when and sell better. Shanto is the co-author of the award-winning they do review, it is usually a journey of validation, not of learnbook, “Shift!: Harness The Trigger Events That Turn Prospects ing or discovery. Into Customers.” He was voted one of the top 30 salespeople You should be reviewing all opportunities that cross the in the world by Forbes.com; one of the 50 sales experts and starting line of your pipeline, whether they are wins, losses influencers you should be following in 2019 by Reuters; or no-decisions. No-decisions are crucial, especially given the one of the 50 most influential people in cost not only to sellers, but to buyers as well. At Renbor Sales sales lead management by the Top Sales Solutions, we like to use the 360-Degree Deal Review. This alManagement Association; and was named a lows our clients to see why things are truly turning out the Gold Medal Winner for top sales and marketing way they are. More importantly, when done correctly, the reblog by Top Sales World. Shanto can be reached view can serve as a source of unique prospect talking points. at tibor@tiborshanto.com. Knowing how you have helped companies achieve specific Visit www.tiborshanto.com. goals is a start. Know what they were able to achieve with your

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