If you work in the IT industry, you may have heard the term “contract development”. Contract development is a method of receiving an order for system development according to the customer’s request and getting a reward on the condition of delivery.
By dealing with multiple companies, it becomes easier to receive stable job orders.
This time, we will introduce basic information on contract development and contract projects, as well as what the sales of contract projects are like and the tips.
table of contents
- 1. What is a contract development/contract project?
- 2. What is a contract business?
- 3. Key points for successful contract sales
- 4. Use the matching service to improve the efficiency of new development!
- 5. Matching service is also recommended for contract sales
What is a contract development/contract project?
Contract development is a form of work in which a company that wants to make a system receives an order and develops the system.
On the contrary, the method of developing everything from scratch in-house is called in-house development. If you can develop in-house, you can reduce the cost, and you can complete the correction and operation after development in-house, but there is a shortage of personnel for in-house development, or the technical capabilities necessary for development are not in-house. If you do, you will have to ask another company to develop it.
Contract development is the process of receiving an order from such a company for the development and development of the system. Since it is so-called “made-to-order development”, it has the advantage of being able to develop systems and software with functions and specifications that match the purpose of the introduction. In addition, if you conclude a contract for contract development, it is a feature that you will not be able to pay the reward until you complete the project. Outsourced development fees are determined through negotiations between the customer and the developer.
This negotiation is usually based on the amount of work and the difficulty level. The basic information on contract development is also explained in detail on the following pages. If you want to know more about the advantages and disadvantages, please also check ” What is contract development? Introducing the flow of system and software development “.
What is a contract business?
Sales are about selling your products and products to your customers and users. Contract sales are the job of introducing the introduction of services and equipment related to information systems and IT / computer technology to the company that places the order. I will explain in detail about contract sales, which is said to be particularly specialized among sales positions.
● Contract sales sell intangible things
Generally speaking, sales have the image of selling your products. However, in the case of contract development sales, what you sell is a system that develops at the request of customers, and it is not your job to sell your products that already exist as a form. We sell a system with specifications tailored to the ordering side, which does not yet exist in the world.
To put it simply, we treat “solutions” as products for the problems that the company on the ordering side has. In addition, it is the engineer who works on system and software development, and the job of contract sales is to make proposals and procedures for customers.
● IT knowledge is required to sell
When a system development company conducts contract development sales, information systems and programs are the targets of sales. When dealing with such products, sales staff also need IT knowledge. Contract sales are the job of listening to customer needs and proposing a system that meets them.
If it becomes clear that other functions are needed at the development stage, or if specifications change frequently, negotiations will occur each time. Sales reps must use their knowledge to quickly derive changes and negotiations commensurate with them. Therefore, contract sales must be professional sales positions that are as knowledgeable as possible about IT.
● Hearing skills affect the acceptance rate
Hearing is the next step after preparing for negotiations and understanding customers. Hearing is especially important in contract development sales.
A common problem or issue for orderers is that they often have a clear idea of what they want to do, what they want to make, and what they want to do, but they don’t know how to achieve it. In addition, the ordering party may not be able to grasp the issues and purposes they are facing in the first place.
It is indispensable for the sales staff to thoroughly hear the issues on the ordering side and the parts that they do not understand, and to highlight the problems. For contracted projects, conduct thorough hearings with customers, clarify requests and issues, and make mutually convincing proposals. As a sales force, it is necessary to accurately grasp the needs of customers and firmly determine the landing points for the issues of the other party. If this can be done, the contract rate will increase.
● If there is a delay in delivery, we may renegotiate.
Contract development often has a tight schedule. This is because system development often involves repeated errors and corrections, and even if it seems to be proceeding smoothly, it often requires major corrections in unexpected parts. The person in charge of contract sales may accurately explain to the ordering party the unexpected situation that may lead to such a delay in delivery and renegotiation. The contracted business operator should organize the contents of the hearing and gain the bargaining power to convince them so that troubles will not occur as much as possible.
One of the causes of this delay is that salespeople try to win deals by appealing that they can deliver as cheaply and quickly as possible. From the ordering side, price and delivery are important points when deciding on a contractor. As a result, price competition may occur between development companies that want to receive orders, and unreasonable schedules may be set. As a result, on the development company side, projects full of overtime are likely to occur.
Not operating on unreasonable schedules and prices also help maintain an optimal working environment within the company. It is important to consult with an engineer, etc., and then match it with the content of the hearing.
Key points for successful contract sales
Of course, the sales force is indispensable to outsource system development. But it’s not just about showing off what you can do and your skills. Contract sales are often unsuccessful when you work like regular sales because the preparation required for each process is complicated and time-consuming.
Here, we will explain the sales points of contract development.
● Explain technical terms by chewing
Due to the nature of requiring IT knowledge, some contract sales representatives were once engineers and programmers. When a technician such as an engineer or programmer changes jobs to contract sales, care must be taken not to overuse difficult technical terms in sales activities and meetings with the ordering side. It’s not limited to system development, but the more familiar you are with the industry, the more likely you are to list technical terms. However, the recipient of the sales often lacks knowledge about the system, and if the expression is difficult to understand, it will be difficult to conclude a contract smoothly.
For those who have become contract sales from engineers and programmers, the sales content is persuasive, but rather the technology and experience that they have cultivated up to that point can be an obstacle. Depending on the IT knowledge of the recipient of the sales, avoid technical terms as much as possible, and try to explain the merits of system introduction and development in detail.
● Open after delivery
Contract sales are not the end of acquiring contracts for projects from customers, and follow-up after delivery is also essential. In the contract development of a system, it is ideal to perform after-sales follow-up according to the request from the client even after the system is delivered. Even after sales have been made, you can earn the trust of customers by following up and working with them. During the after-sales follow-up, there is a high possibility that we will hear requests such as “I want to do more like this” and lead to a renewal contract.
Use the matching service to improve the efficiency of new development!
Sales of contract development of a system development company are one of the most difficult sales positions, and training new sales staff is a high hurdle in terms of manpower, time, and cost. It is difficult to find a person in charge who has both IT knowledge and sales ability, even if we just collect human resources who have sales experience or former engineers.
Also, even if we focus on training sales staff, we will not be able to receive orders immediately. Therefore, what I would like to pay attention to is a matching service that connects the company that wants to place an order with the development company that wants to receive an order. Matching services dealing with article writing and web design are famous, but nowadays matching services dealing with system development projects are also widespread.
If you do not have the sales know-how for contract development projects, it is difficult for your company’s employees to cover the sales. In such a case, we recommend that you first use the matching service to win the project. Considering that projects that require specialized knowledge, such as system development, have large returns, including continuing projects, it is a good idea to first use a matching service to improve work efficiency.
● What is a matching service?
Even if you say a matching service in a bite, many people will not be able to understand what it is like if you have never used it.
Matching service means a Web system that connects businesses and individuals who need goods and services, such as business contracting, recruiting, and buying and selling of used goods, and those who provide them. In particular, the combination of businesses in the business field is called “business matching.” Such a matching service can reduce the man-hours required to acquire a proposal opportunity with a prospective customer, and solve the problem of acquiring a new project. In the case of build-to-order development, the referral flow performed by the matching service is as follows.
- Matching service company hears all cases
- Contract development companies appeal their achievements and strengths
- Narrow down the companies that match the project from the entry companies to a few companies
- After the introduction, we will make a proposal and make a quotation through business negotiations with the orderer and appeal directly.
As mentioned above, the development company that receives the contract development must accurately understand the needs of the ordering party to satisfy the ordering party. Failure to hear and agree on what kind of system you want, how much your budget is, etc. will cause contract failures and complaints.
By using the matching service, you can accurately grasp the needs and needs of clients, which is a shortcut to contracts that meet each other’s conditions. It’s not easy to build a relationship with a client from scratch, but if you ask a matching service company with a wealth of experience and experience, building a relationship will be smooth.
Matching service is also recommended for contract sales
This time, I introduced what kind of sales are about contract development.
Sales related to contract development have more knowledge range and required skills than ordinary sales positions, and the difficulty level is high, so it is difficult to develop them. Matching services are what we want to use to make up for the shortage of sales activities. The matching service is attractive because it can constantly search for new business partners, and the system development company itself can be the best partner for the project.
However, comprehensive matching services often do not match well due to the absence of a knowledgeable system development concierge. The matching service that specializes in system development is matched after the specialized concierge has thoroughly heard about the content of the project, so there is no discrepancy between the development company and the company on the ordering side. If you are struggling to find potential customers or feel uneasy about the sales of contracted projects, please use it.
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