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Revving Up Your Sales Force for a
Successful Product Launch
--------------------  Members Only Roundtable---------------------
Pre-registration is required and seating is limited.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Hosted by Confluence, 600 River Avenue, Pittsburgh PA 15212-5935
A well-designed, brilliantly engineered product with a strong marketing plan is a great start to a successful product launch. However, unless your sales force really understands how the new product meets their customers’ needs and better than the competition, your product probably won’t meet its revenue objectives. The next step is key: successfully preparing your sales force to launch the product in the field. But, you are often competing with other products in your organization to get---and keep---the attention of the sales force.
In this PSN Member Roundtable, we’ve invited 3 experienced practitioners to share their practices, tips, and lessons learned in transferring knowledge from the product management and marketing organizations to the sales force:
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Michael McGuire, VP, Media Business Unit
Management Science Associates
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Wendy Armstrong, Product Marketing Manager
McKesson Automation
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Harry Ostaffe, Dir. of Marketing and Business Development
Powercast
We will start the Roundtable meeting by asking the questions below, and all participants will have ample opportunity to ask their specific questions, and get ideas and advice:
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When should product/market knowledge be transferred to the
sales force?
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What information does the sales force need and how do you
determine this?
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What approaches are necessary and effective for training the sales force? What are some of the challenges and how do you address them?
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How do you arm the sales force with useful knowledge of your competition and your competitive advantages?
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What is your strategy for gaining sales “wins” in key market segments/geographies?
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What tips/techniques can you share for demonstrating tangible product benefits and purchase justifications?
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What incentives or creative programs have you used with your sales force to encourage early sales into key accounts?
Who Should Attend?
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Product Managers, Product Marketing Managers, Strategic Marketing Managers, Market Managers, and Sales Managers
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Directors and Vice Presidents of these functions
Agenda
5:30 – 6:00 Networking over food/beverages
6:00 – 6:15 Introductions
6:15 – 8:00 Moderated Discussion & Q&A
8:00 – 8:30 Additional networking
About the Panelists:
Michael McGuire, VP, Media Business Unit, Management Science Associates
Michael McGuire is a Vice President for MSA Media Division with responsibility for the ERP software products and analytic services offered by the division. Mr. McGuire has been with MSA for 20 years holding various positions as an account manager, business analyst, and product manager prior to his current position. Mr. McGuire has a B.S. in Industrial Management from Carnegie Mellon University.
 Harry Ostaffe, Dir. of Marketing and Business Development, Powercast
Harry Ostaffe (Linked In) is the Director of Marketing and Business Development with Powercast. He has over 20 years of marketing, product management and engineering experience in the fields of data communications and wireless networking, industrial controls, and computing, including previous positions with Ericsson, Marconi, Lucent Technologies, AT&T Network Systems, Bayer, and IBM. Harry holds an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University and a BS in Electrical Engineering from Penn State University.
 Wendy Armstrong, Product Marketing Manager, McKesson Automation
Wendy Armstrong (Linked In) has over 18 years of experience developing and commercializing a diverse range of technology products. Prior to McKesson, she was as an Executive in Residence for Idea Foundry, which provides seed capital and management resources to startup companies. Previously, she was the Vice President, Product Strategy and Marketing for Sim Ops Studios, Director of Marketing for ChemImage, Product Manager at FreeMarkets, Manager of e-Business Development at Respironics, and an Associate Producer for ABC News/Capital Cities. Ms. Armstrong has a BA in Political Science from Colby College and is a contributing writer for the PSN's Inside Product Strategy e-zine.
Eligibility:
This Roundtable is for PSN Members only. Registration is free and
pre-registration is required. Seating is limited.
Fee:
Free for PSN Members.
To Register:
PSN Members should register online using the link below, or send an e-mail to:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
with their full contact information. Confirmation of registration will be sent by e-mail.
Eligible non-members will need to become a PSN Member to attend this meeting.
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When:
Wednesday,
Oct. 14, 2009
5:30 p.m. to
8 p.m.
Where:
Hosted by Confluence, 600 River Avenue, Pittsburgh PA 15212-5935
Fees:
Free for PSN Members!
Pre-registration is required
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