Presales Road Warrior: Part I
On-site software presales is an art form. But, is it becoming a lost art?
Technological developments and evolving cultural expectations have changed the way we think about business meetings and business travel. Bluntly put, virtual meetings have proliferated, which has had knock-on effects for business travel. In many contexts, virtual meetings have become the default option.
As meeting virtually has generally become the most convenient option, it is important to ask if it is the best option.
Should we meet on-site or off-site, in-person or virtually?
This question is pertinent to the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) industry. Sellers of ERP often rely on presales professionals called Solution Engineers (SEs) to demo high-value ERP software for prospective buyers. SEs can often choose whether to meet prospective buyers and show them the ERP software in-person (on-site) or virtually via video call.
For some presales Solution Engineers, the answer is black and white: Travel on-site to perform Discoveries for complex manufacturing clients. Otherwise, stay at home. In other words, travel only when necessary.
At Presales Leader, we know that travel can have high costs; however, we believe that hitting the road and getting on-site can benefit software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies in several important ways.
Benefits of Going On-Site
Benefit #1: Connection is Personal
People disagree on the degree to which relationships impact sales cycles. But most agree that, all else equal, humans are more likely to buy from those they trust.
People often find it easier to build trust with a client when they are together in person. When you are in person with a client, you have opportunities for connection that do not exist in a virtual setting. Consider mealtime. When you’re on-site with a clien,t you can share meals or coffee breaks. These interactions can reveal common ground, show care, and lead to spontaneous conversations that would not occur otherwise.
Some SEs observe that clients engage differently when you are together with them in person. According to one SE I interviewed, “When you are sitting in the same room [as a client], there is a greater inherent level of human-to-human respect. It feels like they are rooting for you naturally when you are meeting in person.”
Benefit #2: Observation Is An Excellent Teacher
Understanding the business processes of the prospective buyer is critical to the success of an SE. A deep understanding helps the SE to demo solutions that resonate with the prospect and function well in their unique context.
Going on-site enables SEs to learn things about a client’s business that would be nearly impossible to learn virtually. Touring a prospect’s facility for 15 minutes can tell you more than 3 hours of Q&A with the prospect.
Do they like new fancy things, or are they going to run things until the wheels come off?
Is inventory kept organized, or is the warehouse in disarray?
Who's really a decision maker, and who's along for the ride?
How many languages are you overhearing on the manufacturing floor?
Likely, without going on-site, an SE would have a difficult time answering these questions. Oddly enough, these questions shed light on which particular solutions will work well for the business and which are not a good fit.
Finally, being in-person allows SEs to observe the prospects ("read the room") in ways that are impossible virtually. This helps SEs navigate demos, which are often long and complex, and maximize for understanding, clarity, and buyer confidence.
Benefit #3: Accelerating SE Development
It is common knowledge that learning a language via immersive experience is superior to other methods. Why would learning to be an SE be any different? On-site software presales train SEs more quickly and comprehensively than off-site presales. According to another veteran SE, one year of on-site experience is equivalent to approximately three years of virtual experience, in terms of professional development. Extrapolating from that perspective, five years of in-person work equips an SE with about fifteen years' worth of industry skills. Sending an SE on-site is a significant investment in their education, ability, and development.
Benefit #4: Higher Win Rates
Practicing on-site presales can boost a presales Solution Engineer’s win rate. If on-site presence accelerates the trust-building process, leads to a superior understanding of buyers’ needs, and accelerates the SE’s professional development, then it is obvious that on-site presales will result in higher win rates for SEs in the long run.
Conclusion
We at Presales Leader believe that on-site presales can help SEs perform at their full potential. Of course, there are costs of going on-site (which we will discuss in our next blog), and it is not always wise or possible to do so. However, in a time where our world and industry have made virtual meetings the default option, it is prudent to consider the trade-offs of each option and work accordingly.
TLDR
While virtual meetings are the new default, on-site presales remain a competitive edge for SaaS and ERP companies. Going "on the road" offers four advantages that video calls can't replicate:
Trust Generation: Physical presence, shared meals, and side conversations build human rapport and buyer confidence faster than a screen ever will.
Observational Depth: You can’t "read the room" or spot a messy warehouse over Zoom. On-site observation reveals the real business gaps that clients often forget to mention.
The 3x Growth Rule: One year of on-site experience provides roughly three years’ worth of professional development compared to remote work.
Higher Win Rates: Better discovery and deeper trust naturally lead to more closed deals.
The Bottom Line: Virtual is convenient, but on-site is transformational. For high-stakes ERP deals, the "Road Warrior" approach is an investment, not just an expense.
