The application software business, like all businesses, has its unique challenges.  We are selling ideas, captured in a technology.  Our prospects often cannot visualize what we are selling, how it will address their needs, how they will realize its value, or how we are different than other solutions.  Our benefits are difficult to prove, we must convince the market that the benefits are real.  Many of these benefits are soft benefits like “improved decision making” that are impossible to uniquely quantify or hard for our prospects to believe.  Once licensed, the success or failure of our products depends on an implementation process where we often have little control and often-limited influence. 

Competition for all segments is intense.  Every deal is extremely competitive, even those that start with no competition.  Suite vendors are expanding to do everything.  Niche vendors are seeing others enter their niche and gaining ground through good sales and marketing and aggressive pricing.

Today’s market offers even greater challenges.  Industry consolidation means potential buyers are leery of every vendor's financial future.  The combination of the current economy and its unknown future means that most companies have become very conservative, they want to keep their cash and avoid any mistakes.  The media and the C-level belief is that we, as an industry, have over promised and under delivered.  Software projects have a reputation of being over schedule, over budget and not delivering the promised benefits. 

Olin Thompson has lived in the application software business for over 35 years as a general manager, strategist and sales and marketing executive.  Olin has always lived at the intersection of software vendors and process industry companies.  He can help you deal with the challenges of today's application software business.  At strategic, tactical and execution levels, he has the experience, proven track record and powerful network of professionals to help you successfully deal with the unique challenges of the business of software.