Research

Leveraging Safety for More Sales

In selling its low-voltage VFDs, SPOC was having difficulty gaining traction against a product that was far more expensive, way over-matched for the job it needed to do, and far more dangerous for the people who must work on it. Among the biggest hurdles was to reach decision makers, then convince them to go against conventional wisdom. (Like many mature business categories, some in the oil and gas industry tend to simply go with “what we’ve always done,” even when other options are available that provide a better alternative.)

Challenge:

Explain that SPOC’s lower-voltage, lower-priced product is not only sufficient for the task at hand, but easier to work on and safer … much safer. 

Result:

... 

Knowing we had several barriers to overcome, we determined our first task was to show that SPOC’s low-voltage option was more cost-effective and every bit as capable of performing the job at hand as compared to the higher 4160-volt drive that had been standard in the industry. We did this with a new whitepaper, “4160V vs 480V — The Math Is Clear.” 

Trust the numbers.

Using figures backed by third-party research, proving this point wasn’t difficult. By the numbers, the SPOC drive is less expensive to buy and operate. It also saves money through huge gains in efficiency, and it’s easier and cheaper to maintain over the life of the product.

Safety First. Always.

We also included a powerful emotional, albeit still rational, argument, showing how the SPOC product is far less dangerous to the crews who must work with it. (Consider that 4160 volts of electricity used by the conventional product can arc across considerable distance and kill anyone within range, even if those individuals never touch the device!) As a consequence of the increased safety, it’s also far easier to find qualified experts capable of working on the lower-voltage device.