I’ve had the privilege to work with and study hundreds of technology companies and their sales organizations. Based upon my experience, here’s my list of some of the best technologies to sell in 2015. While it includes companies that range from startups
to billions in sales, all of these businesses provide fantastic technology-based solutions that dovetail to key trends taking place in the market.
Proofpoint – The movie “The Interview” proved that one data breach can shut down an entire company and the application-specific security market is red hot! One of the main sources of security threats is email, and Proofpoint offers the most comprehensive inbound and outbound email security available.
CipherCloud – CipherCloud is a unique application-specific security provider that protects sensitive information that is sent to the cloud. CipherCloud technologies protect popular cloud applications out of the box such as Salesforce, Force.com, Chatter, Box, Google Gmail, Microsoft Office 365 and Amazon Web Services.
Velocify – Velocify is an innovative provider of cloud-based intelligent sales technology, designed for high-velocity, rapid-response sales environments. In my humble opinion, their website is one of the best and provides a great example of how to use relevant content to engage visitors.
Google Business Apps – The migration of businesses moving from on-premises applications to the cloud has crossed the chasm and is now well into the mainstream market. Over five million businesses have implemented Google’s business apps (professional email, online storage, shared calendars, video meetings and productivity tools).
OpenGov – OpenGov cloud technology enables governments to share financial data with elected officials and the public to improve communication and build trust. I predict Glasnost (increased openness and transparency in government institutions) will become a de-facto technology requirement for every state and local government agency. OpenGov is first-mover in this space.
Calabrio – Calabrio’s technology “humanizes” the traditional contact center. Calabrio frees the “voice of the customer” in today’s multi-channel contact center for better, faster decision making at all levels of the organization.
MapR Technologies – MapR provides mission-critical Hadoop technology for enterprise-wide big data initiatives. MapR’s technology received the highest score for Hadoop / data warehouse interoperability in Gigaom’s latest research.
Couchbase – Couchbase provides the highest performing NoSQL distributed database technology.Companies like AOL, Cisco, Concur, LinkedIn, Orbitz, Salesforce.com, Shuffle Master, Zynga and hundreds of others around the world use Couchbase Server for their interactive Web and mobile applications.
Coupons.com – Over one billion coupons will be activated on Coupons.com in 2015, but that’s only part of the story. Coupons.com is actually a big data company that provides critical marketing information to over 700 consumer packaged goods companies and their online shopper platform enables retailers to drive consumer loyalty.
Mitel – I cannot recall a company that has so successfully repositioned its brand and refreshed its portfolio of technologies as Mitel has. Here’s the proof … $10,000 of Mitel stock purchased 24 months ago is worth over $32,000 today.
GTNexus – GT Nexus’ game-changing technology optimizes supply chain transformation to the cloud. Tens of thousands of companies use GT Nexus to optimize the global flow of goods, funds and trade information from advanced materials planning to the point of order and all the way to final payment.
Verimatrix – Chances are you’re using Verimatrix’s technology and don’t even know it. Cable and satellite TV providers around the globe use Verimatrix to deliver and secure video delivery, IPTV and Internet TV.
Birst – Birst’s cool technology takes advantage of the paradigm shift of traditional business intelligence tools and applications to the cloud. Birst received the highest overall score in Gartner Group’s BI Analytics and Platform report for ease of use for business users (a critical requirement for cloud applications).
AdRoll - AdRoll’s sophisticated bidding technology makes it easy to reach customers as they switch browsers, devices, and apps. “Marketeers” can seamlessly set up campaigns and win the best ad inventory across Google, Facebook, Twitter, and 200+ ad exchanges and networks.
Hubspot - HubSpot technology helps businesses get found online, generate more leads, and convert leads into paying customers. Hubspot had a great IPO last October and announced 51% quarterly revenue growth for their first post-IPO quarter.
Malwarebytes – Malwarebytes infection removal technology has a fanatical following with end user consumers. Now they are launching enterprise versions for large businesses and SMB.
DiscoverOrg - DiscoverOrg provides unique prospecting intelligence about I.T. organizations (org charts, contact data, and buying intent). You can’t sell your technology if you don’t know who to have key conversations with.
Samson Rope Technologies – Samson is a very different technology company than any other on this list. Today, technology is fundamentally shifting buyer behavior and changing how products are delivered to the market in every industry segment. For example, high-tech manufacturing processes and newly developed synthetic materials now allow lightweight rope to be used in place of heavy, expensive steel cables.
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About Steve W. Martin
Steve W. Martin is an expert on the human nature and politics of technology sales. His new book is titled Heavy Hitter I.T. Sales Strategy: Competitive Insights from Interviews with 1,000+ Key Information Technology Decision Makers and Top Technology Salespeople. You can learn more about Steve at www.stevewmartin.com .
