While telecom expense management and telecom life cycle management are not new, agents continue to ask how to sell these solutions.

The first thing an agent must understand is that he is not selling a traditional telecom service like local, long-distance, data, wireless or conferencing. Instead of selling a commodity that most decision makers understand and are well educated on the benefits it can bring their companies, a true TEM/TLM solution is an entirely different sale.

Unlike selling traditional telecom where most of the carriers act the same and speak the same language, many of the TEM/TLM offerings are drastically different, and the agent needs to understand which components are important to his client. If presented correctly, the solution is customized to the client’s needs.

Selling a TEM/TLM requires an agent to understand more than just the advantages of a new telecom service; he needs to understand how the TEM/TLM solution is going to streamline operations within the company’s IT, telecom, HR and accounting departments, etc. It really requires the agent to get down into the trenches and delve into the “who, what, when, where and how” regarding the client’s telecom, IT, and accounting infrastructure. By providing a solution that touches all of these departments within the company, the agent is able to go “wider and deeper” within the account.

Here are a few key things an agent must understand to be successful in selling a TEM/TLM solution:

Educate Your Client.TEM/TLM is still a “new” solution to many SMB companies and even enterprises. It is not as simple as selling a local PRI.

Exercise Caution When Migrating. An agent must be aware of the pitfalls involved in switching a client from one provider to another. It is not like converting a local PRI from one carrier to another.

Accept The Longer Sales Cycle. A TEM/TLM solution does require a longer sales cycle than most agents are accustomed to, but usually it is well worth the extra time. By conducting the “panoramic” analysis of the entire company’s communications network and discussions with internal departments, agents tend to find revenue opportunities that would not have been exposed when offering a traditional telecom service.

A TEM/TLM solution sale is more complex than a transactional telecom service sale, but if done properly, an agent will gain additional credibility within the account and have the opportunity to gain revenue he/she didn’t even know existed. Finally, if an agent isn’t talking to their established clients about a TEM/TLM solution, their competitors most definitely are.

Trent McCracken and Troy McCracken are owners of Spectrum Inc., a master agency that developed its own TEM platform after realizing the challenges of working with a third-party TEM company. They can be reached at [email protected] and [email protected].