I am part of the presales organization at SAS Canada, working out of our Toronto office. A question I hear quite often from new customers and new employees alike, is “What do you do in presales?” It is a fair question. After all, the concept of “presales” isn’t something you learn in school. I’ll admit, even I didn’t know everything about the role when I first joined the team several years ago. But now that I’m here, I’ve found my niche.
The presales function is often described as a “bridge”. We help our sales executives diagnose a business problem and position a SAS solution to address the pain. We play a lead role in proving how our solution will solve the customer’s business problem – whether through a presentation, demonstration or proof of concept (POC). After a software sale, we provide the background and context to our professional services team, to ensure a successful implementation. Our focus throughout, is on delivering a positive customer experience.
To be effective in this type of role, presales resources continuously build capabilities in 3 core areas:
- Technical Acumen. This is all about knowing the ins and outs of our SAS solutions.
- Business / Industry Knowledge. This is about understanding what is important to our customers and why SAS matters.
- Soft Skills. This includes sales acumen, communication, interpersonal and leadership skills.
So, why do I love presales? There are 3 reasons.
- Variety is the spice of life. Technology, data and analytics continue to evolve - along with the needs of our customers. I am always learning new things. This keeps me motivated and interested in my day to day work.
- Presales is a team sport. Business problems are getting more complex. Collaboration is the key to solving these problems. My role allows me to collaborate with several internal teams here at SAS (both in Canada and globally), our partners and most importantly our customers. Working with such a diverse cast of characters always keeps things interesting!
- It’s rewarding. Our goal in presales is to find the right SAS solution for our customers and to set them up for future success. Throughout this process, we often develop customer relationships that go far beyond the initial sale of software, which is very rewarding.
If you’re interested in learning more, feel free to comment or contact me directly.
Tina Schweihofer
Presales Manager, Data Sciences
SAS Canada
Tina is passionate about helping people understand how analytics, coupled with the right data strategy can deliver real business benefits. Tina leads a talented data sciences team that helps organizations across industries apply SAS analytics to solve unique business problems.
tina.schweihofer@sas.com
https://ca.linkedin.com/in/tinaschweihofer
