 |
It’s important to know who we are, because if we don’t know, we can’t expect the customer to. And if the customer doesn’t know, it’s hard to see why they'd buy from us. Setting aside for a moment our rapid expansion in cleaners, sealants, and other specialty chemicals, APC's core business has always been cable pulling lubricants. For that niche we can summarize our identity in one sentence: We help people install cable in conduit. But can’t our competitors claim the same identity? No, their mottos might as well read: "We’re just like Polywater"; or "We’re big, and you’re not"; or "Our prices are lower than their quality"; or "Our literature and display racks are the prettiest." No other cable lubricant manufacturer commits as much time and energy to basic research, technical advancement, product development, and industry contribution. It’s the hard road; it took a long time to get here; and we’re proud of it. Part of your goal is to convey this identity to the market via the words and tactics you choose in your sales presentations. One of the greatest tools available to you is our cable pulling software, the Pull-Planner™ 2000 for Windows™. Contained within this computing marvel are thirty-five years of leading-edge knowledge, experience, and research. There are a few other obscure programs on the market, but their makers are generally software companies, not lubricant manufacturers. Good luck to the users who call them with real-world, field-related technical questions. APC has never actually turned a profit on the Pull-Planner™, and probably never will. That’s not why we developed it. It’s there to assist our good customers, contribute to the industry, showcase our expertise, and help specify our bread-winning lubricants. The Pull-Planner™ continues to improve with age as new versions add speed, graphics, and cool features. Absolutely nothing we have differentiates us more than this program. Be proud to represent it. Talk it up. Realize that discounted software offers work like magic at helping close big contractor sales or engineer specifications--or cementing relations at utilities, phone companies, and even distributors. You don't even need to sell it to succeed. Simply by mentioning it you position APC in the mind of the customer. They then know us a little bit better. |
