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Is the prospect’s apathy toward security their fault?

February 14, 2014

By Bob Johnson, NAID CEO

It’s the universal lament of the secure data destruction vendor heard from New Hampshire to Hong Kong: “The customer only cares about price!”

But is that their fault or ours? After all, it’s not their job to know about data protection regulations, breach notification, vendor qualifications or the consequences of choosing an unsecure option any more than you’d be expected to know the intricacies of their industry. All the customer knows is he/she needs to get rid of something.

If you can’t give them a compelling reason for thinking of it as anything but a simple, bottom-line decision, whose fault is it? In fact, if you’re selling me a pair of shoes that cost twice as much as another pair and you can’t give me a compelling reason to spend more, it would actually be foolish for me to pay your price.

In one of my conference sessions, I will provide a range of strategies for getting prospects to place more importance on security. Whether it’s the assistant calling to get three prices for his boss, to the seasoned buyer who sees security as a hallow concern, attendees at this session will leave with a plan of action. No, I am not promising a silver bullet, because there is none. But, I am promising that you will leave this session knowing you can do more than just complain so you are confident in your understanding of the value your service represents.

“Tools and Tactics to Increase Data Security Awareness” will be held from 2:30 to 3:20 p.m. Saturday, April 5. Click here for complete details on the NAID 2014 Annual Conference and to register. A 10 percent registration discount will apply until March 3.