As a vendor, let me give you a recommendation.
When meeting with the IT staff who are vital to getting your product to work correctly, here are the things you should not do:
- Belittle the current solution. You never know who is listening and how your comment is going to be taken.
- Don’t patronize. That IT staff member might know more about what you are trying to talk about than you do.
- Watch your tone of voice. Talking down to someone because they don’t have “X-year of experience with this product” is not going to engender trust.
- Cut the gimmicks. IT staff do not care about having their picture in your product or that little gift you are handing out. Actually, it probably raises flags in our heads about what you are NOT telling us.
- Always have an answer for the following: what are the weaknesses/problems with your product/solution. Not having an answer will also raise flags.
That’s just a start.
The start of any relationship with any vendor is of vital importance because it sets the ground rules for how things are going to go and the mood and tone for the relationship going forward. Don’t mess it up.