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SEPTEMBER 2006 | Vol. 1 � Issue 3

PUBLISHED BY

SMB Nation, Inc.Bainbridge Island, Washington

Harry Brelsford, PublisherEditorial Staff

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Beatrice MulzerEDITOR Barbara Wallace

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Robin Robins, USASusanne Dansey, UK

LAYOUT Al AlarakhiaCOVER ART DIRECTOR Michael Young

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Mark Mulvany, IrelandDiego Salato, Italy

Nick Pieters, BelgiumLeen Kleijwegt, Netherlands

Andy Wendel, GermanyDean Calvert, Australia

Steven Teiger, IsraelSuresh Ramani, IndiaAndrew Watson, UKStuart Raj, Indonesia

Mikael Nystroem, SwedenShelagh Harrop, South Africa

Dana Epp, CanadaKen Thoreson, USAAnne Stanton, USA

BUSINESS STAFFHarry Brelsford, CEO

Beatrice Mulzer, Vice PresidentAlicia Christen, Office Manager

Kristal Sagdahl, CirculationAndrew Watson, Sales Manager EMEA

SMB Nation, Inc.PO Box 10179

Bainbridge Island, WA 98110 USA

Telephone: 360-779-1140Fax: 360-779-1140

E-mail: [email protected]

© Copyright 2006 SMB Nation Inc.All Rights Reserved

Please contact us for reprints andreproduction of content.

SMBPartnerCommunity

Think Globally, Act Locally!This month, we bring you a feature article on how folks around the world are

promoting themselves as Small Business Specialists. It’s an important topicbecause once you’ve joined the Small Business Specialist Community, what canyou do to improve your livelihood? Beyond what you’ll read herein, we thinkthere are other ways you can proudly promote your Small Business Specialiststatus. Here are a few ways.

Partners Helping PartnersRealizing synergy exists amongst Microsoft Partners, Microsoft developed the

Partner Channel Builder program in 2005 (https://partner.microsoft.com/US/salesmarketing/channelbuilder). Officially “…Partner Channel Builder is anetworking and resource-sharing community exclusively designed for members of theMicrosoft Partner Program. Partner Channel Builder also includes structured networkingevents in selected cities.” To us, Microsoft’s realization that partners need to teamwith partners to “do business” hit home. We recently contracted with fellow SmallBusiness Specialist firm Autonomix (Bainbridge Island, WA) to implement ourMicrosoft CRM 3.0 Small Business Edition solution to manage our magazinesubscribers (that’s you). Scott Colson from Autonomix led the subscriptiondatabase project and we were code complete before our first magazine issue hitthe street in early July 2006. Today we efficiently distribute all the Small BusinessSpecialist news that’s fit to print in part because we partnered with a fellow SmallBusiness Specialist! Learn more about Autonomix at www.autonomix.com. Youcan make connections via the Partner Channel Builder program athttps://partner.microsoft.com/US/salesmarketing/channelbuilder.

All work and no play makes a boring Small Business Specialist.As seen in the photo below, over 50 small business technology consultants

(many of whom are Small Business Specialists) attended our 6th annual picnicheld in conjunction with the Puget Sound Small Business Server User Group(http://groups.msn.com/pssbs) and the West Sound Technology ProfessionalAssociation (WSTPA, www.wstpa.org). We used the early evening event to releasethe August 2006 magazine issue plus enjoy a few burgers and hot dogs in the slow“dawg days” of summer. Tie-ins? Steven Banks, a SBS MVP and Small Business

EDITORIALHarry Brelsford and Beatrice Mulzer

Page 4 www.smbnation.com SMB Partner Community - September 2006

SMB PC magazinesubscription requestsdoing fine thanks toScott and Erica Colson of Autonomix andMicrosoft CRM 3.0 SBE

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 6


Specialist, is the user group leader. Take-aways? Go out andthrow a party for your customers and perhaps other SmallBusiness Specialists. Much business is conducted in socialsettings, including the “decks.”

Giving LocallyWe love feedback and you’ve been

kind enough to drop us a note here andthere. In the first two issues of themagazine, we highlighted our goodcorporate citizenship commitment togiving each month, via financialdonation, to some global cause with tiesto the Small Business SpecialistCommunity. But a few of you askedabout giving back locally where you live in the spirit ofcommunity building. We took your inquiries to heart. Thismonth, as seen below, we present our donation of the monthat a $50-USD-per-plate fund raiser for the Bainbridge IslandHistorical Society to renovate the 75-year old LynwoodTheater. You can easily accomplish the same thing in yourcommunity by attending a well-intentioned fundraiser forthe cause of your choice. And along the way, you might justbump into some opportunities. You never know just whomyou’ll sit next to at the dinner table (perhaps a smallbusiness person seeking a technology solution).

So remember, while it is important to understand youlive in a global economy, your day-to-day life as a successfulSmall Business Specialist is shaped locally. After reading thismagazine, step outside and make a difference. It’s duck

soup from there! �

A picnic on the “decks”above South Beach on Bainbridge Island found these 50+ small business technology channel partners partying!

Publisher Harry Brelsford and Executive Editor Beatrice Mulzer enjoying a community fund raiser.

Harry Brelsford ([email protected])CEO, SMB Nation, Inc.Publisher, SMB Nation PressBainbridge Island, Washington USA

Beatrice Mulzer ([email protected])Vice President, SMB Nation, Inc.Executive Editor, SMB Nation PressMelbourne, Florida USA

READER FEEDBACK

Hello Sir,

Congrats on your new Magazine. I got a copy at a TS2 event. This is a

very informative Magazine as well as a great tool for everyone out

there in the SMB consulting business.

I want to share this great news with you and the rest of the

community. As of Friday 8/18/06 I’m now officially a SBSer, or a

Microsoft SBS Specialist. I want to thank you and the rest of the

Authors for taking the time to write such great books (the SMB Series,

the Exam Prep and SMB Consulting, I own every one of them). I

recommend these books to everyone who wants to learn SBS, not just

passing the test…

Again! Thank you for your insight on SBS and for taking the lead on

the SMB Nation. Thanks and keep on sharing....

Yours truly,

Libis

Libis R. Bueno, SmallBusiness SpecialistMCP, A+, MCSA,

MCSE, DOMITEK

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 7

First Server, Right Server The First Server, Right ServerCustomer Campaign highlightsthe Microsoft Small BusinessServer 2003 R2 (SBS) as a desktopand network foundation for small businesses that providessecurity and reliability, enhances

productivity in and out of the office, and allows informationand resources to be shared more efficiently

Mobility & Communications The Mobility & CommunicationsCustomer Campaign is designedto give small businesses theflexibility to manage theirbusiness from anywhere, bykeeping them connected to theircustomers and business inform-

ation, and helping them stay productive with mobiledevices running on Microsoft Windows Mobile software.

Sales & Marketing The Sales and MarketingCustomer Campaign, whichoriginated as the Sales &Marketing GTM in FY06, wasdesigned to help small businessesattract and retain customers andsell more effectively. The FY07 Bill

of Materials (BOM) focuses on customers’ desire to keeptheir customer contact and sales

Small Business PC A new “Small Business PC,”preinstalled with Windows Vista™Business and Microsoft® OfficeSmall Business 2007, includeseverything you need to work moreefficiently and more securely, soyou can focus on your customers.

Financial Management The Financial ManagementCustomer Campaign, same as theFinancial Management GTM fromFY06, was designed to providesmall businesses with integrated,flexible tools that help them.

As we interact with the Microsoft Small BusinessSpecialist Community, many of you have asked us, as wellas Microsoft, this age-old yet very valid question: “Whathave you done for me lately? “ In other words, how are youhelping us drive our business as a Small Business Specialistnow that we’ve jumped through the hoops and shown youour expertise, passed the Microsoft Certified Professional(MCP) exam, etc.? Well, this article will attempt to addressthat very question.

We talked to several key Microsoft Partner marketingfolks and here’s what they’ve told us:

• Connecting you with new customers. Currently, if you go to the Small Business Center on Microsoft’s website, you’ll see that Small Business Specialists are listed first in the Microsoft Partner Finder tool. Microsoft Partner Finder is an online tool that small business customers can use to locate a Small BusinessSpecialist near their area. (http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/partner/vendorsearch.mspx) This url is used in almost all of the Small Business Customer Campaigns run by Microsoft.

•Read the Sidebar article to learn about Small BusinessSpecialists who have gained additional business through this tool.

•In addition, Partner Finder is being integrated with Microsoft Small Business+, Microsoft’s personalized online marketing program to Small Business Customers. This means that as Microsoft collects more information about its Small Business customers,the folks at Microsoft are working on a better way to “match” small business customers with Small Business Specialists.

What hasdone for me lately?

Overview of Small Business Focused Customer Campaigns from Microsoft


by Lobna Gaber

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 8

•Below is a view of a planned implementation whereby customers will have the ability to:

• Find a local Small Business Specialist within theirpersonalized Small Business+ page.

• Set a Partner as “preferred” and have the ability to have live chat transcripts sent to you as a Partner

• Receive a special offer from you as their preferred Partner and be notified of it through the Partner update pages

• For those without a preferred Partner, a customercan search for you as a Small Business Specialist by postal code. The plan is to auto run this querybased on profile data so that a list of SBSC partners within a certain number of miles would appear on the customer’s post-login page. The customer can then choose and set one as their preferred Partner.

•Get it, deploy it, through a Small Business Specialist The Microsoft Small Business Customer Campaigns to be posted at https://partner.microsoft.com/US/smallbusiness/smallbusinessspecialist/ all feature Small Business Specialists as the primary way for small business customers to acquire Small Business solutions based on Microsoft technology. Translated into “English,” this means that in much of the direct mailing, website marketing, etc., that Microsoft does, Small Business Specialists are the call-to-action for small business customers (Less than 25 PCs) ready to learn more about how to acquire and deploy Microsoft solutions. See the campaign overview diagram for a preview of the Microsoft Small Business Customer Campaigns beginning in fall, 2006.

•Only through a Small Business Specialist Many Microsoft local geographies will have special customer offers made available only through Microsoft Small Business Specialists, most notably for the First Server, Right Server and Mobility and Communications Campaigns. Check your local SBSC website for more details.

• Uniquely qualified to deliver the stack With the August, 2006 campaigns, Microsoft is, for the first time, releasing a set of flash product stack demos with Small Business Specialists as the call-to-action. These demos will include common small business customer scenarios tied to the Customer Campaigns and, as many of you have requested, will help to explain to the non-IT customer how the Microsoft products work together to solve their business problems.

Below is a screenshot and the list of the current scenarios covered by the demos. All the demos are posted and will be made available for download at http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness


Getting the word outLastly, but certainly not least, Microsoft is driving aninnovative new way to promote the value of the SmallBusiness Specialist brand to the end customer. Througha series of humorous video vignettes, they show thevalue and “heroic” qualities of a Small BusinessSpecialist. In speaking to Andrea Russell, SeniorMarketing Manager of the Small Business SpecialistCommunity at Microsoft, we’ve learned the following.

What exactly are these videos?We have created a series of short, humorous video vignettesdesigned to show the value of a Small Business Specialist andgenerate word of mouth buzz for the community. The videosare meant to be a viral marketing tool that strikes a familiarchord and prompts people to forward to their friends, familyand peers - those who may influence a small business ownerby word of mouth. The videos align to the customer painpoints that will be the focus of the FY07 Small BusinessCustomer Campaigns.

Why did you make these videos? We did it to generate customer awareness and interest in theSmall Business Specialist brand. By promoting the brand wewant to build a feeling of familiarity and trust amongst smallbusiness owners for Partners holding the designation. Byreaching a broader audience, we hope to also reach those whomay influence a small business owner by word of mouth – theirpeers, friends and family. The goal is to prompt small businessesto ask for Small Business Specialists by name – to feel that theyshould not settle for any less than a qualified SBSC.

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 9

In summary…Microsoft’s focus on Small Business Specialists as “the” waysmall business customers buy and deploy Microsoftsolutions to solve their business problems is definitely there.Take advantage of this focus by leveraging the tools wetalked about in this article.


Who are we talking to?Our primary audience is small business owners andmanagers, and their prospective Microsoft Partners. But ourgoal is to create videos with enough viral capacity to appeal toeveryone and anywhere.

If you had to sum it up in one sentence, what is the keymessage in these videos?Small Business Specialists have the knowledge and skills toprovide technology solutions that make small businessessuccessful.

Why are we advertising the value of a Small BusinessSpecialist? To support the Small Business Specialist Partner communityby driving customer demand to partners in the program forthe purpose of increasing their revenue and the revenue toMicrosoft.

Below is a list of the videos and the customer painpoints they address, as well as a screen shot of each. Allthese videos will be available for download onhttp://www.microsoft.com/specialist.

Video name: Hop it Off

Campaign: First Server,Right Server

I worry about losing critical customer,accounting and financial info when myPC crashes, and about controlling access to this sensitive data.

Video name: The Runner

Campaign: Mobility &Communication

Sometimes I need to make decisions whenI’m out of the office, but have difficultyaccessing the necessary information

Video name: The Cut Out

Campaign: Sales & Marketing

I would like a tool that allows me tomanage and track sales lead info, contactinformation, communications history, andthe amount and status of individual salesopportunities.

Microsoft Small Business Specialists SPEAK OUT on the value of the brand to their customers:

“The Microsoft certification and the Small BusinessSpecialist title really help, because people respect Microsoft,and generally they think that ‘mother Microsoft’ built theproduct, and then trained some people to support it, sochoosing a partner with the Small Business Specialistdesignation makes the customer feel on the safe side.”

Kimon G. Demagkos, Small Business Specialist

Greece

“The Small Business Specialisttitle was an opportunity toapproach current and past clients.It gave the chance to reestablishthe commitment, sit down withclients, and generate instantorders to add Pocket PC Phonesto their existing infrastructureamong other intangible benefits tobe reaped in the months to come.

Jasminder RaiSmall Business Specialist

Vancouver, Canada

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 10


Partner Finder Sidebar article:

Our Experience with Microsoft

We are a small company that started in October,2004, with just two partners – one for administrationand one for technical. We chose to partner withMicrosoft immediately at the level of Registered Partner.Like most Registered Partners we did it mainly for thesoftware to run our business (Action Pack). Wespecialize in small business and support SBS. Wewanted to do more but most of the programs requiredtwo or more technicians – we only had one. As weworked with Microsoft we found that they were startingnew programs and stated that they realized that smallbusiness was big business. They mentioned that theywere interested in Small Business Partners and wereworking on supporting them. To say we were skepticalis an understatement. We partner with others and hadheard this before only to find out that their concept ofsmall and ours were vastly different.

I am writing this to tell any Partner of Microsoft thatthey meant what they said. We have found ourrelationship with the “giant” to be excellent. Theprograms and personnel all listen to and respond tosmall Partners like us.

Most people outside our industry have no idea whoCompTia is or what A+ is. They all know Microsoft. Thishas also done some other rather amazing things for us.If you go to Microsoft and look for a Partner – we are atthe top of the list showing we specialize in smallbusiness (Try it – go and look up my zip of 59501). Thatis one of the greatest things around. Now when I referpotential or existing customers to the Partner Locator orthey are looking at the Partner Locator they find us!

Ed LohmanMicrosoft Small Business Specialist

Drive Demand Down UnderBy Harry Brelsford

A long-time friend in Tauranga, NZ, Mark Rundell ofMark Two (M2) Network Limited, recently took a fewminutes out of his busy morning to catch up. We askedhim how he uses the Microsoft Partner program, andspecifically, the Small Business Specialist title to drivecustomers to his consultancy. He shared that his firmwon a prestigious award from Microsoft. Read on!

Q: How are you promoting your practice with the SmallBusiness Specialist title? Are you using the logo on yourbusiness card? Please expand on this concept….A: To promote the Small Business Specialist, we are usingboth the Microsoft Gold Partner and the Microsoft SmallBusiness Specialist logos together on our fleet of cars. Theconnotation associated with Small Business Specialist can beperceived as working with very small business and our typicalcustomer is 10 users and above. By using the two logostogether we feel that we are reaching our target audience. Weare also now promoting our recent NZ SB Partner of the YearAward to position M2 as the specialist recognized byMicrosoft as delivering technology aligned to our customerrequirements, now and in the future.

Microsoft NZ Small Business Partner of the Year Award:A nationwide award for IT business working withclients who have up to 75 staff members. A very excitingmoment for us here at M2, as the award recognizes our keyphilosophy of partnering with our clients to ensure thattechnology is aligned with their business requirements,excellence in solution and service delivery and technical andsales competency within the business itself.

Shown in the photo are Helen Robinson, ManagingDirector Microsoft NZ, Mark Rundell, CEO M2, LyndaBurch, Sales Manager M2 and Steve Vamos, ManagingDirector of Microsoft Australia.

Take your business to the next level Connect better withand market to your customers using valuable insightsfrom over 40 great on-demand web casts covering:

• Financial Management• Productivity & Mobility• Sales & Marketing• Computer Security

http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/small-business-summit

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 11

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 12


n recent years, organizations have gotten better atanalyzing financial statements, refining manufacturingprocedures, reengineering business systems and

improving marketing effectiveness. CEOs havestrengthened their balance sheets with better assetmanagement, reduced their inventory and cost levels withjust-in-time methodologies, and increased direct mail andadvertising effectiveness through thorough testing andreporting methods. But one area where additionalimprovements still can be made is the sales organization.

Smart companies are scrutinizing their strategic salesmanagement plans, taking a closer look at everything fromtheir pipelines to their forecasts. They are also taking a closerlook at lifetime values, cost of sales, market share, salesprocesses and salesperson effectiveness. The reason issimple: All organizations, regardless of whether their salesare shrinking or growing, are under pressure to create asales distribution organization that generates predictable,consistent, profitable results.

We believe most SMB organizations can improve theirprofitability by increasing the Discipline, Accountability andControl within their companies. Many times we hear that“our company is too small to do these management systemsthat you show us, Ken.” My answer is simple. “It’s more

Build Predictable Revenue In Your Organization

by Ken Thoreson

I

Make 2007 Your Best Year Ever!

critical when you are small to begin building managementsystems and tools because revenue and profitability areconsidered more critical in a SMB organization.” Start witha few simple tools and you will be amazed how you canleverage your time more effectively and begin to achieverevenue and profit growth in your firm.

I see many VAR organizations that are struggling. Theyoften lack both a strategic and a tactical sales plan. Beforeyou get too deep into your 2007 strategic plan, ask yourselfwhat kind of sales-management plan you have in place.Such a plan must include an amalgamation of theorganization’s goals, individual salespeople’s desires andobjectives, and a common set of measurement factors thatensures all parties are focused on the right activities forgenerating success.

PlanningThe first step is to plan your revenue plan. In the exhibitbelow we have estimated revenues from four practice areasand “where potentially” the revenues will come from - i.e.existing clients or new clients. This exercise will begin to build

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 13


your framework for allocation of sales and marketing dollars,marketing plans and a dashboard to track your effectiveness.

Consider your sources of revenue within a matrix:• Existing products/services to current customers• New products/services to current customers• Existing products/services to new customers• New products/services to new customers

So, where do you go from here? Focus on creatingbusiness plans for individual salespeople that define andbring together their goals with those of the corporation, andthat coordinate activities with planned marketing programs(see “Planning,” above). We recommend that in asalesperson’s business plan you should make thesalesperson define his weekly activity goals, set sales goalsthat reflect his “Best,” “Most likely,” and “Minimum,”revenue or profit expectation levels. In addition, we like tosee them forecast by suspect/client and by product orpractice area three times their quota. Plus in the businessplan each salesperson should set his networking goals andhis own marketing plans. Each plan should be createdevery six months.

If your sales team is focused on certain accounts, whereyou have defined five or ten named accounts, or you havecertain accounts targeted for your firm to “open,” then yoursalespeople’s Account Plans should include a specificstrategy for each named account and five tactical salesactions to move deeper into the account, sell additionalproducts or services to the account and increase the overallsales to that account. These account plans should beprepared every 90 days.

Sales-management planning systems dramaticallyrefocus a sales manager toward future business instead ofpast results. While most SFA/CRM or manual sales-management systems can enhance the effectiveness of asales organization, they generally measure past activitiesand current sales funnel values. While this information is amust for all sales teams, the systems fall short by providinga rear-view mirror methodology to management.

A properly designed sales-management planningsystem changes all of that. With a sales-planning tool, a salesmanager or executive can monitor expected performance;coach, mentor and provide a viewpoint of past performance;and measure results against the salesperson’s desiredobjectives. In addition, such a tool helps a salesperson and asales manager, who are both looking at planned activities farenough ahead, to ensure that consistent activities are inplace to build pipeline values that will provide enoughprospect opportunity to exceed individual quotas orpersonal goals.

I like to say that it is the salesperson’s responsibility toachieve his monthly quota and its is management’sresponsibility to ensure the proper mix of marketing andsales activities are in place and that the 90-day pipeline isfull enough to ensure quota can be made each month. Thistype of salesperson business plan can take the load off aSMB executive and place it upon the person who isaccountable for sales.

Like any organizational change, the rollout of such asystem must be carefully planned and explained to allsalespeople. Ideally, salespeople should attend a groupmeeting with all members of their team, along with keymembers of the management team, including acontroller/CFO and any vice presidents of marketing anddelivery. Last, it’s wise for each salesperson to present abusiness plan and account plans to his/her peer group andmanagement team.

We recommend that these meetings be serious eventsthat incorporate some aspect of fun. The power of thesepersonalized plans is realized when they are measuredagainst actual performance. This is when salespeople get it.They recognize what it takes to achieve their personal andprofessional goals, and they see how creating betterplanning affects performance.

Training and DevelopmentThe next step is to create a sales training and

development plan each quarter for yourself and your sales teams.

In our work with many SMB Partners, we find fourelements that lead to failure: 1) when new employees arehired, there is a limited-at-best new employee trainingprogram, 2) ongoing sales training programs are sporadicand not focused on the key elements required to compete, 3)ineffective or nonexistent role play scenarios being run insales meetings, and 4) sales management is not coaching ormentoring, in the field, during routine sales calls. The resultis uneven knowledge levels and a lack or discipline by salesmanagement to reinforce MSS or other training programs.

It is critical that companies of all sizes focus on the need

Customer Offering

Custom Dev

Security

Product

VOIP

Consulting

Current

100%

75%

50%

70%

80%

New

0%

25%

50%

30%

20%

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 14


to train employees, continuously. In most SMB Partnerorganizations there has been a focus on ensuring“certification levels” of the technical team are current, yetlittle investment is made to “certify” our sales teams.Training programs do not have to be expensive orsophisticated. Just keep it to the basics.

To ensure success, several basic components need to bein place: first, a plan that defines the goals and componentsof a training program; second, a defined ongoing process;and third, and most importantly, proper execution.

The PlanThe plan should contain an outline for initial employee

training on job requirements, company product/serviceofferings, benefits and recurring plans for training existingemployees. One element that most organizations miss intheir training plans is the “belief” aspect of employeetraining. While it’s important to train on new skilldevelopment and product/service knowledge, maintainingan employee’s interest and motivation levels are critical intoday’s competitive economy. This focus on developingemployees’ mental commitment and aligning their personal-motivational interests is called “re-recruiting.” As newemployees enter your company, it is the perfect opportunityto set the tone. If you have letters of reference, your newrecruits should read them. If you have awards, make surenew employees look at them and understand how youearned them. Next, make sure all new employees have alunch or a meeting with the highest-level person in theirdivision or, in smaller organizations, with the President. It isat these sessions that commitment, attitude and loyalty canbegin to be developed.

We believe in creating a detailed three-week New HireTraining Plan, with a format that is simple, yet complete.Each week is broken down into specific training andknowledge-transfer components, with homework!Everything must be covered: legal documents, marketingcase studies, how to use the phone/Fax/CRM, lunchmeetings, as well as learning to sell/present yourorganization via the use of your company’s brochures/PPT.It is critical that each aspect of your New Hire Training Planis defined. As the salesperson completes each section, theperson responsible for the area confirms that the new personhas “passed.”

The Process: it’s ongoingThe process again can be simple. In designing a training

plan, take into consideration the following elements: 1) salesskills, 2) product/services knowledge, 3) companyoperations, 4) industry awareness, and 5) (if appropriate)vertical industry awareness. We recommend that once a

quarter you plan a sales meeting and sales training event. Byplanning in advance, you can incorporate each of the fiveitems into a comprehensive plan. In addition, eachsalesperson should have a six-month personal program thatallows him or her to set his or her personal goals. Thisdocument begins the process of ensuring each person’sgoals are aligned with the overall corporate goal. Atmonthly company meetings, semi-annual employeegatherings, (picnics/parties) should also be used to reinforceemployee development. Rather than simply “gettingtogether,” use these sessions to bring in customers to tell ofyour success stories or speakers to work on team concepts orindustry awareness programs.

Certification Process One existing client has taken this concept and built a

process within their sales organization that sets the bar! Eachsalesperson must pass several certification levels, each year!In one situation the salesperson has 15 minutes to review acase study, and walk into a room where a professional actorrole plays the client situation. Three independentprofessionals evaluate the salesperson’s performance. Thepassing grade level must be achieved for the salesperson tomove to the next level. If you use this method, you mightvideotape these sessions for later review.

ExecutionYou may be asking, how do I start? Develop the written

three-month sales training plan. A predefined schedule willprevent individuals from having conflicting appointmentsor not being prepared for the training. Assign sales peoplefor most of the topical training. They will know it if theyhave to train on it. Schedule outside resources at least once aquarter. The benefits of a short-term plan and agenda arethat current issues can be addressed and continuous trainingand employee focus will be a company goal.

Employees are a critical asset. Most software systemshave regular maintenance check-ups and supportagreements to keep them at current levels. Do the samewith your employee assets. Keeping your employees’personal and professional objectives aligned with yourcorporate goals by “training and re-recruiting” will createhuge dividends. �

Ken Thoreson ([email protected])is managing partner of the AcumenManagement Group, a salesmanagement consulting organizationwww.acumenmanagement.com 423-884-6328

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 15


mall businesses are special. Nowhere else can you getsuch a wonderful blend of enthusiasm for new ideasand skeptical pragmatism as to how these ideas might

or might not help. Sales calls featuring chapter and versedescriptions of information technology solution featureswill almost always result in a thrill-killing “so what?” orblank stare belying their genuine confusion on the subject ofIT. Rather than going home with your metaphorical tailbetween your legs, relish these moments as opportunitiesfor improvement.

Small businesses are distilleries for ideas and salesmessages alike. Take advantage of this unique perspective.They can help you refine your message and perhaps yoursolution offerings. Large corporations have hundreds of ITspecialists. Their job is to understand how technology worksand put it to good use for their business. They know whatthey are looking for and will often provide a knowing nodafter a features-based sales pitch, if it is in good alignmentwith their needs, independent of the spit and polish of thepitch. This is not the case with small businesses. Smallbusiness owners have their hands full doing what they dobest – more often than not, this has nothing to do withinformation technology. Independent of where theyphysically set up shop, almost all small business ownersseem to have spent significant time in Missouri. Their “sowhat” responses are often their way of saying “show me.”

What is the best way to “show” them? Put away yourfeature list and take a walk in their shoes. Do your best tounderstand a day in the life of the owner and his or heremployees. Microsoft’s People Ready Business marketingcampaign is an acknowledgement that, when it comes toselling software, it isn’t the technology that dazzles mostconsumers; it is what the technology can do to make theirlives easier that matters. In order to sell your solutions, youwill need to demonstrate how they solve real problems thatyour customers face during the course of their day.

Start with a simple model of what their business does. Focuson the flow of information through the business. What types oforganizations do they interact with? What information do theyprovide to these organizations? What information do theyreceive from these organizations? A sample business model for aProfessional Service Firm is depicted at the upper right.

Review the business model with your client. Once youhave validated your simple model of their business, dig a littledeeper and understand how they are organized within thefour walls of their business. Define what functions are needed

to make their business tick. Do they divide their business intostaff and support functions or are they fully specialized asdepicted in the following x-ray of their business.

Once you have catalogued their core business functions,refine your business model further by creating a model ofwhat each function does in the course of the business day. Thesales function for a Professional Services Firm could bedescribed similar to the figure at the top of the following page.

You can gain a lot of practical knowledge about apotential client in a short time. Unlike large corporations,these models of a day in the life of your prospective clientscan often be compiled in less than a day for small businesses.

At this point, being the IT-savvy reader that you are, youare probably at the verge of joining small business owners intheir chorus of “so what?” What does any of this have to dowith selling software? A sale is all about making a connectionbetween the seller and the buyer. Have you ever traveledabroad to a country where you did not speak the nativelanguage? If so, did you ever attempt to purchase a mealduring the peak of a meal-time rush? If you were luckyenough to complete the purchase, you may have noted that

“Why should I buy S

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 16


your software?”

both the purchaser and buyer did not enjoy the transactionvery much. Unlike the IT specialists in large corporations,small business owners often do not speak the language of IT.If you want to sell them your solutions, you need to speaktheir language. These models will provide you with adictionary of their language. With thisdictionary, you will be able to refine yoursales pitch and perhaps even your solutionso that you can communicate in a way thatvirtually guarantees a connection.

Let’s take your dictionary one stepfurther. What if you were to model theprocesses within each of these functionaldepartments as depicted in the figure to the right?

This process information is the gatewayto defining a tangible business-valueproposition for your solution. If you were toestimate the effort required for each of thetasks within these process models, youcould estimate the cost of each task byapplying a labor rate to each resourceinvolved in the effort. This provides youwith a model of your client’s “CurrentState” of operations in terms of dollars. Once you have this“Current State,” make an assessment of how your softwarewould help to reduce costs by shortening timelines, reducingdelays or eliminating tasks altogether. Capture thisassessment in a model of the “Future State.” The difference incosts between these two state models provides the basis for atangible estimate of the return on your client’s investment inyour solution.

This business process knowledge is not only the gateway

to helping your client understand the value of your immediatesolution, it is also the gateway to a long-term strategicrelationship with your client. Client longevity can help take theuncertainty out of sales calls. “Fire and forget” engagementsmean that you incur a cost-of-sales penalty for each newcontract. How can you avoid this cost of sales penalty? Gobeyond the tactical deployment of one of your solutions andbuild a strategic relationship with your client, based on a solidunderstanding of their business needs. Establish yourcompany as the “go to” firm for their IT solution needs byproactively analyzing their business model. Set up regularmeetings to discuss how your current and planned solutionsimprove their business. If your solution offerings do notadequately address their needs, establish partnerships withother solution providers who have complementary (notcompetitive) solution offerings which fill in the gaps. If youcan keep your solution offerings one step ahead of yourclient’s needs, you will likely have a client for life. �

Patrick J. Colbeck is the author of IT Roadmap for Professional ServiceFirms and a Microsoft Small BusinessSpecialist. He is also the founder ofPerspective Shifts, LLC(www.perspectiveshifts.biz) whichprovides management consultingservices that help clients connect their

projects and processes to their overall business performance.

by Patrick J. Colbeck

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 17

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 18


SMB Nation 2006 does Dodgeball!Many requests were made during our pre-SMB Nation

survey to have a way to keep up and meet with otherattendees. Welcome to Dodgeball! Now that you will be inSeattle, we want to introduce you to a new, cool, FREEservice, that will allow us to keep track of each other andFOAF’s (friend of a friend). Basically, you sign up, create aprofile and add your friends to your list. Let Dodgeballknow where you are going to be and Dodgeball will sendmessages to the cell phones of all your friends and FOAF’swithin 10 blocks of you, letting everyone know where youare. Get into the scene and go to www.dodgeball.com andpick Seattle.

SBSC Exclusive – 20% + Profit Margin!If you haven’t heard it yet, there will be an exclusive

SBSC rebate going along with the Business Desktop Sales Kitcentered around the Small Business Desktop advantage.Small Business Specialists can make 20%+ profit margins onMicrosoft software selling the Small Business DesktopAdvantage! Full details will be disclosed during EricLigman’s session at the SMB Nation 2006 conference “Howto turbo-charge your services & hardware revenue growthwith Microsoft licensing”. Also, make sure to checkwww.mssmallbiz.com for information on this exclusiveSBSC promotion.

Exclusive Offer for SBS 2003 R2 – Get a Free Copy

Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2Assess & Win Partner Incentive begins August 15, 2006 andis available until June 30, 2007, or while supplies last. AnyMicrosoft Certified or Gold Certified Partner or RegisteredMember (including Microsoft Small Business Specialists)who provide a minimum of five unique businessassessments conducted with their customers and completethe “Assess & Win” survey at least once, will be eligible toreceive a free copy of Windows SBS 2003 R2 StandardEdition. What are you waiting for? https://partner.microsoft.com/productssolutions/windows/40025740

WSTPA 2006 RoundtableThe West Sound Technology Professionals

Association is holding their 2006 Roundtable on October12, 2006 at the Kitsap Conference Center in Bremerton,

WA. WSTPA increases public awareness of the availabilityand quality of local technology professionals, and servestechnology professionals both at a general level of interest and in specialized technology fields. Special Guest: Congressman Jay Inslee. More information athttp://www.WSTPA.org/

New Partner Site – designed by Partners,for Partners

The Partner program portal will be updated in earlySeptember. Get a preview athttps://partner.microsoft.com/us/40029125

System Center Essentials 2007Have you been hearing about SCE but not sure what it is?Check out the flash demo at http://www.microsoft.com/systemcenter/sce/demo/index.html �

Technology Watch

September 06, 2006 Redmond, Washington

September 11, 2006 Portland, Oregon

September 12, 2006 Sacramento, California

September 13, 2006 San Diego, California

September 14, 2006 Irvine, California

September 18, 2006 New Albany, Indiana

September 19, 2006 Southfield, Michigan

September 20, 2006 Indianapolis, Indiana

September 21, 2006 Aurora, Colorado

September 25, 2006 Waltham, Massachusetts

September 26, 2006 New York, New York

September 27, 2006 Charlotte, North Carolina

September 28, 2006 Tampa, Florida

SBS Tour coming to a city near you!Meet the SBS Development team. Sign up athttp://www.msreadiness.com/il_abstract.asp?eid=5008925

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 19


o, not the title of an episode of Star Trek; this is realscience. Over the past 18 months, TiGra Networksa Small Business Specialist, has worked with Space

Exploration Limited, based in County Roscommon,Ireland, on an ambitious project to set up and automatetwo astronomical observatories. One of the goals of theproject will be to carry out asteroid surveys and, using thepower of the large custom-built telescope, to discover newminor planets known as EKBOs, after their location in theEdgeworth-Kuiper Belt. Ultimately, the plan is to search fora theoretical tenth planet, known as Planet X which couldlie at the outermost reaches of the solar system.Astronomers may be divided on whether a tenth planetreally exists, but there is some evidence that somethingmay be out there. One thing’s for certain – the only way tofind out is to look for it, and the giant 36-inch Newtonianreflector at Kingsland Observatory might just be the onlyinstrument (certainly in the British Isles) capable of findingit. A second goal is to hire out telescope time to guestastronomers so that the best use can be made of theinstruments and the observing time available.

by Tim Long

TiGra Networks aids in the Search for Planet X

N

Centerpiece

About Space Exploration Limited andKingsland Observatory

(photos: Kingsland Observatory 36” and 16”telescopes)

•Located near Boyle, County Roscommon, Republic of Ireland.

•Directors: Eamonn and Catherine Ansbro • Has several observatories. The two

primary instruments are: • 36-inch Newtonian reflector,

custom-designed and built by Eamonn Ansbro, housed in a building with a roll-off roof.

• 16-inch Schmidt Cassegrain on a German Equatorial Mount, housedin an observatory dome.

•The 36-inch telescope (according to Eamonn) is the largest operational optical telescope in the British Isles.

•Both instruments are robotic, capable of operating autonomously, and will be controlled by advanced scheduling software. The telescopes also have a web interface and can be controlled over the Internet using just a web browser.

Space Exploration Limited / KingslandObservatory 36-inch telescopeRoof open,revealing the telescope and warm-room.

Space Exploration Limited / Kingsland Observatory16-inch telescope. Meade 16”optics mounted on a

Bisque Paramount GT-1100 german equatorial mount

Part of Kingsland Observatory showing the buildings thathouse the 36-inch and 16-inch telescopes.

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 20


TiGra Networks’ role As an enthusiastic

amateur astronomerand someone whodevelops and sellssoftware for theastronomy community,TiGra Network’stechnical lead TimLong was a naturalchoice for this project,which demanded skillsacross several disci-plines including Infor-mation Technology,astronomy, electronics,software developmentand business analysis.Tim has experiencewith robotic observa-tories and has built his

own internet-enabled observatory in Llantwit Fardre, SouthWales, equipped with a 12” Schmidt cassegrain telescopeand specialist CCD camera.

The first priority was to commission the instrumentsand ensure they could safely work robotically (that is,unattended). This has involved working on the mechanics ofthe telescope mounts to ensure they have the requiredpointing and tracking accuracy, adding safety interlocks toprotect the equipment from damaging itself and to monitorweather conditions, designing and installing electronics tocontrol the observatory roof along with driver software toenable it to be PC-controlled. This also involved identifyingand configuring software to control the instruments,provide the web interface for remote access, and performscheduling of the telescope time.

Another part of the project was software development,which has included drivers for interfacing to the telescopeand roof controller electronics, some scripts to customize theobservatory automation software, and various file formatconversions for getting data in and out of the schedulerdatabase. Further work in this area is anticipated as theobservatory moves towards renting telescope time toexternal astronomers.

The third phase of the project was to set up an ITinfrastructure based on Windows PCs to provide networkingbetween the observatories and offices, storage and backup forthe images obtained from the specialist CCD cameras, plusInternet access for the remote control of the instruments.

A final yet-to-be-completed phase will look at the businesslogic of hiring out telescope time to third parties and

implement software and web applications to simplify the task.

Science Objectives

Both Kingsland Observatory and BrynllefrithObservatory have recently been recognized by theInternational Astronomical Union and have received officialdesignations “J62” and “J58,” respectively, from the IAU’sMinor Planet Center based at Harvard. These uninspiringreference numbers recognize that the observatories haveproven their ability to image minor planets (asteroids) andmeasure their positions with sufficient accuracy to makeuseful contributions to solar system science. This is animportant first step into making sky surveys with a view todiscovering new solar system objects.

Kingsland Observatory is particularly concerned withEdgeworth-Kuiper Belt objects (EKBOs) one of which couldturn out to be the fabled “Planet X.” A number of interestingobjects have been discovered in recent years, includingSedna, which at the time of discovery in 2003 was the mostdistant observed solar system object. Sedna is an interestingobject with an unusual, highly-elliptical orbit. Its origins areunclear, but one explanation involves the presence of adistant planet, “Planet X”. There is also some evidence,based on observed groupings of comets, which mightsuggest the presence of a distant planetary object. �

Brynllefrith Observatory, LlantwitFardre, South Wales UK.International Astronomical UnionObservatory Code J58

Imaged from Brynllefrith Observatory by Tim Long usingthe 12”Schmidt Cassegrain telescope and specialised CCD

camera. The total exposure duration is several hours.

The famous horsehead nebula at the end of Orion’s belt. Achellenging target because of the proximity to Alnitak, thebright star in the image. This is overcome by stacking lots ofshort images and reducing each image with extremely highquality dark frames, taken from a reduction library that Ibuilt over several days using my DarkManager software.

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 21


s a love-struck young man in the 1980s, my free timewas spent thinking about the fairer sex, not data. Ifondly remember attending the hit movie, Dirty

Dancing, starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, andwatching romance bloom at a summer camp in the CatskillMountains. Such was the simple life – far removed fromSMB consulting.

One disturbing demographic trend in that movie, whichstuck with me over the years, concerned the oldbusinessmen who seemed more interested in talkingbusiness than in romancing their faithful spouses. Fastforward 20+ years, and I found myself racing to my officeone Monday night to analyze our latest poll results insteadof taking a sunset walk with my lovely wife. I guess I’m nowdirty dancing with data! Survey methods are my mistress.

I love data and hope that you, the loyal reader, arestarting to see the value of this monthly quantitative columnthat gives us new looks at ourselves and the segment inwhich we operate. This month, I present the retail surveyresults and the SMB Nation 2006 pre-conference poll.

August Retailer ResultsLast month, we asked three questions about retailers in thetechnology space. Here is what 160 readers who replied told us.

Q: Do you purchase technology supplies from the bigretailers (Best Buy, Costco, CompUSA) as part of your SMBconsulting business?

Yes 23.1%No 35.6%Once in a while 41.9%

Harry’s analysis: 65% or nearly two-thirds of the respondentssupport the big box retailers in S/W and H/W purchases. Sowhereas many folks have expressed concern about the big boxes, youalso see the benefits of shopping there.

Beatrice’s take: There is nothing like the last minute Saturdayafternoon run to the big box retailer when you are putting in anetwork and find a faulty component!

Q: Do you sell hardware and software retail? Yes 56.9%No 43.1%

Harry’s analysis: Whoa! I truly learned more about you with this

question. I didn’t realize that so many SMB consultants have aretail component in their operations. This is a convincing majority– the race wasn’t even close!

Beatrice’s take: It makes sense for a consultant to earn a percentageon products that he/she consistently recommends. One challengewould be knowing when to draw the line between recommending aproduct due to vendor’s incentives vs. recommending a productthat may have a better business fit. Anyhow, what does DirtyDancing have to do with this again?

Q: How do you view technology retailers taking an interestin the SMB space? This was an essay question where the answers included:Not a problemCompetitor!Bring It On!It will cut into my business…HORRIBLE!I don’t see it as a threat to my business modelSilly and not a threatWill ultimately generate more business for us….

Harry’s analysis: You will find the full results to the question athttp://www.surveymonkey.com/Report.asp?U=246007455860where you’ll find some choice words not suitable for reprint in thefamily magazine.

People on the street

ADirty Dancing With Data!

Perceptions

When asked what he thinksabout big retailers gettinginto the SMB consultingspace, Marco says he is notsure why big retailers aregetting involved in SMBconsulting. “That is what I amtrying to figure out myself.They have more of a brand nameand they seem to compete on thatarea. I am not sure what service levelthey will be able to provide and how [they will]price to the customer.”

Marco Ferweg, Mettle Computer Solutions, Rogers, MN

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:53 AM Page 22


SMB Nation 2006 Pre-conference SurveyA common question is often who is attending the SMB Nation conference. Your data wish is our information analysis command. Check outhttp://www.surveymonkey.com/Report.asp?U=247418850243 and get your question answered pronto!

September PollFall has arrived in the Northern Hemisphere and the shorterdays allow time to ponder and brood about the future. Sothis month, we are seeking your insights into reinventingyourself. Exactly what would you do tomorrow if you werefired today? Tell us via the online survey athttp://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=298182494471.

Okay – now that you’ve had your data fix, go out and lovesomebody. See you next month. �

“After working in a smallretail environment in thepast year, a lot of mycustomers expressed to methat they did not like or trustthe big retailers, that’s why

they came to us. We are just alittle shop. So even the big

names might be intimidating, it presents more of a challenge

than a threat to the small businessconsultant.”

Jimmy Neidert, JFN Technologies, LLC, Prior Lake, MN

Anthony Roark, Axim Group,Inc., Atlanta, feels that bigretailers won’t hurt hisbusiness because of thecustomer base that retailerscater to. They are the kindwho just want to purchasetechnology and do not want tobe consulted to – so it helpsselect out his customer base.

Do you purchsase from big retailers?“Absolutely never – I can source it online much cheaperand if I plan ahead it’s the only way to go.”

Do you sell hard/software retail? “No, I do brokerthrough Dell and HP but I don’t charge for any valuemarkup.”

What do you think of retailers that have taken interest inthe SMB market? “It is a great compliment to my businessbecause it validates the market.”

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 23


eet the infamous Eric Ligman! The one personwho still explains Microsoft licensing concepts bycomparing licensing with purchasing fries and

coffee – quite the American way. (Have a look atwww.lessthanfries.com & www.lessthancoffee.com.) It tookseveral voice mails, busted schedules and numerousdifferent phone numbers and finally a surprise phone call(from Eric to me) to get this interview put on paper. If youthink you are busy, try to get a hold of Eric! He is one of themost enthusiastic, non-stop, go-get’em people that I know.

Eric Ligman always has an idea, a new project or somethingsecret (that he can’t tell us about right now) up his sleeve! Hegets his inspirations by constantly being in touch andtalking to Microsoft Partners.

His latest creation, the 30 in 30 (www.the30in30.com),came about from Eric being asked the same questions overand over by different partners. “What is really the answer? Ithought I heard this.” Eric decided to put together acollection of the top questions he gets asked. “It had to be aclear answer and a quick answer and it had to be somethingcatchy. The 30 in 30 will grow beyond 30 questions, but itwill deliver the answer in less than 30 seconds!”

Coming up in the near future is the Small BusinessDesktop Sales Kit – an exclusive Small Business SpecialistOffer – that will debut in mid-September. The SmallBusiness Desktop Sales Kit will be a North Americanoffering going out to all the US and Canadian SmallBusiness Specialist partners. It be available for download onthe SBSC exclusive site. What will be in it? Well I guess youwill just have to wait and see, but Eric assures me, “It’sdesigned to make SBSC Partners money!” (See theTechnology Watch column!)

by Beatrice Mulzer

M

Meet Eric Ligman!

Title: Microsoft US Senior ManagerSmall Business Community Engagement

Location: Redmond, Washington

Responsibilities: Eric is responsible for the Small BusinessPartner Community in the US and runs the Small BusinessChannel Community site (www.mssmallbiz.com), the blog,(http://www.mssmallbizblog.com/) and the user group(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mssmallbiz/). He isalso the US Partner Community Manager Team lead, and isworking on the US Small Business licensing. Ouch! Inshort, he is the guy who shuttles information from thePartner Community Managers and Partner Communityback to Microsoft.

Education: Eric has a Bachelors of Science degree inOrganizational Management.

Age: “Old enough!” claims Eric “Well, I am 35.”

Work Experience: Eric has worked for Microsoft for six anda half years. In his previous life, Eric ran and owned hisown channel partner business (see “So what makes this guythink he gets partners?” on the next page).

Motivation: “My motivation is my family (wife & two littlegirls). Every time someone asks me what drives me tosucceed and do more, I point to pictures of their smiling facesand say, ‘Look at those smiles. That is why I do what I do.’”

Philosophy: “If you see failure as an option, it is time to getyour eyes checked”.

Microsoft Insider

Check out www.the30in30.com – a FAQ with pizzazz!

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 24


So what makes this guy think he gets partners?: At the timewhen Eric graduated with a degree in organizationalmanagement, the business market was very bad and manylay-offs were taking place. Not being able to land his dreamjob, Eric followed up on a suggestion by his brother-in-law,becoming a computer software sales guy. “Why not” Ericthought, his hobby had always been computers and, “Thiswould be a good way to kill a year or so until the marketwould change.” Having made that decision, Eric started

working for a Partnerdoing licensing salesby phone. Eric endedup moving after twoyears and decided atthat time that he couldstart his own businesswith the knowledge he acquired and abusiness model he had developed (soundfamiliar?). Eric startedhis own company with2 PCs in a basementconnected by a Coaxcable and grew it into afull-fledged softwareand hardware reseller,system builder,training facility andnetwork integratorwith customers in over25 countries,

which he ran for several years. The day came whenEric met a Microsoft presenter during a Partnerevent, where the presenter noted, “We are lookingfor somebody to teach people to do what you do.”Eric liked being his own boss but after after severalmonths of discussion with people at Microsoft, hedecided to join Microsoft. He started out with themid-market team for several years but then startedthe small business pilot three years ago in theMidwest. This pilot became a regional pilot twoyears ago and is now at the national level.

Biggest challenge: “My biggest challenge was probably whenI first started my company. That was a huge challenge becauseit was me trying to get a business up and running out of mybasement and building up a formidable reputation quickly”.

Lessons learned: “I truly believe in teaching with a crayon.By that I mean always make things as easy as possible forpeople to understand and follow (‘Green is good, red isbad’). Also, never quit. As a business owner, my approachwas simple: ‘You can work with me, or you can work againstme. Just realize that if you choose the latter, you will lose.’”

Passion: Eric’s passion is most definitely in this channel andthis business segment. It shows in his efforts trying to buildand drive the small business segment at Microsoft.

The final word? Good thing the business market wasn’tlooking for organizational managers 14 years ago, so we getEric still killing time doing his hobby! �

Make sure to check out http://www.mssmallbiz.com. With thisinformation you will always be “in the know.”And while you arethere, feel free to leave your comments for Eric!

Dad and his two girls at Friday Harbor – picture taken by Mom

Latest Claim to Fame!30 questions, 30 answers in less than 30 seconds! Have you ever wondered “Do printers require ClientAccess Licenses (CALs)?” Then this site is for you!

www.the30in30.com

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 25


n October 2004, I stood chatting with a group of Thaibusiness owners at an Australian Chamber of Commercenetworking evening at a five-star hotel here in Bangkok.

As I turned to order another drink from the bar, a Dutchgentleman briskly extended his hand in my direction, teethblazing, and introduced himself -

“Hi I’m Hans (pseudonym) and I teach Thais how tocommunicate with the real world!”

Fortunately, I don’t think that the Thai businessmenwho were now standing behind me caught his verbalflatulence. With my curiosity stoked and my blood pressurestarting to rise, I looked at him with a raised eyebrow andenquired, “Oh Really?”

He continued, “Well everyone knows that Thais can’tcommunicate like normal people. You ask them a simplequestion and by the time they’ve responded you’re none thewiser as to what their actual answer is – if you’re lucky! Inmost cases they’ll just nod their head, smile and say yes andin the end nothing gets done! My job is to go in and teachthem how people in the real world should communicate andproduce results”

I enquired with a plausible look of sincerity, “How longhave you been doing this in Thailand for?”

“Almost two years” he replied.“Really?” I responded, astonished that he had lasted

that long. “And how many Thais do you have working with you?”

“Oh no – I do it all myself. We can’t have the blindleading the blind now can we?” He said with a knowingchuckle as though the both of us belonged to the same fraternity.

Placing my drink back on the bar I asked him, “Have youever thought that possibly they were communicating theirmessage to you loudly and clearly already, albeit very politely.They might have figured that ‘if this guy isn’t sufficientlyeducated in basic social communication and etiquette as to beable to understand what I’m telling him, why should Icompromise good manners and communicate in directcaveman grunts like he’s probably expecting from me?’”

Suddenly his eyes caught a glimpse of someone else onthe other side of the bar. He excused himself and proceededon to his next new friend-to-be, armed with his name-card inone hand, other arm extended, palm face-down and smilebeaming. Deep down, I was hoping that he would make justas good an impression on everyone else that he met thatevening as he had with me. If he did, I was sure that he

wouldn’t last out the rainy season. Foreigners come to Thailand for any number of reasons.

Some come for the sun, some for the culture and many forthe buffet of lifestyle activities that are seemingly on tap here- options that might not be as readily available in theirhomeland. Unless they came over here on an expatriatepackage with an international company, the choices that willallow them to stay in the Kingdom would most likely be oneor all of the following:

Run across the border every ninety-days on a “visa-run”to renew their tourist visa,

Find a job locally that will give them a visa and a work-permit and allow them to stay in the kingdom for anextended period of time but on a reduced salary,Start up a small business with just enough capital to qualifythem for a business visa and work-permit.

For the true “stayers,” option three seems to be the mostpopular, but is also the most hazardous. Dazzled by themystique of living in this Southeast Asian paradise, many aforeigner has rushed into opening up a small business witha weak business model, not enough capital, or even worse, amisunderstanding of the market and the local culture.

Callum Laing is founder and CEO of MobyElite, a CRMand loyalty agency with offices in Bangkok and Singapore.Additionally, he is the founder and chairman of Networkingfor Success, an international networking group withmembers in over 40 countries. Laing has successfully startedup small businesses in Thailand for a number of years nowand has managed to find a way to balance western businessmodels with the cultural context of Thailand and othercountries in Southeast Asia. When asked about the role ofculture in running a small business in Thailand, Laingstated, “Understanding the culture in Thailand isundeniably relevant to running a successful business andyou ignore it at your peril. Many people come in believingthat they can ignore it. At the very least, if you’re going to bestarting up, you have to understand that the culture here isvery different from the West. In the West we’re much moretarget-focused and we don’t delve into the personal lives ofour staff, whereas here to work effectively, you need todevelop close relationships with your staff. You have to bemuch more informal and work around issues in ways thatwould probably never work or be acceptable in the West.”

Many “Farang” (a word used in Thailand to describeCaucasian foreigners - pronounced “fah-rahng”) come toThailand and tend to only mix with other Farang,

by Stuart Jay Raj

Small Business Success In SiamCulture Is King?

I

Global Perspective

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 26

“internationalized” Thais and other kinds of people that“Farang” are stereotypically perceived by Thais to like tosocialize with. They eat Farang food, patronize Farang-friendly establishments, speak Farang languages, watchFarang television shows, read Farang newspapers, crackFarang jokes, use Farang emotions in the office and makeFarang judgments on the way Thais go about their work andlife in general. This isn’t in itself “evil” (said with one’spinkie between one’s teeth), but at the same time it also doesnot go unnoticed by the Thais. Making the slightest effort tolearn about your Thai staff, their culture and their languageis like dropping a stone into the center of a large pond. Theripples will continue to positively flow out into places thatyou might have never imagined and doors can be openedup to you professionally and personally that had previouslyremained closed to even the most veteran expatriates.

Two months ago, during the first session of one of myCracking Thai Fundamentals workshops, we werediscussing ways of bursting the “Farang” bubble that manyexpatriates live in to help facilitate becoming more proficientin the Thai language and improving the work environmentin our Thai workplaces. I suggested learning to type acouple of common words in Thai and add them to their e-mails when corresponding with the staff in their office. Atfirst some were hesitant, but during the next week they tookup the challenge and even I was surprised at the results. OneAustralian gentleman who is a senior executive for aninternational resort development company had just movedto Thailand seven weeks earlier. He taught himself to type“hello,” “thank you,” and his own name in Thai, andincluded them in an e-mail to his sales manager. His (un-confidential) e-mail quickly sparked excitement in the officeand was forwarded to all the other Thai employees. Theystarted sending e-mails back to him with more and moreThai, along with brief translations in English. One word, fivewords, a sentence, then a paragraph. Within the space of aweek, this executive had captured the hearts of hisemployees with his broken but improving Thai typing andwas able to build up knowledge of both the Thai languageand the culture, as well as establish new relationships withhis staff that would have never have been possibleotherwise. The staff relayed this “news” of the Farang thattypes in Thai to other friends and companies that theyassociated with, and within a few days his company hadreceived “face” from peers within the industry in a way thatwouldn’t have been imagined or even thought necessary theweek before.

Another foreign executive from a US basedmultinational company typed something similar in an e-mail to her Thai secretary and it started some healthycompetition in the office among the other Farang (driven by

the other Thai staff in her office ) to become more “Thai-friendly” and learn more about the language, the cultureand their staff. This senior executive has said that sincesending the first e-mail, her staff are more open to listeningto what she has to say and seem to be taking moreaccountability in making deadlines for her.

Some foreigners might argue that they have been verysuccessful in business in Thailand without having learnedthe language, becoming intimate with the culture and all thewhile having lived in the proverbial “Farang” bubble duringtheir time in the Kingdom. Playing the card of the ignorantFarang in some instances might allow some grace inbusiness interactions and allow decisions to be made fasterand even increase the rate of production in the short term.This tack is normally more successful for expatriatesworking for multinational companies where lack of culturalunderstanding is compensated for by a strong existingbrand-name and good communication intermediaries whowork tirelessly behind the scenes in makingcommunications culturally palatable and maintaining (andsometimes even repairing) relationships with staff, suppliersand customers so that business can go on as usual. For smallbusiness, finding quality staff who can understand how towork between both cultures is difficult and expensive.Investing the time in personally learning about your staffand the software that drives them will become a pricelessasset to any small business and can even shed light on newbusiness opportunities in the local market that would not beso apparent to other foreign business owners operating inthe Kingdom. �

Stuart Jay Raj is an Accredited Dale Carnegie Consultant andTrainer. He is the Managing Director of Kogneit (Thailand)Co., Ltd., where he provides HRD and communication solutionsto clients across the Asia Pacific region.You can reach Stuart [email protected].


Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 27

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 28

he other morning I received a call from an SMBcomputer consultant who wanted to know if my ToolKit would actually work for him. My guess is that he

simply wanted reassurance that I was a real, live person andthat buying the kit was a good decision, because, after all,what else would he expect me to say but of course it willwork for you?

But after talking with him, I got the feeling that it mightactually NOT work for him, but not because of his clients,his market, or the fact that he was a one-man shop, butrather because of his glaringly obvious negative beliefsabout money, selling and success.

He started to explain to me that he was consideringhiring a sales and marketing person because he didn’t wantto “stoop to selling.” He also said he felt that all marketingwas “equivalent to begging” and didn’t feel he had thestomach for it. Finally, he concluded by thanking me for mytime and said that he appreciated the call because he didn’twant to “part with his hard-earned money” on somethingthat was not going to deliver the results he wanted.

While most people would have simply overlooked thesewindows into his selling soul and belief systems, I couldbarely hear anything else he was saying.

While this seems extreme, I promise you that this “silentkiller” of sales is lurking in more hearts and minds ofbusiness owners than you can possibly imagine. If abusiness owner lacks the confidence to boldly ask for moneyin exchange for a valuable service he or she provides, thebusiness is either failing or at least severelyunderperforming. After all, how can you expect to attractprofitable new clients, create a large income for yourself,and grow your company if you are not confident aboutasking people to buy from you?

If you think the term “sales person” is on par with “liar,cheater, and sleazy, used car salesman,” then not only areyou going to have a hard time becoming a great salesperson, but you’ll be hard-pressed to hire one. And for therecord, truly great sales people are NONE of those things.Are there sales people who fit that mold? Of course! Butthere are doctors, lawyers, business owners, and computerconsultants who also fit that mold.

Truly great sales people are on a mission to make adifference. They are passionate about what they do. Theybelieve in their vision and work hard to be the best – and

THAT is the type of person that others want to buy from –not a scared, timid consultant who is acting as if he is unsureabout himself and the work he does.

Here’s another tip: thinking that money is scarce and“hard-earned” is another negative belief that will hold youback from attracting new clients and becoming wealthy.Money can be earned the hard way or the easy way. Moneydoesn’t care. Money flows to drug dealers andpornographers as much as it does to churches and good-willorganizations. If you feel that you are harming someone by“taking” their “hard-earned” money away from them, you’llhave a very hard time quoting and commanding top-dollarfees. You’ll find yourself discounting your services, givingthem away for free, and succumbing to cheap clients byattracting them to you. You will manifest and attract in yourlife what you think about most.

Clients (and prospects) smell lack of confidence likedogs smell fear. Over 90% of communication is non-verbaland if your head isn’t right – if you feel guilty, uneasy, oruncomfortable asking a client to confidently buy from you –even the best marketing plan in the world won’t help youand you’ll subconsciously sabotage the marketing effortsyou are making by not taking action, not following through,and not creating marketing communications that arepowerful self-promotions.

Why do so many people – especially SMB consultantswho desperately rely on sales and marketing, have suchdeeply ingrained, negative feelings and beliefs about this?There are several reasons...

For one, there is a global belief about sales people that theyare dishonest, sleazy liars. You might even believe that. If youdo, I can assure you that you will have a hard time building athriving sales organization, not to mention becoming a greatsales person yourself as I outlined a moment ago.

Another negative belief (or fear) many people have –including seasoned sales people — is asking for the order.Primarily, this is due to a lack of self-confidence, and I’m nottalking about surface ego or arrogance.

One of the questions I ask my audience when I speak is,“How many of you feel you do a better job than the majorityof your competition?” To my surprise, not as many peopleraise their hands as I had anticipated. This is a surefire signthat they lack confidence in themselves and their companies.

T

The Silent Killer to Your Revenue,Profits, and Business Success That

Cannot Be Fixed Through Better Marketing


Continued of page 29 (see Money)

Money Shakerby Robin Robins

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 29

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 30

If you aren’t 100% confident that you are deliveringincredible value for the money, that you are truly helping thepeople you work with, and that a client would be a fool notto buy from you, then you will grow a huge lump in yourthroat when you ask for the order and throw the sale.

Many people think I have a hard-sell approach, butwhat they are confusing this with is absolute confidence inwhat I do. I don’t have to be the world’s best marketer toknow that I am delivering an incredible service to thisindustry and that I am truly committed to helping my clientsachieve more. I have a strong desire to make a difference inpeople’s lives and this is how I’m doing it. And by the way,giving away my services for free isn’t the answer either. Inthe past I’ve done that and in every case, the client has notvalued the information, advice, and service delivered.

Your own clients will NOT value what YOU don’t value,and if you don’t have the same supreme confidence in yourwork, services, or products that fuels your fire to promoteyourself, then you need to go to work on your business.

Another reason people fear or resent marketing is due toan erroneous belief that it is wrong to brag about yourself.This negative belief usually gets instilled early in life byparents, teachers, religious leaders, or peers. Modesty maybe the best approach in some situations but certainly NOT inthe world of business.

I believe the key to eliminating these dead-weight

beliefs about marketing and selling is first to admit you havethem AND realize how much they are holding you back. Ialso find it helpful to get in touch with your motivation orreason for selling and doing what you do.

If you truly believe that you can help a client achieve abetter life, business, or experience through your productsand services…if you know that you will do the right thingno matter what… then you would actually be doing theclient a disservice by NOT doing everything possible to getthem to buy from you, including what many believe to be“hard sell” tactics.

Bottom line, the single most important ingredient toANY marketing or promotion is sincerity, and that issomething you cannot fake. One of my favorite quotes fromZig Ziglar is, “You can have everything you want in life, ifyou just help enough other people get what they want.”THAT is the essence of true salesmanship—deserving wealth,success, and financial freedom because you are helping otherpeople get what they want. �

Robin Robins has over 14 years experience in direct sales andmarketing. Robin is an independent marketing consultant, salestrainer, and author that specializes in low risk, low-costmarketing strategies for small computer resellers, solutionproviders, and IT consulting firms. To learn more about Robin,visit her online at www.technologymarketingtoolkit.com

Money (Continued from page 27)

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 31

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 32

At Pura Vida Co ee, we believe in a di erent approach to business—one that sees capitalism as an agent for compassion. Pura Vida is charitably-owned and exists to help at-risk children in co ee-growing countries build more hopeful futures.

Thousands of college campuses, churches, and businesses nationwide are enjoying Pura Vida Co ee. And so could you. With each cup you drink, you help farmers provide for their families and protect the environment and help Pura Vida fund programs that physically and emotionally nurture at-risk children in co ee-growing communities from Nicaragua to Ethiopia.

We’re proud of our gourmet co ee, chai, tea and cocoa and sincerely hope you enjoy them. And we hope that part of that enjoyment comes from knowing that your purchase helps children and families.

Please visit our website to learn more about how you can bring this unique specialty co ee that helps children to your venues. Join us in our mission to Create Good!

www.puravidacoffee.com/foodservice

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 33


his partnership stinks! I’ve been a partner for a yearnow and Microsoft hasn’t sent me oneopportunity!” I hear this a lot. Many partners fully

expect that once they sign up for the Microsoft Partnerprogram, they will soon find it difficult to handle the floodof opportunities Microsoft sends their way. Not only is thisa fallacy, it shouldn’t be expected.

Inappropriate expectations from your partnership withMicrosoft can cause great frustration for you and your team.They can also cause you to miss out on great opportunitiesthat this partnership can present you.

Should Microsoft send lots of leads to its partnercommunity? Sure they should, and they do. But remember,Microsoft has over 300,000 partners worldwide.

Before I discuss tactical ideas for leveraging better yourpartnership with Microsoft, I’d like to review why youshould partner with Microsoft in the first place. You shouldNOT sign up for the Microsoft Partner Program because youexpect leads or sales support. Just as you should with anyother Product Manufacturer (though I do realize they callthemselves a Solutions company), you should choose tobecome a Microsoft Partner because:

•They make the products that your customers are asking for, OR

•They make products that make it easier for you to develop cost-effective solutions for your customers, OR

•They make products that integrate better with the business productivity applications (e-mail, word processing, spreadsheets) that most of your clients spend 80% of every day using, OR

•They make the products that will allow you to maximize the growth of your top and bottom line financial goals,

•They provide a robust partner program that will support your team as your firm grows

•And so on….. get the idea?

Basically, if you expect that Microsoft makes andsupports the products, while you sell the products andsupport the customers, then you’re off to a realistic start.Then, whatever sales support you might get will be icing onthe cake.

Now that your expectations are properly set, does thismean you should rule out using your partnership withMicrosoft as a Sales and Marketing tool? Definitely not. On

the contrary, it could be one of the most valuable salesresources you have access to, as long as you understand thatyou get out of it what you put into it, and it is not anautomatic entitlement of being a partner.

Microsoft’s ability and willingness to pump money andprograms into new marketing initiatives is unparalleled.This gives them the ability to create rapid market demandacross many new product lines, which in turn creates salesopportunities for their partners since very little product issold directly from Microsoft.

Microsoft’s dependence on Partners has grown over theyears. As they grew from just Windows and Office to otherdiverse product lines, they learned that customers buySolutions more than they buy just a Product. Also, they tendto buy these Solutions from their Trusted Advisors, which isguess who? The Partner community. Microsoft realizes this,and has put into place an enormous number of programsdesigned to help partners grow their businesses. Not somuch because they care about your business, which they doof course, but more because that is how they will sell moreproduct, which is what the game is all about.

There are Readiness programs (training), customerincentives, rebates, funded pilot programs, co-brandeddirect mail programs, joint telemarketing programs, andmuch, much more, all of which are free, or very reasonablypriced for qualified partners. But because of the largenumber of partners they have, and the diverse types ofproducts and partners they have, Microsoft demands quite abit from the partners selected to engage with for theseprograms. These programs will not work without a partnerwho is committed to the program, and who is willing toinvest time and resources into the program. So, Microsoftuses partner engagement programs to filter and findpartners who qualify. The key for you is to do everythingyou can to become one of these “Qualified” partners.

So, you’ve become a partner for the correct reasons, andyou are willing to commit the time and resources intobecoming an Engaged partner…. what should you expect?

I think you should expect a lot. I believe that firms thatare “highly engaged” with their appropriate Microsoft Teamhave elevated their status to Certified or Gold Certified.They have engaged in strategic (read: Not Every One) jointmarketing efforts and business development programs withMicrosoft. It is not uncommon to see 50% or more of theirrevenue as “Microsoft Influenced revenue.” Now the trickquestion: “What does Microsoft Influenced mean?”

by Brian Ocheltree

“T

What should you expect out of your Partnership with Microsoft?

Partnering

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 34


I define Microsoft Influenced revenue as revenue that ismaterially affected by your relationship with Microsoft,versus simply a lead given to you by Microsoft. I realize thatthis is a broad definition, but I think you should look at yourrelationship with Microsoft in a very broad sense. Examplesof Microsoft Influenced revenue would be:

•Contracts you won where Microsoft joined your teamfor the proposal as a sub, or provided proposal preparation support in the form of competitive information, proposal templates, etc.

•Contracts you won from a Joint Marketing program with Microsoft, such as their direct mail campaign

•Contracts you won from a Call blitz held at a local Microsoft Office

•Contracts you won because the client wanted the best local partner, and when they called the local Microsoft office, Microsoft gave them a list that contained your firm.

•Contracts you won because the client wanted a Microsoft solution, and chose you over your competition because you were a Certified Partner.

•Contracts you won because the client preferred a .NET solution and your competition bid a competing solution (they created the Market demand with their Marketing Air Cover, or general consumer marketing to drive product adoption)

So, do you have to become a highly engaged partner tobe successful as a Microsoft Partner? Absolutely not. If youhave a strong sales force, and a large customer base, thereis a good chance there are some Microsoft products yourcustomers want, and by simply becoming a Registeredpartner, you should be able to sell and support them justfine. In other words, if you don’t need more from thepartnership, there is no requirement to invest more.

However, if you are interested in investing in yourrelationship with Microsoft in order to maximize the valueof your partnership, here are a few things to consider:

• Elevate your Partner Level as much as possible. Thebasic levels are Registered, Certified and Gold Certified.You don’t have to be Gold Certified to be successful, butthe further elevated you are, the better exposure you willhave to Microsoft people and programs. I recommend thatyou simply review the requirements for each level, and seewhere you fit in, or where you can get to without changingyour current business too much, and strive for that level.

• Get engaged with the appropriate team. Whether itis the Public Sector Team, the Enterprise Team, or theSMS&P Team, find the appropriate one(s) and begin to getinto their local engagement programs. These programs willvary, but they all seem to have programs that identify

“qualified” partners whom they rely on for marketingprograms.

• Give before you get. I have found that it is best tobegin a new relationship with a “strategic” (read: someonewho can help you get new business) person inside ofMicrosoft by introducing yourself to him while alsomentioning a recent Win your team had that you knowhe/she would want to know about. This is much moreenticing than “Hi, I’m Bob. Can you give me some leads?”

• Build and Maintain personal relationships. This iswhere the true value from any Microsoft engagement effortwill come from. Programs can be effective, but Microsoftemployees who know you, trust you, and view you as acommitted and qualified partner, will yield more valueover time than all of the programs combined.

• Read, filter, prioritize. The more engaged youbecome with Microsoft, the more communications andopportunities you will get from Microsoft. It is importantto be strategic and focused as you review these and not tryto do everything. Lack of focus can cause a flurry ofunproductive activity. Choose the team that provides thebest opportunity for you. Choose your Competency andIndustry focus if applicable. Then, use these to filter yourcommunications and opportunities to find those that bestjustify your valuable time and resources.

• Don’t be afraid of MCS. Though this is becoming lessand less of an issue, many Partners seem to be afraid ofMCS (Microsoft Consulting Services), or see them as acompetitor. I guess to the really big guys, they might be.But to the rest of us, they can be one of the biggest areas ofopportunities for Partners. MCS seems to always havemore work than they can handle, and they rely on Partnersfor most of the actual production work. If you get anopportunity from an MCS rep, chances are the contract isalready in place, and your people can begin billing the nextday. No proposals, bidding, etc…

In summary, a Microsoft Partnership can be a veryvaluable asset if expectations are set appropriately and astrategic plan is put in place to leverage the partnershipproductively. And I think the value is only going to grow.Microsoft is releasing more new product releases this yearthen ever in the history of the company. This will createmore marketing programs, which will create morecustomer demand, which will create more new excitingopportunities for all of us!!! �

Brian S. Ocheltree is the founder of PartnerPoint(www.partnerpoint.com), one of the largest and most activeonline communities of Microsoft Partners with over 4,700members worldwide.You can reach Brian [email protected]

Sept 2006 8/28/06 10:54 AM Page 35

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TS2Nami


had flown from Dallas to Seattle with a couple ofmissions in mind. First and foremost was to collectinformation that would make this article informative

and entertaining. The fact that there would also be fishingand wine tasting made the plans seem somehow just a littlemore compelling. I met with Rob Westover, a colleague ofmine who moved from the role of TechNet Presenter toProgram Manager of the Real-time Communications (RTC)Group to take on both challenges – fishing and fact finding.The day started quietly, as we had planned a fishing trip inWashington State. The plans were “loosely coupled,” a wayof saying that we had little in the way of plans beyond settingout on an adventure. At the end of the day, I found out moreabout our RTC products than I did about fly fishing, but thefishing was still more memorable. On to the technology….

Our virtual technology has come a long way, and isabout to become even more useful for all of us. Leveragingweb conferencing tools like Microsoft’s Live Meeting willallow you to build and maintain relationships far beyondwhat you can do in person.

Provide a virtual classroom to deliver monthly insights,share applications, provide online application support,deliver consulting services, and much more. Use of webconferencing to extend educational efforts is only thebeginning. In the unlikely event that the avian flu takes off,this may be the best way to deliver standard curriculums tostudents of all ages – not just geographically-challengedcollege students.

Web conferencing as we know it is about to takeadvantage of dramatic technical improvements and changefor the better. No longer will you struggle to tie both atelephony conference bridge together with your webconference application. Voice over IP is coming to the rescue.You will be able to leverage the same network connection tocarry both your voice and web conference experience –driving down the barriers and costs and making it easier foreveryone to participate instantly.

Web conferencing allows you to contact andcommunicate with partners and customers in a way thatclosely rivals a personal visit, without the expenses andproblems that come with last minute changes. This hithome as I paid $3.29 per gallon to fill up our SUV on thefishing trip. (Granted, a virtual fishing trip just doesn’t seemall that fun yet.) The next version of Live Meeting willdeliver features beyond just the addition of voice over IP.Coming soon, Live Meeting will also deliver a video

conferencing experience as part of the overall meeting thatcarries voice and data. The incorporation of testing and testscoring – allowing the meeting organizer to immediately“grade” the impact of the meeting or training in aprogrammatic manner – will help with issues of complianceand validation of initiatives at all levels.

If you want to know more about Live Meeting, dig intoit on the Microsoft site at http://www.microsoft.com/uc/livemeeting/default.mspx or pick my brain at the next TS2event or online on the www.ts2community.com site.

Learn first-hand about Microsoft products andtechnologies and gain unique insights on making the mostof your relationship with Microsoft. In August andSeptember we will cover:

•Get ready for Windows Vista•Betting big on the 2007 Microsoft Office System •Build Lifelong Relationships with Small Businesses •Partnering with Microsoft •Competing to win

Check out our upcoming TS2 Events for Channel Partnersat http://www.ts2seminiars.com/tourdates.htm

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by Charles Van Heusen

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DublinSacramentoGarden GroveSan Diego Colorado SpringsEnglewood Washington Atlanta

BaltimoreAnnapolis Roseville MiddlesexJersey City

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Burlington Green Bay

9/12/20069/14/20069/19/20069/21/2006 9/12/20069/14/2006 9/12/2006 9/21/2006

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Classifieds

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