Matt and I attended the Global Sourcing Forum and Expo at the Javits Convention Center in New York last week. This was the second year we attended and based on this year’s turnout it will probably be our last. We attended the show’s second and final day and there were easily more providers and speakers than buyers in attendance. I counted 90 or so companies exhibiting and 60 speakers for the keynote and breakout tracks, if there were more than 25 buyers I would be surprised. In fact, the only companies making money at this event was the convention center and the concessionaires who were charging $4.00 for a bottle of water. There was strong representation from Asia, Latin America, Europe, and even a few U.S. companies; the usual ITO and BPO capabilities were on display as well.
As we walked from booth to booth we noticed the messaging from each of the providers was almost identical. Each one claimed to have the right certifications, the brightest people, the lowest cost, and able to produce results immediately. Exhibitors were quick to thrust expensive brochures at prospects but rarely did they ask about their business, the issues they face, or to quantify how their service could benefit them. This approach to sales is very expensive and rarely proves the results that companies considering outsourcing are looking to achieve. Proper prospect targeting, good messaging, a compelling value proposition and a lead management process are by far a more effective use of sales dollars.
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