How Channel Partners Can Sell to CIOs

Whether you're a managed service provider or VAR, Cisco Systems CIO Rebecca Jacoby (pictured) is offering up some tips to help channel partners sell into CIOs. Sure, the following video with Jacoby has a few self-serving Cisco statements. But The VAR Guy also heard some valuable nuggets of Info. First, the Cisco-produced video with Jacoby...

The VAR Guy

June 18, 2009

Cisco CIO Rebecca Jacoby

cisco-systems-cio-rebecca-jacoby

Whether you’re a managed service provider or VAR, Cisco Systems CIO Rebecca Jacoby (pictured) is offering up some tips to help channel partners sell into CIOs. Sure, the following video with Jacoby has a few self-serving Cisco statements. But The VAR Guy also heard some valuable nuggets of Info.

First, the Cisco-produced video with Jacoby…

Some Observations

Jacoby’s tips included:

1. Who are the key advisors to the CIO? When you’re selling, you need to spot those advisors. But please, don’t call them trusted advisors because The VAR Guy can’t stand that term.

2. Lead with productivity: In the current economic environment, you need to describe how you can drive down a company’s TCO while also promoting value and productivity. Choose the right architecture and you can add value to the business over time.

3. Key projects: Cisco is currently investing in a communication and collaboration architecture (translation: “Cisco buys Cisco”). Cisco also is investing in data management, content management and video (translation: “Cisco buys more Cisco”).

Kidding aside, our resident blogger thinks more IT vendors should put their CIOs front-and-center in the media to drive discussion.

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