|
SMG Case Study
Client: Computer
Aided Design (CAD) Software Company
Problem Description:
The
client is a pioneer in the field of 3D CAD software
products for mechanical engineers.
Recently, a dominant player in the 2D CAD market
released a similar 3D product in direct competition with
our client’s main line of business.
The client needed to know how the engineering
market was receiving this competitive product, how many
units had been sold, and how much of a threat this new
product actually was.
Project Development:
Phase 1:
SMG
targeted two key market participants who would have
insight into the product showdown:
Value-added Resellers (VARs) and end users.
- VARs
sell CAD software as well as needed support and
maintenance services directly to engineers.
VARs are often in competitive selling
situations and are relied upon by the software
vendor to represent their products well.
In a competitive selling situation the VAR is
very aware of how and why one software product edges
out another.
- End
users of CAD software are engineers.
VARs can refer SMG to companies and engineers
who recently made a 3D CAD product comparison and
decided for or against the competitor’s product.
Furthermore, the competitor publicized
testimonials of satisfied users who could provide
additional insight into the success of the
competitive product.
The opinions of these users are critical in
determining how comparable these products are.
The
client provided SMG with a list of VARs who had recently
faced the new product in a competitive sell as well as a
list of accounts that are known to have compared the two
products. SMG
developed specific questions targeted at VARs that would
help show (1) how many software seats of the competitive
product had been sold and (2) on what basis the
competitive product was winning over our client’s
products. SMG
developed specific questions for end-users oriented
towards the technical merits of the CAD software
products they had compared.
Phase 2:
SMG
went to work contacting engineers who bought or
considered the competitor’s CAD product, taking
careful note of all of the factors that go into the
purchase decision.
SMG interviewed VARs in order to further identify
the demographics of the buyers of the competitor’s
product. Finally,
SMG spoke with industry analysts and experts to gather
their insights into the market penetration and
acceptance of the rival product.
Final Report Recommendations:
SMG
research and analysis clearly indicated that the
competitor’s rival CAD product, although widely
regarded as an inferior product, represented a major
threat to our client. Shipments of the product were not significant in terms of
market share. However,
they were very significant relative the amount of time
the product was on the market.
Impact:
The
management of SMG’s client realized that this new
competitor was no idle threat to their main line of
business. Soon
after the final report, the client assembled a special
task force to confront this competitor.
This group would gather information about the
progress of the competitor’s product and keep the
sales force well-prepared for future encounters.
Press here to view sample
CAD
Case Study slides.
|
