Question

Topic: Strategy

Enterprise Content Management Software Market

Posted by Anonymous on 3/8/2010 at 3:30 PM ET 125 Points
Hi,

I'm looking into the Enterprise content management software market. Looking at how an industry like this can and should market themselves. As this seems to be a very specific industry where you will only look for it if you need such a thing. It's not something you see an ad on tv one evening and think hey, i think i should get that for my company.

Who do these companies target their communications? I'm guess the IT department in an organisation. But I'm guessing it's not a consumable and if an organisation already have a system in place why would they want to change? What are the factors that trigger the target to find a new system?

I came across this company I.R.I.S. group based in Belgium.
I see they have a wide variety of products. Some are very professional and specialised. But i found this IRISNext product which i find is in the area that i'm looking for.

Anyone can shed any light on this area? For example anyone has any experience in IRISNext or similar products.Other products i found was IBM fileNet and EMC documentum. Both are also mentioned on the IRISNext site.

Thanks,
David
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RESPONSES

  • Posted on 3/10/2010 at 10:31 AM Accepted
    It's not clear from your post if you are looking to sell ECMS or buy ECMS. . . are you evaluating solutions or looking to position against them. Some additional information would help.

    That said, regarding marketing these products in an organization. ECMS would utilize classic business-2-business marketing techniques. The key is going to be segmenting your audience, defining their specific needs and tailoring your message accordingly. For example, larger organizations typcially use enterprise content management systems for controlling and organization technical documentation that has to be maintained, so your IT guys is not going to be the contact. He or she will certainly play a role in the final purchase decision, but will likely not be the need driver. Look at customer service / support, employee training, and internal communications titles and market to them. Be sure your messaging directly targets their specific pain points (managing revision cycles, lowering onboarding costs and sharing valuable data, respectively).

    Also - ECMS seems to be a pretty vertical industry, meaning law firms tend to go with vendors that specialize in serving law firms, manufacturing seems to go with manufacturing, etc. There are exceptions - some of which you mentioned - but if you are marketing an ECMS product you might want to analyze your current customer base and target based on your specialty. Same goes if you are buying. . . look for someone with customer testimonials in your market.

    As for "why would they switch". . . the mantra of b2b marketing. . . lowering costs, improving the bottom line or saving time/money. Tie your solutions to one of these.

    Hope this helps.
    MM
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