MODULE 6

What's Next

LESSON 6.1

Program Completion

This Is Just The Start, Not The Finish 

Every great achievement begins with a single step, and completing this program is that important first step. While it marks the end of one chapter, it is truly the commencement of an even more exciting and greater journey ahead.  

Your dedication and hard work have laid the groundwork for future successes, and now is the time to embrace the endless possibilities that lie before you. 

"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts." – Winston Churchill

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We appreciate your progress in our Microsoft Solutions For Security Designation program. We trust that this program has provided your business with more than guidance on attaining the Security designation. The insights from the Performance and Customer Success modules are designed to help you understand how to win customers through value, the underlying psychology behind it, and the resulting transformative profitability your business will achieve. 

The two lessons that remain, outline the path ahead once your designation is achieved – particularly the advantages it offers your business and the additional designations available to extend your journey. Exciting times ahead!

Why Are Designations Important? 

We frequently receive inquiries about the advantages of obtaining a designation, and we hope that after completing this program, you understand why they are crucial for any IT organisation willing to invest the time to achieve it. 

Microsoft have reset their partnership programs to allow dedicated partner organisation to stand out in the market, and designations help achieve this.  

Also, we often get asked why products like Microsoft 365 E5 are worth offering. The truth is, a SKU only becomes valuable when it helps meet the specific needs of a customer and their industry. 

Each of the Microsoft 365 SKUs, whether it’s Business Premium, E3, E3 with Add-On, or E5, has its own value in the market.  

Ideally, we’ve be able present a method on how to evaluate these options based on actual needs instead of promoting a SKU just for the purpose of making a sale. This is helping you and its not helping the customer. 

Remember: To review this topic, revisit the Performance module, Lessons 2, 3, and 5. These lessons cover how to evaluate suitable industries for a new solution, align SKUs with needs, and develop a GTM message that showcases the value you have created.   

Designations are, however, merely one aspect – they play a crucial role in enabling your business to effectively serve new customers as they come in.  

The other is your new messaging! 

COMMUNICATION IS KEY

Changing Your Messaging To Drive Profitability  

How you present your message to customers, is the other side of the coin.  

Profitability is the biggest concern partner have and raise this, each and every day. There isn’t enough available under a subscription model, and that is true – as long as you continue to sell in a traditional way, and for the price “on the (virtual) box…” 

Albert Einstein is often credited with saying, "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." 

This concept applies directly to our approach in the Microsoft Solutions For Security Designation program.  

By adapting our strategies and messaging, you can optimise your profitability and efficiency – allowing you to maximise your financial results.  

Make no mistake, this is how IT organisations can and do win today.

Remember: Review Lessons 2 and 3 of the Customer Success module. These lessons cover how to approach new target customers, present your GTM message, and effectively communicate your solution's value during meetings to enhance profitability without compromising on price. 

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Have A Crack and Don’t Leave Money On The Table  

When you create a need for the customer, you highlight that not having your solution entails considerable risks, potentially resulting in higher costs than they expect. 

Adopting new methodologies will take some time to master, but only by trying and attracting clients at your desired price point can you truly boost your business's profitability.  

This is achieved by leveraging and charging for your in-depth expertise and knowledge, rather than a traditional ‘subscription’. 

A subscription is only a collection of technical features offers no real value to customers unless they understand what those features can achieve.  

Highlighting the importance of these features through their outcomes and benefits, that will lead to significant business results, will always be more valuable to a customer and justify their investment in your solution and your business. 

This is how you win! 

The Microsoft Team at Dicker Data