Conference 35.181::insurance

44.0. "REFER DATABASE" by SIMVAX::GAGNON (Insurance Industry Marketing) Wed Jul 06 1988 15:10

    Following is information regarding the REFER database located on
    VTX under Sales and Marketing.  We are seeking to increase the 
    number of entries into this database and are contacting sales
    personnel on an account basis.
    
                                   ******
    
                         REFERENCE SELLING WITH REFER
         
         Reference selling has always played a key role in the sales 
         cycle at Digital.  Demonstrating the successes that Digital 
         customers have achieved is a powerful incentive for prospects 
         to choose Digital.  Reference accounts highlight our product 
         strengths and foster confidence in Digital as a company.  
         Today, with our solution orientation, reference selling is 
         increasingly important.
         
         For this reason, The REFER reference account database is an 
         extremely valuable internal sales resources.  REFER lets you 
         select account solutions that match your prospect needs 
         exactly.  You can shorten your sales cycle and eliminate 
         duplicate efforts by drawing on the experience of other 
         accounts managers.
         
         WHAT IS REFER?
         
         REFER is an online VTX-RdB infobase of worldwide, 
         sales-approved reference accounts.  REFER's keyword search 
         capability lets you extract exactly the information you need 
         by industry, application, hardware/software, and other key 
         characteristics.  Once a user has found an account in the 
         REFER infobase that fits his/her needs, they can contact the 
         account manager for more information or for permission to use 
         the account as a reference.

               HOW ARE REFERENCE ACCOUNT PROFILES IN REFER USED?
         
         In REFER, a customer reference account profile represents an 
         account that has selected and installed Digital products or 
         uses Digital Services to solve a specific business problem.  
         There are many ways these profiles can help you:
             
         1.  CUSTOMER-TO-CUSTOMER CONTACT.  Such contact is 
             coordinated by the sales representatives (or Account 
             Managers) of each account.  The contact may involve a 
             telephone call or visit.  The installed customer's 
             "endorsement" of the Digital solution raises the 
             prospect's confidence in the Digital proposed solution.  
             This is the classic and most widespread use of the 
             reference account.
         
         2.  RFPs.  In the early stages of a sales proposal, a sales 
             representative must often submit a list of other Digital 
             customers who have implemented similar solutions.
         
         3.  SALES STRATEGY.  A sales representative can save time and 
             devise a more effective sales strategy by discussing 
             winning strategies with another representative who has 
             been in a similar selling situation.
         
         4.  INTRA-CUSTOMER CONTACT.  The policies of some 
             Corporations dictate that Management speak only to other 
             Divisions within their Corporation in terms of reference 
             sites.  The Digital sales representative uses REFER to 
             find other sites within that Corporation to serve as a 
             reference.
         
         5.  INTERNAL DIGITAL REFERENCES.  Many internal Digital sites 
             are "showcase accounts."  We use pioneering technology in 
             our distributed environment and these sites are excellent 
             "references."
         
         6.  BACKGROUND INFORMATION.  It is often useful for sales 
             representative to find out background information on a 
             software package, third-party product, CMP, SCMP, OEM, 
             etc.
         
         7.  TESTIMONIALS.  Reference accounts are used as "leads" by 
             Digital's Corporate Communications and Marketing groups, 
             to generate public relations, direct marketing, audio 
             visual, events, literature, and periodical testimonial 
             activites. 
                                       
         8.  MARKETING INFORMATION/INTELLIGENCE.  Reference accounts 
             are used often by marketing organizations to gather 
             marketing information or for other program purposes.
         

         
         HOW TO ACCESS REFER
         
         REFER is accessible worldwide through Digital's VTX Network. 
         For specifics on how to access REFER in Europe or GIA, 
         contact your Regional or Country Telecommunications Group or 
         Information Systems Support Organization.  In the U.S., REFER 
         can be accessed in three ways:
         
         o  ACCESS: Select "Customer Reference Account from the ACCESS 
            menu."  Then select "REFER."
         
         o  Corporate VTX Library:  First select "Sales & Marketing" 
            from the Corporate VTX Library Menu, then select "Customer 
            Reference Accounts (REFER) from the menu that follows.
         
         o  U.S. VTX Library:  First select "Sales & Marketing form 
            the U.S. VTX Libray menu, then select "Customer Reference 
            Accounts" from the menu that follows.  
          
                          REFER FEATURES AT A GLANCE
         
         o  REFER is a VTX-RdB-based reference account system used by 
            the Digital Sales Force and Marketing organizations.
         
         o  REFER is accessible worldwide through Digital's VTX 
            network.
         
         o  REFER contains more than 750 sales-approved reference 
            account profiles.
         
         o  REFER's keyword search capability allows the user to 
            locate the precise reference by using a wide range of 
            search variables.  These include:
         
            Digital Hardware
            Digital Software
            Company Name
            Parent Company Name
            Third-party Software
            Industry
            Geography(State, Country, U.S. Area, Province, etc.)
            Application
            Competitive Software and Hardware
            Other:  HP Conversion, DNA Accounts, SNA Gateway, etc.
         
         o  Once an account has been selected that fits a desired 
            profile, the Account Manager is contacted for more 
            information or for permission to use the account as a 
            reference.
         
         o  A built-in Thesaurus greatly simplifies the search process 
            by allowing a wide range of synonyms to locate a reference 
            account.  For example:  The user, in the Digital Hardware 
            search field, can enter VAX 780, 780, VAX780 or VAX-11/780 
            to find references which have a VAX-11/780 installed.  In 
            the third-party search field, the user can enter either a 
            third-party product or vendor name, such as CINCOM(the 
            vendor) or ULTRA(a CINCOM product).  REFER also has 
            application and Digital software thesauri.
         
         o  REFER's geographic thesaurus lets users search on 
            geographic regions, such as GIA, Europe, Northeast Area, 
            Alberta, etc.
         
         o  REFER's geographic thesaurus lets users search on 
            geographic regions, such as GIA, Europe, Northeast Area, 
            Alberta, etc.
         
         o  Integrated mail allows the user to mail REFER profiles 
            directly to any ALL-IN-1 mail account from REFER.  This 
            capabiltiy also allows a user to send a boilerplate letter 
            to a specified Account Manager, requesting permission to 
            use an account as a reference.
         
         o  REFER has an array of reporting and analysis tools, to 
            monitor system usage patterns and trends, in order to 
            improve infobase content and the user keyword search 
            interface.
         
         AN EXAMPLE OF USING REFER (FOR THE FIRST TIME USER)
         
    If you are trying REFER for the first time, try these instructions 
    to get a "feel" for the system and how it actually works.  
    Informations shown in boldface should be typed into the system as 
    shown.  Information shown within brackets is [descriptive] of what 
    should be typed into the system.  For example, VAX 8500 means you 
    actually type VAX 8500.  [Name] would indicate that you would type 
    your name in that location.
    
    1.	Enter VAX 8500 in the Digital HW (1) field.
    
    2.	Press RETURN repeatedly until the cursor is in the Industry 
        field.
    
    3.  Press PF1 and then PF2 to view the key industry search words.
    
    4.	Press PF3 to return to the search screen.
    
    5.	Enter AEROSPACE in the Industry field and then press PF1 and 
        then ENTER to begin the search.
    
    6.	Enter L and then PF1 and ENTER to list the accounts that are 
        in the Aerospace Industry and have a VAX 8500 installed.
    
    7.  Select the specific account you wish to view and press PF1 and 
        then ENTER.
    
    8.  The Account's information is displayed on two VTX pages.  Use 
        the RIGHT ARROW key to view the second page of the profile and 
        the LEFT ARROW key to return to the first page.
    
    9.	If you wish, you can mail the profile to you ALL-IN-1 mail 
        account.  Enter
        
        1 <RETURN>
        [your first name] <RETURN>
        [your last name] <RETURN>
        [your three-letter mail code] <RETURN>
        PF1 and ENTER
        
   10.	Press PF3 repeatedly until you return to the main search 
        screen.
   
   11.  Press PF1 and the . to exit the screen.  (. is a period).

   

    

    If you are aware of some good leads for insurance references, please
    list them in this note and we will follow up.  Also, this note can
    be used for discussion of the kind of business opportunity you are
    seeking to reference.
    
    Joan

    Aetna Corporate Legal Department:  spectacularly successful ALL-IN-1
    implementation on dual 8700 VAXcluster: a high-availability system
    featuring redundant HSC's, disk volume shadowing, and a LIGHTS-OUT
    operation (well... almost-> someone has to mount the backup tapes!).
    
    Sales Rep is: Mary Frances Restrepo (CTOAVX::RESTREPO or RESTREPO@HTF)
    
    Steve