“I can fly you to the moon on my magic carpet.” 🌛
“You’ll have exquisite gourmet food made by my fair hands, liberally seasoned with love and adoration.” 🌶😁
“The system will triple your revenue and reduce staff attrition to 0.” 😮
Yeah, we have all heard this before.
Flirty promises.
That’s how sales people talk, isn’t it?
Or that player who’s been around the block. 😏
In terms of client engagement process, especially in the world of software consulting like #Salesforce, this is what the Proposal looks like.
A Proposal is a statement of the things that WE COULD DO.
(Hat tip to Eleanor Dearing)
Once we’ve done the demo and the dates and the flirty exchanges about discounts and what-not, if chemistry is there, then it’s time to put a ring on it. 💍 ☝🏻
It’s time for the Statement of Works (SOW) – which is kinda like a marriage VOW. 👰🏻🤵🏻 (Hat tip Jodi Hrbek – Midwest Dreamin’ co-presenter and Queen of cheesy rhymes 😳😜)
And this is where we commit to what WE WILL DO.
“I can bus you to Fulham station because I don’t have enough money for Uber.”
“I promise to cook … beans on toast every day – just for you.” 🌬
“The system will let you store stuff like data that includes letters and numbers.” 🙄
I’m currently coaching a Salesforce Partner on their process, and articulating the difference between the Proposal and the SOW.
The Proposal is nice and fluffy, but like cotton candy, it melts when you stick your tongue in it 😛 and has empty calories.
The SOW is our bible.
It is solid, it is concrete and it is what we promise to do.
Come hell or high water, we will do what the SOW says – or project goes RED 🚨 and the lawyers get called in. 😣
There’s a balance in making promises that will get us the k̴i̴s̴s̴e̴s̴ nod on the deal and actual, contractually binding statements that we are committing to deliver/service/fulfil. 🤝🏻
Like many non-sales people, I favour being candid and being transparent about what we can do, and what we will do.
This will set up the client/consultant relationship on a strong footing which will carry us through to the end of the project and beyond.
Sadly, I see SOWs that read like flirty promises, and I can literally feel my heart sink into my tootsies. 😫
Have you ever seen a SOW that makes your toe curl the wrong way?!
Tell me your horror stories!
