Ignite Your Cloud Revenue With This Simple Trick That Even Experts Miss

After managing cloud partnerships for almost a decade - long before Microsoft and Amazon began using the term ‘cloud' - I've learned some tricks about how our partners succeed. The strategies aren't rocket science, but in fact time-tested and proven. However, when dealing with cutting edge technology, they are easy to forget. Above all other rules related to offering cloud-based services and solutions to your clients, there is one approach that can change the way you think about selling cloud and transform your success rate. And it's something so simple that nearly any veteran of the software industry should already know, though could easily have forgotten amid the cloud hype of the last few years.

First, understand what your customers DON'T buy

Most customers do not buy the "est's" alone.   The ‘fastest', ‘greatest', ‘cleanest', ‘shiniest', etc.   They may get some of those, but they're not buying the feature.  VERY few people buy a JUST a blue car. If they did, a Ferrari and a jalopy would be on the same playing field.  As sales professionals, it's easy for us to get caught up in telling a customer about all the features of a product and how it trounces the competition.  Truth-be-told, most customers don't care. 

The same applies with cloud.  When you try to quantify ‘cloud' as a noun with inherent value, it's as-if you're selling one big feature -and that's hard to do. Imagine telling a customer that they should buy your "cloud" as a stand-alone product, just because it's the newest and best.  You would likely have no-more success than attempting to sell a "blue" car without telling them anything else other than the color.

What your customers DO buy

When it comes to vehicles, ...