WaveRider Communications Inc.: Selling Wireless Internet Access Equipment

WaveRider Communications, a wireless Internet access equipment provider, had just completed the first installation of its latest system. The vice-president of marketing had to deal with two key sales issues that had recently surfaced. First, as compared to initial expectations, it had been taking at least twice as long for the company's salesforce to sell its new portfolio of products. Second, he noticed a sharp increase in the number of customers relying on WaveRider's post-sales support. He must examine the impact of the longer sales cycle on a number of company issues, such as type of salesforce and support needed, costs to serve, revenue generation, and share price. He also wanted to determine if more could be done to educate the customer during the selling period in order to facilitate smoother implementation.