What Features Can I Offer To A Customer For Video Surveillance/Access Control That Will "WOW" Them?

Ok. I have to comment with a smile. How about showing up on-time (15 minutes early), in clean clothes with a shave and fresh breath? Toss in some questions like .... Hey, what would WOW you and then know if they add value or just glitter and know your offering? You would belies beyond most of your competition.

Tongue in cheek....Start your presentation by telling him that 8000 people online who know nothing about the "Boss" but an awful lot about video and access control provided you with the top 5 generic "Wow Factors" in the industry today.

Then, consider it a learning experience on the principle of "Seek first to Understand, then to be Understood."

In other words, do you know the customer well enough? Candidly, I don't think you do or you would not be asking the question. Set yourself apart from the pack by learning about the customer's business, gaining their trust (i.e. which includes them learning about you), and then demonstrating the value you can bring to their video and card access solutions based on that knowledge and trust.

The worst presentations are the "Show up and Throw Up" with no context of the motivators, challenges, or business drivers that are important to the customer.

If you know the customer, then you need to know the specific solutions you are presenting--and the "Wow Factors" of those solutions will also be specific (and differentiating) from competing solutions...which makes it hard for this group to offer you presentation advice on "features and fun stuff."

In fairness, we all know some end users who prefer "features and fun stuff."

S/he might be wrong to do so, but if that is his/her pleasure, I am not sure what is wrong about responding to it.

On the video side, he might be impressed by immersive controls of 360 cameras, stitching different camera feeds together, detecting faces, counting people, sending alerts on loitering, linking PTZs to doors opening.

This is not my style but it's worth throwing out some general tactics.

Brian will provide a few tips on the access / video side.

Without knowing particulars about the customer or system you're proposing, it's going to be tough. Access Control is like a desk calculator or something. It's hard to get someone really pumped up about it unless they experience pain without it.

With that said, Access Control can 'control' a whole bunch of things. Not just doors and gates. Machines, vending machines, lights, HVAC, music, forktrucks... you name it, and there is a way an access controller can be used to activate it. Think through some operational pain points your customer has, then see if access can be combined to make it better.

Also, emphasize the 'control' aspect - show them how you can lock every door in the system with a 'Lockdown' command. Show them how you can pull a report of every user who flashed a badge after 8:00am and were late for work. Show them how integrating video and access systems together make both systems more useful by overlaying video with access text events, verifying a user matches the badge photo when they enter.

I think the distributor and I share a common thread. I was awake many hours before responding. This might be identifying myself to those who know me 1. Sell yourself. You are different and therefore should contain some value. 2. Sell your company. You might not be there later and unless you are a one man shop it is important. I love when a tech tells a customer the last guy from his company was an idiot. It tells the customer both companies hire idiots! 3. Find out what they want, what they need and turn the many features available into benefits. Out if the 100 great things your products may be able to do if it can't do the three important ones to them and someone else can all the magic disappears. Explain why you are solving their needs. 4. If price becomes and issue you didn't do 1,2 or 3 well enough and should revisit them.

get two of those new fllir thermal iphone attachments and let him borrow one til you close the deal. maybe he'll close just because he wont want to give it back!!

is it just me being old fashioned or is that conment about fresh breath and personal hygiene just a tad rude?