In sales of technical products, having the input of a software engineer can be invaluable. This is the reason that a presales (technical sales) engineer plays such a vital role in the sales cycle of technical products. The role itself allows for deals to be quailed from a technical perspective, with client needs being able to be better understood than were they qualified by a traditional sales person.

While presales engineers aren’t as likely to finish the sale off, using them to understand the client’s needs can not only establish the technical expertise in the sales process, but above all else presales engineering builds in rapport and sales empathy into the sales process.

So, what do I look for in a presales engineer?

As it turns out, there is very little difference between sales and presales, especially when presales have direct line KPIs leading to sales. Presales engineers will usually shadow salespeople, and help sales teams achieve their sales goals by helping them in validating the technical aspects of deals.

One of the biggest objections, especially in enterprise sales is the constant questioning of functionality, only to finish with “well if it had this feature I’d buy it”. One of the key values in enterprise software sales is in pre-sales engineers being able to distil these types of sales objections into clear, distinct feature requests with a cost attached. So the first thing I always look for is the ability to translate technical questions into physical features.

Presales engineers usually need a very clear understanding of the industry sales cycle in order to be effective. With long sales cycles in enterprise, the idea that organisations can turn on a dime needs to be prevalent in all presales engineer’s minds. I’ve heard countless horror stories of sales people saying one thing, but presales engineers saying another thing entirely, and in the ensuing chaos the client leaves for a competitor.

Under a best-case scenario, sales generates the lead, and presales validates the opportunity for the client. If presales can present the solution in front of the client, with clear benefits and next steps, the closing opportunity can be easy.

Above all else, the ability for the engineer to build rapport through the sales process remains key. It’s one thing to be technical, it’s another thing entirely to be technical while still being personable.

Think you fill in all these criteria? Get in touch at pete.bouris@s2m.com.au