Musings from the CRM Experts for the A/E/C

Ask the Right Questions to Prepare the Best Strategy to Win

Jen Heitler — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:36:15 +0000

Knowledge is power in the project pursuit/proposal world and easy access to this information is critical. Winning proposals focus on the issues and concerns that the client either currently faces or expects to encounter with this new project. The more we know about the client’s needs and goals, the better equipped we are to tailor our proposal to them and their specific project. But how do we obtain all this knowledge? We ask.

What are the questions to ask and where’s the best place to store all this information?

Questions fall into a few categories, including: about the client, about the project, about the selection process and about the competition. Here are a few of our favorite questions:

About the Client

Who are the key decision makers?
Is the company growing, shrinking?
Who do we know in the organization? Who’s the decision maker? Who’s our inside coach?
Have we worked with them before? How was that project received?
What are their expectations?
What’s their focus: quality, price, other?
What are their current issues/concerns that we can address?

About the Project

What’s the history of the project?
What are goals for project?
Who will use project?
Has the site been selected?
Are there environmental concerns?
What’s the budget? Are the funds secured?
What’s the project schedule?
Who are the stakeholders?
What worries them about the project?
Has the client worked with other consultants in the planning of this project? If so, who?
What is the delivery method?

About the Selection Process

Has the RFP been written?
What are the criteria?
How will criteria be weighed?
Who is on the selection committee? Do we know them?
Will there be an interview?

About the Competition

Who are they?
What are their strengths/weaknesses?
Have they worked with the client before?
Have we worked with the competition?
What are their projects known for?

Within Cosential, put your “Best Questions” document in the Knowledge module for everyone to access or create an integrated Go/No-Go form to be accessed from the Opportunity record. Your completed Go/No-Go would automatically attach to the record or you could upload your completed questionnaire. Storing all this project and client data within Cosential will help when it’s time to strategize and prepare your targeted submittal.

Go win work!

In next week’s blog, we will discuss the questions not to ask. You would be amazed at some of the stories we’ve been told that fall into that category. We’d love to hear your favorite questions to ask and/or ones that have backfired for you.

Stop SOPA

Dan Cornish — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:19:29 +0000

On January 18th hundreds of websites will take part in a mass protest against SOPA.

What is SOPA?

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA, H.R. 3261) is on the surface a bill that attempts to curb online piracy. Sadly, the proposed way it goes about doing this would devastate the online economy and the overall freedom of the web. It would particularly affect sites with heavy user generated content. Sites like Youtube, Reddit, Twitter, and others may cease to exist in their current form if this bill is passed.

What is PIPA?

The Protect IP Act (PIPA, S. 968) is SOPA’s twin in the Senate. Under current DMCA law, if a user uploads a copyrighted movie to sites like Youtube, the site isn’t held accountable so long as they provide a way to report user infringement. The user who uploaded the movie is held accountable for their actions, not the site. PIPA would change that – it would place the blame on the site itself, and would also provide a way for copyright holders to seize the site’s domain in extreme circumstances.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation laid out four excellent points as to why the bills are not only dangerous, but are also not effective for what they are trying to accomplish:

The blacklist bills are expensive. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that PIPA alone would cost the taxpayers at least $47 million over 5 years, and could cost the private sector many times more. Those costs would be carried mostly by the tech industry, hampering growth and innovation.
The blacklist bills silence legitimate speech. Rightsholders, ISPs, or the government could shut down sites with accusations of infringement, and without real due process.
The blacklist bills are bad for the architecture of the Internet. But don’t take our word for it: see the open letters that dozens of the Internet’s concerned creators have submitted to Congress about the impact the bills would have on the security of the web.
The blacklist bills won’t stop online piracy. The tools these bills would grant rightsholders are like chainsaws in an operating room: they do a lot of damage, and they aren’t very effective in the first place. The filtering methods might dissuade casual users, but they would be trivial for dedicated and technically savvy users to circumvent.

For more information on SOPA visit: http://sopablackout.org/learnmore/ or

https://plus.google.com/101334522477708381797/posts/QeG8ZDexdip

To see a list of sites going on Strike and to urge your favourite site to show support visit: http://sopastrike.com/

Happy New Year!

Dan Cornish — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 22:05:31 +0000

I want to thank all of our customers for making 2011 our best year ever. I hope everyone will have a happy and safe 2012.

Happy New Year!!

Steve Jobs: In Memoriam

Dan Cornish — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 15:27:17 +0000

This was never shown on TV

Steve Jobs explains the rationale for the TV commercial just after he was rehired by Apple. I think it is the best explanation of his vision.

Finally a clip I take much inspiration from

Large Enterprises Let Go of Fear: Cloud Computing War Ends

Dan Cornish — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 04:53:56 +0000

Since I started building cloud solutions in 1995, I have had to constantly fight the battle for cloud computing over the old-school way of hosting apps locally. It’s gratifying to finally see validation and adoption by many large companies who used to be naysayers. A recent article in Forbes discussed a new survey of 900 executives and finds that:

The majority, 81%, say their organizations have already moved at least some business activities to the cloud and expect 2012 investment “to skyrocket, with some companies planning to spend more than a fifth of their IT budget on cloud next year,” the study finds.

Market Watch expands on this surge by adding that:

The software-as-a-service customer relationship management (or, SaaS CRM) market–already representing 570,000 U.S. SMB firms–is set to undergo double-digit year-over-year growth in the next five years. During this period, spending on SaaS CRM will outpace on-premise CRM by a margin of nearly four to one.

This trend has resulted in tremendous growth for Cosential and fewer conversations defending the cloud. As a company that is always integrating and implementing new technologies, we are often faced with skeptics. When the fear of change subsides, the users win, their processes improve, and people’s lives get a little better.

A quote that has inspired me for years

Dan Cornish — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 12:14:58 +0000

When I heard about the retirement of Steve Jobs today, I am reminded of one of his most famous quotes, which has inspired me for years.

“The problem with the Internet startup craze isn’t that too many people are starting companies; it’s that too many people aren’t sticking with it. That’s somewhat understandable, because there are many moments that are filled with despair and agony, when you have to fire people and cancel things and deal with very difficult situations. That’s when you find out who you are and what your values are.

“So when these people sell out, even though they get fabulously rich, they’re gypping themselves out of one of the potentially most rewarding experiences of their unfolding lives. Without it, they may never know their values or how to keep their newfound wealth in perspective.” [Fortune, Jan. 24, 2000]

Calling all Build Business Attendees: Engage with Cosential at Booth 207 & Be Entered to WIN an iPad2!

Jen Heitler — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 10:19:18 +0000

The Cosential A/E/C Interactive display has been touring the country at various A/E/C events; SMPS’s Build Business is the last stop.

Engage with Cosential at Build Business, Booth 207 and be entered to WIN an iPad2! But more importantly, connect with new prospects and friends.

Here’s how:

Words! They say something about us and to us. They can define us and inspire us. Cosential has chosen 7 words that define us:

Love

Cool

Inspired

Affordable

Easy

Wow

Powerful

We are using these words in a new branding campaign, as shown in our brochure as well as our A/E/C Interactive Display at Booth 207 at Build Business.

Please engage with us by choosing 5 words that represent your personal brand.

Cosential's A/E/C Interactive Display

To do so:

1. Take a note card from the table

2. Write down 5 words that define you

3. Clip your business card on the note card

4. Attach the card to the board

Let’s make connections. Take a moment to connect with people who gravitate toward the same words. Find people whose words inspire you.

A data visualization artist will create an art piece around all of your words. Everyone who engages in this exhibit will be sent an electronic copy of the completed work.

One winner will be randomly chosen to win the iPad2 at the end of the Build Business conference.

So, what words speak to you? What words resonate? What words connect?

Engage now!

Ice Breakers with A/E/C Influencers: Anne Crowe Kroger

Jen Heitler — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:09:18 +0000

Anne Crowe Kroger

Today’s Ice Breaker is with Anne Crowe Kroger, MBA, FSMPS, CPSM. Anne is the Business Development Director for Walker Parking Consultants’ Boston office. She was recently named a Fellow of SMPS and can often be found on the speaking circuit talking about networking.

What 5 Words describe you?

Pink, Driven, Strategic, Coach, Straightforward

What’s an Ice Breaker tip that you use at Networking Events?

Stay away from the food. No one can carry food, hold a drink, eat food and talk to you. Eat at home! Go to the bar/coffee line. People are more willing to talk there.

What’s a mistake you made that turned out to be a learning opportunity?

I once ordered 300 Frisbees for a client trade show and put my home number on them. Luckily it was a great group of clients who all got a huge laugh out it. The lesson learned was: have someone else proof your work. We don’t see our own mistakes whether they’re in a promotional item or a proposal. It’s too familiar to us. Always get a second set of eyes to proof everything before it goes to print.

If you had to choose a career outside of the A/E/C industry, what would it be?

Forest Ranger so that I could count and commune with the bears! If that didn’t work out, career/life coach.

Who’s your AEC Role Model?

Susan Murphy

She’s dynamic, highly intelligent, and a lot of fun! Learn more about her at www.murphymotivation.com

To learn more about Anne Crowe Kroger, you can follow her on Twitter @crowekroger, connect with her on LinkedIn or check out Walker Parking at www.walkerparking.com

Ice Breakers with A/E/C Influencers: Ron Worth

Jen Heitler — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 13:19:45 +0000

Ron Worth CAE, FSMPS, CPSM

Today’s Ice Breaker is with Ron Worth CAE, FSMPS, CPSM, Chief Executive Officer of the Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS), a 6,000-member professional society representing principals, business developers, and marketers from the leading architectural, engineering, construction, and real estate firms in the United States. Ron began his career as an architect and then spent almost 30 years as Vice President/Director of marketing for a construction firm before moving to the non-profit world. He is an author, a well-known speaker, and an avid blogger.

What 5 Words describe you?

Positive, Dedicated, Curious, Caring, Receptive

What’s an Ice Breaker tip that you use at Networking Events?

Many people arrive at an event with a list of people they want to meet. They only talk with those people on the list and to people they think will help them in business. Instead of that, I make an effort to meet all kinds of people with different backgrounds and at different levels in their career. By exposing yourself to new experiences and new ideas, you’ll meet a wide variety of people that may help your career or even become a friend.

What’s a mistake you made that turned out to be a learning opportunity?

My mistake was thinking I was going to be Frank Lloyd Wright when I graduated from college. Instead of being an award-winning, trend-setting architect, I learned that if you leave yourself open, you might find opportunities that are better matched to your strengths and skills than what you had originally thought.

If you had to choose a career outside of the A/E/C industry, what would it be?

I can’t imagine my life without A/E/C. I love the non-profit arena. So, if I had to leave the A/E/C industry, I’d work for another non-profit organization.

Who’s your AEC Role Model?

In the design profession it is John Portman out of Atlanta. He’s a true renaissance architect.

To learn more about Ron Worth, you can follow him on Twitter @ronworth, connect with him at LinkedIn or check out SMPS at www.smps.org.

Motivating CRM Users to Enter Data

Jen Heitler — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 11:21:15 +0000

Every firm using a CRM system faces the challenge of entering data in a timely and accurate manner. For many, data entry falls to the end of a to-do list which reduces the effectiveness of their CRM.

During Graceworks CEO Carol Doscher’s keynote at the 2011 Cosential User Conference, participants were challenged to brainstorm on how firms can motivate their staff to input data into Cosential. Below are some of the fun, quirky, twisted, and smart solutions that they came up with. It was obvious that some people appreciate rewarding their staff, while others prefer to punish and humiliate. There was a third breed of thinkers that were determined to make data entry a part of their corporate strategy. Which ideas resonate with you?

Should firms provide incentives for data entry like the following:

Free meal for family
Stickers, candy, marbles, beer and pizza
Cash
Extra time-off
Award someone with best data entry person of the month
Lunch with boss
Employee parking spot
Event tickets

Or should they use scare tactics like these Cosential users suggested:

Firm-wide email blast naming people not inputting data
No assignment of new projects to PM until data on old project is entered
No credit for sale if it’s not in the system
Call out members not performing data entry duties at staff meetings

These solutions may require more buy-in from the top, but seem like effective options:

Tie data entry to reviews, bonuses, and promotions
Make data entry a part of job descriptions
Schedule weekly check-ins to review Cosential updates
Create individual and group data entry goals
Mandate data entry requirements from the top

The data entry challenge will surely continue. What are your ideas? How does it work in your firm? Share your ideas. We’d love to hear from you.

With the ongoing success of geosocial websites like Foursquare and Gowalla, the Cosential Development Team was wondering if “checking in” to input your data entry in exchange for points and incentives would be a welcome tool. Thoughts?