Page 15 - Security Today, November/December 2021

have to be competent, and make sure that your market knows that you are a subject matter expert. And training and coaching is needed to do that.” Peterson also real- ized that it did not matter where they were located geographically; many integrators needed to learn how to sell post-Internet, and they needed a resource to help them develop a successful sales process. That reality is what gave birth to Vector Firm, which develops sales and marketing pro- grams that thrive in the post-Internet era of business-to-business sales. Following on Vector Firms’ effectiveness, Peter- son, in 2017, launched Vector Firm Sales Academy, an online sales training plat- form built exclusively for system integra- tors and their technology partners.
Peterson is empowering system inte- grators and their technology providers to succeed in their sales and marketing ef- forts. Vector Firm has authored a list of its Core Beliefs of Modern Selling and, below, Peterson elaborates on those beliefs and provides and explanation of each.
Selling in a Modern World
1. Customers and prospects do not be- lieve they need salespeople anymore
“Finding and winning new accounts in 2021 is more difficult than ever, he said, because of the Internet and how it has change business buying patterns.”
A: The key word here is believe, be- cause customers do need salespeople, but they need knowledgeable ones. Salespeo- ple were once a primary source of infor- mation, but in today’s world, people don’t necessarily need that information from another human being – they can get that online. So selling in the traditional way, pre-Internet, is no longer effective.
Providing knowledge, knowledge the buyers need to make an educated buy- ing decision, is what makes a salesperson successful today. System integrators who present and establish themselves as a Sub- ject Matter Expert will win more sales.
2. Purchasing decisions are made by multiple people who may not be familiar with the salesperson
A: In years gone by, salespeople had
VECTOR FIRM ACADEMY
This online sales training platform is built exclusively for system integrators and their technology partners. As a natural outgrowth of Vector Firm, Peterson, an industry advocate driven to help companies drastically improve their sales and marketing performance, launched the Vector Firm Academy in 2017. It serves to teach and impart modern ideas of effective selling that work perfectly with the modern way of buying. Continual sales training programs are provided to sys- tems integrators and their technology partners on a monthly basis and include dozens of topics on the science of selling. Vector Firm Academy and its cam- paigns to accelerate every step of the buying cycle has empowered countless security industry professionals to meet their sales goals.
The Academy is a continual sales training program that provides lessons on different topics each month. To accommodate the hectic schedule of today’s salesperson, Vector Firm has designed its training to be accessible on-demand by its members. Specific topics and campaign takeaways are covered each month, allowing attendees to receive best in class sales training without oc- cupying too much time away from prospecting, working with customers and continuing to evolve as a company.
Systems integrators and their technology partners who are looking for up-to- date sales training built specifically for them can learn more about Vector Firm Academy by visiting: https://www.vectorfirmacademy.com/
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rity. In addition, they are so busy managing existing accounts and putting out fires on a weekly basis that they do not intentionally pursue new accounts. They’re already on overload.”
However, Peterson believes that is only part of the problem. Finding and winning new accounts in 2021 is more difficult than ever, he said, because of the Internet and how it has change business buying patterns.
“Before the Internet came along, the salesperson was always the source of in- formation. Now, people only need to do a Google search to get all, if not more, of the information they need. For free. Therefore, the whole concept of prospect- ing and finding new accounts has com- pletely changed. Today’s customer needs knowledge from salespeople, not just information. To truly succeed as a sales- person today and sign new accounts, you
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