E143 - Leveraging Services and Consulting as a Competitive Advantage with Chris McCarthy

Chris McCarthy is a seasoned go-to-market executive with extensive experience in the technology industry, and the founder of 45 East, LLC. He has worked for companies like IBM, EMC, Cisco, HP, HPE, and Microsoft, where he has built strong relationships with sales teams, partners, and clients to deliver technology-based solutions that drive measurable business outcomes.

In this episode of Tech Sales Insights, Randy Seidl interviews Chris McCarthy, a go-to-market executive with a background in consulting services. They discuss the importance of leveraging services and consulting as a competitive advantage in the technology industry. Chris shares his insights on the evolution of services and consulting, the challenges of balancing product and services teams, and the growing trend of customer success. He emphasizes the value of understanding customer outcomes and delivering solutions that align with their goals. Chris also highlights the significance of storytelling and value selling in building strong customer relationships.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Services and consulting play a crucial role in driving the adoption and consumption of technology solutions.
• Balancing the motivations of product and services teams is essential for success in the tech industry.
• Customer success is an emerging trend that focuses on co-innovation and co-investment with customers.
• Value selling is critical in demonstrating the impact and benefits of technology solutions to customers.
• Storytelling is a powerful tool for communicating the value and relevance of technology solutions to customers.

QUOTES

• "Customers don't buy things. They buy outcomes."
• "Value is derived from listening and empathy skills with the customer."
• "Focus on the first 30% who get it and make them wildly successful."
• "You don't need to be a know-it-all. Be a learn-it-all."
• "Storytelling is critical in communicating the value of technology solutions to customers."

Find out more about Chris McCarthy through the links below:

• LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-m-mccarthy/

This episode of Tech Sales Insights is brought to you by: 

• Sales Community: https://www.salescommunity.com/
• Sandler: https://www.sandler.com/