How to Get Executive Buy-In for Your Software Monetization Program
Planning ahead in business might sound glaringly obvious, but organizations tend to get so caught up in the development of their products, that they lose sight of basic requirements like licensing. According to Gemalto’s Senior Vice President of Software Monetization, Shlomo Weiss, this is a rookie mistake. He believes that licensing, when implemented as a software monetization program, can bring tremendous value to an organization and, therefore, should be given due consideration.
Product managers who recognize this often take it upon themselves to drive the program within their organizations. However, as licensing cuts across a number of departments, executive buy-in becomes crucial to the success of any software monetization initiative. The question is, why would an executive support and prioritize such an initiative?
“One reason might be that the customer experience is not running as smoothly as it could or should be – for instance, if the customer is complaining about implementation, activation, or any other stage of the licensing lifecycle”, posits Weiss. “Another reason might be that an organization is spending too much time dealing with licensing issues, placing an unreasonable load on the support team”.
Indeed, even if an organization hasn’t come up against the aforementioned pain points, an executive might want to jump in early to preempt them.
So how does one go about pitching software monetization to a C-Level executive to get their buy-in?
“You could use the typical build-versus-buy rationale to explain how a new licensing strategy would be an improvement over the existing homegrown system. Perhaps the organization is leaving a ton of money on the table because its current business model isn’t flexible enough or it’s not enforcing licenses”.
That being said, Weiss is quick to point out that the pitch shouldn’t be about competitive replacement. The focus, he says, should be on maintaining your competitive edge; whether that involves improving the customer experience and reducing support calls, or streamlining your back office. Whatever business challenges your organization is facing, there’s a good chance that they can be resolved – and even turned into opportunities – using licensing technology.
“You’ll need to convince your executive that software monetization represents excellent business value”, offers Weiss. “The fact that it enables you to retain and attract new customers, and reach valuable new market segments, while simultaneously safeguarding existing revenue, is a pretty solid argument. But we can take it a step further and say that truly agile software monetization minimizes the risk of obsolescence, helping to future-proof your business”.
However, he warns that you may experience some pushback, as the benefits of software monetization are not always immediately obvious to executives. “Start out by focusing on the short-term business benefits. For instance, if you wanted to release a new product on a subscription basis, licensing would provide the means of tracking and enforcing it. This would be a revenue opportunity worth seizing”.
In fact, there are numerous reasons to entrust your licensing requirements to a licensing specialist such as Gemalto. Firstly, years of industry experience and ongoing support ensure a smooth, hassle-free back-office integration with minimal impact on your IT department. Secondly, you get to choose from a wide range of licensing and software monetization solutions that best suit your business needs. Thirdly, you are spared the costs associated with a homegrown solution – from initial implementation through ongoing maintenance management – allowing you to focus on your core competencies.
The key thing to remember is that software monetization isn’t an all-or-nothing proposition: you can start monetizing one product and, over time, expand it across your entire portfolio. As long as you plan broadly, mitigate risk, and measure success, there’s no reason why you can’t realize all your business goals and even exceed them.
