Web Briefing

CXOs Are Different: Building Relationships through Councils and Community

Tuesday, June 20, 2006
8:00 am Pacific – 11:00 am Eastern – 16:00 London (Duration: One hour)
(Free for ITSMA members)

Registration Closed

Overview

For the last several years, ITSMA has emphasized and reemphasized the fact that there’s a new buyer reality out there. Buyers are smarter, savvier, and more skeptical about technology offerings than ever before. Take that reality and double it when you're talking about CXOs, the most important group for marketers who want to engage in higher-level business discussion with those who have the power to buy.

Succeeding with the C-level requires sophistication far beyond traditional marketing communications, user councils, and white papers on the Web. Providing value and building relationships are clearly the starting point, but focusing on these is no guarantee of success with the incisive CXO.

Among the most interesting and potentially effective approaches are those that emphasize networks and communities that enable customers and others to talk to and learn from each other. And at the heart of any effective CXO network is a reciprocal value proposition; participants must receive as much (if not more) from the network as they give.

Join ITSMA’s Steve Hurley, Tapestry Networks’ Mark Bonchek, Avaya’s Nancy Maluso, and IBM’s Robyn Bennett for an overview of:

• ITSMA research on the importance of a relationship-building approach
• What makes participation in a CXO network attractive for the CXO
• The five key principles for building effective CXO networks or councils
• Avaya’s Executive Relationship Marketing Program and IBM’s Board of Advisors
• Metrics for measuring your program’s success

ITSMA Presenter	[TOP OF PAGE]

Steve Hurley
Vice President, Member Engagement
shurley@itsma.com

Steve leads ITSMA’s member engagement team, which works directly with member companies to provide focused advisory support on a wide range of marketing and sales challenges. Steve leads the development of ITSMA’s project methodologies and frameworks and oversees advisory projects on such issues as: go-to-market strategy; growing the solutions business; portfolio rationalization; account-based marketing; and relationship growth.

General Information	[TOP OF PAGE]

ITSMA's Online Briefings offer recent research findings or survey results from thought leaders on a variety of services marketing topics. The Online Briefings can be viewed individually, or in groups composed of people within the same company. The briefings are available anywhere in the world that has telephone service and access to the Internet. A typical program runs 45 minutes followed by 15 minutes of questions and answers. The person making the online presentation speaks into a telephone and advances the visual portion of the presentation via their computer connected to the Internet. At the end of the presentation. and at the presenter's discretion, the listeners are invited to ask questions. Each listener with a question identifies him or herself and is listed in a queue and taken one at a time by the presentation monitor. The monitor also manages the question and answer session by giving each questioner access to the phone line to communicate with the presenter.

Technical Requirements	[TOP OF PAGE]

This briefing will be administered by Connex International. All participants are required to test their browsers on Connex International's Website 24-48 hours prior to ensure they are ‘Java-enabled’. This test can be done at www.connexpresents.com, by clicking on the "Equipment Check" icon.
You will receive a pass code and dial in number 24-48 hours prior to the briefing.

The technical requirements for this ITSMA online briefing are:

• Direct or dial-up Internet connection of 28.8 kb/s or higher. An AOL or wireless connection is not recommended.
• A separate telephone line to access the audio teleconference.
• If participating from your company, ask about your company’s Internet Firewall 48 hours prior to the event. This will enable your technician or a Connex technician to reconfigure connections to ensure access to the Internet portion of the briefing.
• No plug-ins or software downloads are required.
• System Requirements: Windows 98 SE or higher with JAVA enabled, Internet Explorer 5.x or greater or Netscape 4.75, 4.79, 4.80, or 7.1. The following operating systems "may work with limitations," although they are not supported: Mac OS X family with Safari 1.0; Linux Redhat 6.2 with Netscape 4.7x; Solaris 8 with Netscape 4.7x.
• Works through 99% of all firewalls and proxy servers.

Fees and Registration	[TOP OF PAGE]

Aside from the telephone call, the fee for the presentation is complimentary for active ITSMA members, and $95 per location for non-members.

Note: Registration is on a first-come/first-served basis. You must register by 5:00 pm ET, June 19, 2006.

About ITSMA
ITSMA specializes in helping companies market and sell services and solutions. As a membership organization, we work with the world's leading technology, communications, and professional services firms to generate new business, strengthen customer loyalty, and increase brand differentiation. Through research, consulting, training, and community we provide the insight companies need to improve marketing impact, sales performance, and business results. ITSMA is based in Lexington, Massachusetts, and has offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan. Learn more at www.itsma.com.