There are a lot of moving pieces that go into a product evaluation. You need to navigate through the myriad of options in today's marketplace, attend vendor demonstrations, try the software in a test environment to ensure it works as expected, request pricing and consider if the quote provided fits in your budget, and finally narrow it down to the solution you want to purchase.
Unfortunately, that’s not always the end of the line. Once a choice is made, many IT professionals then have to tackle the internal checklist: making sure stakeholders will sign-off on the purchase price, maintenance fees, and any additional features you want to license.
We know it’s important to get the resources you need in order to deliver a knockout "elevator pitch" to your stakeholders. If you’re looking for a quick way to prove the ROI of your chosen managed file transfer solution, use these 6 suggestions to build your case and have a successful buy-in conversation with your organization.
Tip #1: Make Saying "Yes" Easy
Stakeholders are busy people. If you want an easy approval process, you’ll want to lay out a strong case for purchase backed by even stronger business data. The best way to approach this is to ensure you have the resources stakeholders will want to see ready to go.
Which resources should you use? Here are a few we recommend.
MFT Buyer’s Guide: A comprehensive, 27-page guide with considerations for industry, cybersecurity, and compliance, an overview of key MFT features, evaluation tips for budgeting and ROI, and steps to take even after the sale is won.
ROI Calculator Report: Calculate a snapshot of how much your organization could save with a managed file transfer solution like GoAnywhere MFT. After your snapshot, you can opt to run the full, in-depth report for even more proof of return on your pending investment.
Info-Tech MFT Category Report: Explore what real users say about the managed file transfer vendors leading the file transfer software landscape. This analysis compares top MFT vendors and shows who the leaders are in vendor and product feature satisfaction.
Gartner Peer Insights Reviews: Third-party review sites like Gartner, or even Capterra and G2, are great places to look when preparing to justify your selected MFT vendor. Reviews are honest and can help back your upcoming MFT presentation.
If your stakeholders prefer to see all the details, you can send these documents in full, or simply grab the snippets that best provide the proof they need to sign-off on your chosen product. Either way, having these resources in your "proof" packet will help strengthen your justification!
Tip #2: Gather Data from Likeminded Customers
Check out the customer stories (or case studies) presented on the MFT vendor’s website. Chances are, some of these stories—including what led them to purchase the solution and how it’s helped solve their needs—touch on the vulnerabilities, requirements, or other use cases you’re facing in your organization.
When you find a customer story that echoes your situation, look for statistics in the story that show what a successful implementation could look like for you if you use the same software. Then, share these details, alongside the customer story itself, with your stakeholders.
Here’s a real-life example of this:
The Bank of Tennessee uses GoAnywhere’s managed file transfer solution to secure the file transfers exchanged with customers and trading partners. Originally, they used a site they’d built internally to exchange data with their customers, but this method was time-consuming to manage. When the programmer who had made the site left, the Bank of Tennessee looked for a replacement that would streamline their processes.
What they needed: A reliable solution. Strong security features. Secure customer collaboration.
What they got: An easy-to-use product. Advanced reporting for meeting security requirements. Alerts for tracking invalid user logins. Streamlined remote check deposits with automation. Triggers for end-to-end file transfer processing. Seamless user setup.
Tip #3: Ask the Vendor for Customer Buy-In Tips
Rest easy—you’re not alone in your quest for internal buy-in! Nearly every customer of the vendor you’ve selected has been through the same rodeo, and most likely, they’d be happy to give you tips on how they justified their purchase to stakeholders. Just ask the vendor if they have any tips or ideas from customers to pass your way.
We asked GoAnywhere users what they did when getting buy-in. Here are a few of their responses:
Tip #4: Share the Benefits You Discovered during Your Software Trial
A software trial is one of the best ways to prove the benefits of your chosen solution. If you need to justify a purchase, make note of the benefits you saw during your MFT trial and present them to your stakeholders. For example, you could address these questions:
- Were you immediately notified of a failed transfer?
- Did you save time on creating file transfers, and if so, how much time?
- Did the encryption features make file security quicker and easier to handle?
- Were you able to quickly and efficiently create project workflows for automation?
- Are there tools or processes you’ll be able to sunset by implementing MFT?
- Was the time you spent resolving errors and failed transfers significantly reduced?
- Will this solution reduce or eliminate the time your team spends on redundant tasks?
- Can the solution scale to meet future file transfer needs, like increased volume, additional trading partners, or a move to a cloud environment?
If you weren’t able to make note of these values during the trial, or if you weren’t the one who ran the trial, there’s still a way to share the benefits with your internal stakeholders. A tool like an ROI calculator can give you an in-depth look at how a managed file transfer can save your organization time and money. You can do an instant calculation to see a snapshot of your savings or request the full report to see those savings in detail.
Tip #5: Use This Email Template to Share Proof of ROI
You’re ready to send an email to your stakeholders, complete with resources you’d like to present beside your software suggestion, but you hesitate. What’s the best way to put all the details together?
First, we recommend putting all the snippets of proof in a PowerPoint deck you can speak to if requested. You can organize them by type—customer stories, third-party reviews, ROI values—or by benefit, like cybersecurity, automation, time savings, etc.
Then, if you aren’t sure what to write, use this email template to get a head start:
Subject: Solution suggestion for our file transfer requirements
Hi [add stakeholder(s) here],
I’ve been evaluating a solution called [add solution name here] for the past [add timeline here]. [Solution name] is a secure managed file transfer solution that can help our company automate and encrypt file transfers between our internal network, trading partners, and customers.
To date, I’ve evaluated several solutions in the marketspace and have determined [solution name] to be the best for our file transfer needs. I’ve sat in on a demo, evaluated a trial, read reviews from multiple sites, and looked at pricing, and I believe this solution will best be able to [add benefits for your specific organization here] for our company.
I’ve attached documents that provide an overview of [solution name]. You’ll find what we’ve been quoted for [add solution name here], as well as the benefits I saw during the trial, and what we can expect the ROI of this solution to be for us over the next 12 months.
Let me know what you think. The team is excited about [solution name] and are ready to implement whenever you give us the green light. [Vendor name] can also help us migrate our processes to [solution name] if we want to expedite the project.
Best regards,
[Your name here]
Tip #6: Answer the Hard Questions and Objections with Confidence
As with all things you want to get buy-in for, there will likely be questions or objections that come in response to your email. When dealing with this type of correspondence, be sure to respond with confidence. You know the MFT solution you want is worth it, and you know how it will benefit your organization. If you’re prepared for this and know how to argue your case, you’ll likely be able to navigate the waters and come out on the other side with a new solution!
Here are a few questions you’ll likely get and our suggested responses:
"Why should we purchase an MFT solution when our file transfer processes work now?"
Managed file transfer is for more than file transfers. Scripts, single-use tools, and homegrown applications are time-consuming to manage and frequently unsecure. A managed file transfer tool like [solution name] will allow us to simplify our file transfer processes, reduce user error, and provide automation for end-to-end encryption, trading partner folder monitoring, task scheduling, and more. [Solution name] doesn’t require programming knowledge and will make our file transfer processes more secure with granular security controls, support for compliance requirements, detailed auditing, and reporting, elements that are good for our bottom line.
"We can’t afford to update our file transfer processes right now."
IF SUBPAR ENCRYPTION IS IN PLACE:
We can’t afford NOT to update our file transfer processes. With data breach incidents on the rise, we need to make sure our file transfers are protected in transit and at rest. [Solution name] is an affordable piece of software that will pay for itself by reducing manual tasks, generating details for auditing and reporting, supporting our compliance requirements, and helping us avoid external risks and vulnerabilities. Upgrading our processes to an MFT solution now will be cheaper than dealing with a data breach later.
IF FILE TRANSFER PROCESSES COULD BE AUTOMATED:
[Solution name] is an affordable piece of software that will pay for itself by reducing manual tasks, automating file transfer processes, and prioritizing security practices. Instead of spending time maintaining file transfer scripts and homegrown processes, [solution name] will help us save time and money that could be placed on more important projects. The savings we’d see implementing this solution would more than cover its investment. If you’d like, I’m happy to send you an analysis of what we’re currently spending on our processes, and how [solution name] could save us money over the next five years.
"Why this solution and not a different one/cheaper one/open-source one?"
[Solution name] is a leading managed file transfer solution in today’s marketplace. Compared to other vendors, it is one of the fastest-growing solutions, according to Info-Tech analysts, and has positive customer satisfaction scores. [Solution name] does everything we need it to do and provides room to scale in case our file transfer requirements grow with the business. [Vendor name] is focused on keeping [solution name] cutting edge and will ensure our customer and organizational data is secure following cybersecurity best practices. I believe [solution name] is the best, and most secure, MFT solution when evaluated against other vendors‘ offerings.
Get Buy-In Resources for GoAnywhere MFT
If you’re getting ready to justify your GoAnywhere MFT purchase, we can help. Our resource hub for internal buy-in makes it easy to find what you need for stakeholders—whenever its needed. Email your GoAnywhere sales representative for access to our resource hub, which includes buy-in tips, email templates, links to our ROI documentation, and more. Get in touch with your sales rep today!
Keeping Your Data Safe: Watch our quick overview of the benefits of MFT!
