Within the sales process of a software solution, you can find several roles that participate in one way or another at different stages. Of course, the main player is the salesperson, but there is also involvement from telemarketing, marketing, pre-sales, professional services, sales support, or legal department.
Pre-sales consultants are familiar with the software being offered and take part in activities such as technical presentations, demonstrations, proof of concept, responses to requests for information, and so on.
Twenty years ago, it was very common to look for pre-sales consultants who could thoroughly learn the software, so there was a tendency to seek candidates with strong technical skills; it was even better if they could program, had experience with databases, web-services, or network protocols.
But is this still the case today? In this video, I share some thoughts on the topic.