Role of the Pre-sales Function: Sales Support or Customer Advocacy?

  Over the last decade Pre-sales as a business function has grown immensely and still evolving within the organizations. Typically ‘Pre-sales’ function has been defined as a role that supports the sales force and there by helps an organization with the technical knowhow to achieve it’s the revenue target. Though a ‘support function’, it’s probably one that works most closely with the ‘line function’ that is sales, to which it’s expected to aid and seamlessly execute the sales plan. Wiki defines pre-sales as “The task of a presales person starts from the initial contact phase and often ends once the customer is acquired i.e. sale is made.” A typical job description of pre-sales would be replete with the terms such as: ‘technical acumen’, ’communicate’, ‘persuasive’, ‘Proof-of-concept’ etc.  A close look at the terms will reflect that responsibilities of a pre-sales role are still around the so called ‘skill’ which doesn’t gear up to the greater managerial responsibility. With increasing and rapid complexity of technical development coupled with the increasing competitive pressure organizations are slowly recognizing importance of collaborating and empowering its pre-sales force, and not merely treating as a resource.
 

In my personal experience, following are the broad pointers how organizations (as well as pre-sales itself as function) best leverage the potential of technical knowledge: 

§  From technical pitch to true consulting : No more feature-function battle, advocate issues that impact clients’ business, especially  the application, adoption and dissemination of technology

§  From tactical to strategic : Pre-sales are indeed the ears and eyes for the market who has the opportunity of interacting of both IT and business side of the client’s team

§  From short term gain to long term vision: From point sale approach to enterprise engagement. Pre-sales folks enjoy a high degree to customer’s confidence thus making it easier to carry a mission within the client’s organization wearing a ‘consultant’ hat. If properly aligned with with the customer’s 

§  From effectiveness to success : widening the scope – beyond year on year target achievement to becoming partner of customer’s success

End note: How do you judge success of a pre-sales function? What mandate does management give to this important bunch of people, often perceived as ‘technology savvy and intellectual pool’ of the organization?  Do the pre-sales folks make themselves accountable not only to the parent organization but to the end customer? How does pre-sales collaborate with the sales colleagues and in fact treat them as internal customers?

The vision of the IT organizations, irrespective of the offerings and size, is firmly set on the target of being client’s partner in long term success rather than remaining a transaction based vendor. This can only be realized by allowing the client touch points like pre-sales to advocate and espouse client’s long term benefit widening the present day short-term sales realization.