We received a referral from one of our long standing client accounting firms to look into assessing the current network setup of one of their clients.
The principle problem at our prospective new client was the online provided comprehensive accounting suite that is filled with pain points that have not been ironed out since the online solution was deployed at their site over a year ago.
A year is a long time to live with a lot of pain and not getting to where one wants to be with any type of solution.
After a few consulting sessions with the business owner we offered the recommendation to look into the SAP Business One product. It is a solid product foundation on which to build out their entire accounting, inventory, point of sale, and eventually e-commerce business structures.
With their approval we approached SAP to find a partner that was familiar with our prospective client’s unique industry.
We were put in touch with Stephane of Forgestik.
Well, this morning Stephane and Yves of Forgestik put on an amazing demonstration of the SAP Business One product that they had customized for today’s presentation.
Stephane and Yves kept the six or seven folks in the meeting completely engaged throughout the six hours we were together in the boardroom.
Prior to today, we took the time to make sure that we understood how our prospect’s business needed to operate. That was done by having a series of interviews with the business owner as well as a few key people in the organization.
Once we had a good understanding of what was needed, Stephane went ahead with his team and built the demo that was done today.
If the deal goes ahead, we at MPECS Inc. will be providing the IT Solution that will run underneath the SAP Business One solution.
Finding and forming partnerships with those that can facilitate a solution that does not sit in our own speciality zone is a very important part of doing business.
By doing so, we augment our ability to provide a real solid IT solution that truly meets our client’s needs.
Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book
*Our original iMac was stolen (previous blog post). We now have a new MacBook Pro courtesy of Vlad Mazek, owner of OWN.
Would you charge for the time and effort you have put in, if you dont win the business?
ReplyDeleteNat,
ReplyDeleteWe consider any initial consulting time with a prospective client to be the cost of doing business. So, the answer is, "No we do not bill for time spent on initial consults".
If we do indeed win this deal, then it will more than pay for the hours put in with this particular business owner.
We win some and we lose some, those are the risks we take running our own businesses.
If we were in to provide some IT consulting on the direction of their business only, then yes we would be billing for the time spent.
Philip