A Consultant's View
Prairie Trail Software, Inc. ............................................................. May 2005
You have seen the late night advertising shows and the Saturday TV auto shows - those shows that are only a salesman showing car after car and boasting how low that price is.
It is hard to do the same for custom software development. A car sales person can point to features with which you are already familiar: the leather seats, which you already have (or want); the smooth acceleration; the fine air conditioning; the great warranty... "Oh my!"
With software, it is far more like having a brand new feature that nobody knows. The first time GPS units were placed in a car, no sales person knew what to do with them - They are still having a hard time selling the OnStar(TM) service.
Fortunately, you can measure the success of custom software development. Either it works and is profitable, or it doesn't. When selecting a vendor for custom development, ask about their success / failure rate. All developers have some failures. The national average is for 18% of all projects to fail, 53% to be challenged (over budget, late, etc.) and only 29% come in on time and within budget.
The best way is to work with someone who has done the work before and can tell you what it cost then
Give us a call. We can tell you what we have done before and can give as realistic of a timeline as we can.
Are you sincere in your loyalty program or are you faking it?
The secret of success is sincerity. If you can fake that, you've got it made.
Mark Twain
We see the same thing happening with gift and loyalty programs. At one time, they were new and different. Today, almost every credit card has some kind of "loyalty program". More and more of them are charging for the privilege. Is that a real loyalty program?
Consumers know that fees and charges on gift and loyalty programs are not right. So, states are changing the laws on us to rein in such programs.
What is your loyalty program like? Are you using the loyalty program to educate both your customers and your merchants? A good loyalty program is a two-way communication tool. Customers need to be educated as to why you do business the way you do. Merchants learn from what the customer buys as to what the customers really value.
Loyalty programs are hard work. When you put in that hard work, you will be able to succeed far more than those who are just faking it. You will know what the customer wants and be able to provide that.
Accountant K. Kumaran lost a finger when thieves needed it to start his Mercedes' fingerprint security system. Since the car would not start again without his finger, the thieves chopped it off and took it with them.
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Dave Randolph,
President, Prairie Trail Software