What Are Your Hot Button Issues?
One of the questions I’m asked often is “how are others using Outsell in ways I’m not.”
Our clients get curious about their peers and about what they could be doing more of or differently. A hidden gem of our service whether via our community memberships or access to syndicated research and intelligence is what we call inquiry privilege. It’s the service layer between syndicated content, personalization for problem-solving, and bespoke consulting. We publish analysis that has broader relevance and clients often wonder what about the implications of these findings for their unique circumstances or business.
Or they will have what we have come to call a hot-button issue and want to speak confidentially to an expert on the subject. These too are inquiries. An inquiry typically takes a half-hour or so on a video call, our pulling research. They don’t involve new, original research but they are the mechanism by which we can support an ad hoc pressing issue that may or may not lead to custom consulting.
The objective is to deliver value and solve the problem right then and there. But sometimes the questions are too complex or require a lot of original research. I also love inquiries because they point to themes in industry and that feeds our research agenda which is a virtuous circle.
Most inquiries are so specific they are one and done. Most often that’s the case but they are important because every leader we know has hot-button issues. What are some inquiries of late? This is just what’s landed on my desk in my calls with CEOs, but multiply that times four executive advisors and 20+ additional analysts and SMEs (both segment and operating leads) and this is a small sampling of the questions we are asked and answer. Here’s a sample dozen from just the past two weeks:
- I’m opening a new government channel. What are the top-of-mind considerations to think about to enter that market?
- We are looking at improving audience development. How are others in our peer group handling this function and driving engagement?
- What are others doing to drive internal efficiency using GenAI? How are they deploying cost-savings?
- In your analysis about ABC Company, you raised emerging companies in the sector. Who are they? May I speak with the analyst covering that sector to identify the ones to watch?
- I am looking at acquisitions in the retail analytics space (travel space, property space, agriculture space…) Who participates in those sectors across the ecosystem?
- I’m having rifts between my product and technology function (marketing and sales — you get the picture). Can I speak with your experts in these functional areas to discuss RASI and how to sort?
- I am rolling out a new offering with completely new technical capabilities — what are ways to deploy it into the field that will optimize the salesteam’s odds of success?
- A key product offering of ours competes in a duopoly. How do we compare?
- We are considering community offerings in (fill in the blank) market. I’d like to bounce our ideas for positioning packaging and pricing off of you.
- How are students and professors (lawyers, doctors, salespeople…) information consumption habits changing?
- We have just been bought and I’m running a combined division in a much larger company — and it’s PE backed. Can I talk with a specialist about operating under PE ownership, integration efforts (etc.)?
- Related — we now have great ways to think about serving x end-user market — working backwards from their needs what are important considerations beyond our legacy solutions and revenue models?
That’s just a dozen or so questions. You can see how they could all lead to bespoke work, but they often do not. Other times they do. It’s about what’s best for the client. Inquiries are like short problem-solving calls — what cliff notes are to a book. Sometimes a client needs to go deep and we get brought in to sort the issues with product and technology or do a deeper dive on a new market or offering. Sometimes we go deep in very specific win-loss and positioning to compete in that duopoly. Other times the top of mind is ‘good enough’ and solves for the immediate problem at hand.
When we tell our clients we have their back it’s because of syndicated research + inquiry privilege that we are able to tailor a solution without going too far over the service line. It’s a good balance that’s win-win and the inquiries are always confidential to the client asking. That’s part of our ethics playbook.
When we get a spate of questions on the same topic it’s a queue to publish. What’s on your mind? Contact us. Odds are we will have answers for you while also sharing additional questions to consider as you face your hot-button issues head-on.