Same-Page eStudio has been offering cloud computing solutions for ten years and has served over 25,000 companies and 500,000 users. Over this period of time we have been utilized by many different kinds of businesses. Some are “seed” companies that are basically little more than two people with a good business idea. Others are small businesses that have fewer than 50 people that operate from multiple locations. We’ve had many NFP or “dot orgs” that need to share data across a wide membership audience. We’ve also had our share of Fortune 500 companies that have embarked on new growth strategies that required creating “ad hoc” networks across strategic partners, consultants, and teleworkers. Each company that finds Same-Page eStudio is unique but they are all looking to our collaboration software to solve a specific problem by using one or more of our software tools.
Usually our customer interaction begins with a phone call or an email asking us “Can your software solve our project management, scheduling, document management, contact management, web conferencing, or community building problem?”. The question is coming from a single person who usually has a fact finder or leadership role in the business.
The inquiries from leaders tend to be the most successful. They are the ones that have been given the authority to actually make it happen. They make the decisions that drive their business forward. They are not afraid to take risks and like the rewards for challenges conquered. These people are even more likely to succeed if they are surrounded by people who can bring additional strengths to the process. An entrepreneur who brings in a project manager and a scheduler will be more likely to succeed than just managing it all themselves.
The inquiries from fact finder fail because the individual does not have the passion necessary to inspire the team. If the collaboration problem is really big and painful and is endangering the life of the company then there is still a good chance that a “fact finder” can successfully get everybody on the same page.
During the initial contact we can predict the success of the initiative based upon the drive or passion of the potential customer, how well organized they are, their computer skills and their raw intelligence. If the initial contact is clicking around fast, has a list of researched based questions, and asking intelligent questions then we know that there is a good chance that they will be able to get eStudio to solve their collaboration problem. If the contact also exhibits good leadership skills and immediately wants to show the features to other stakeholders then success is highly likely.
