SugarCRM’s Dreamforce marketing stunt – what do you think?

I am in San Francisco for Salesforce's Dreamforce conference and I have just witnessed a marketing tactic that I've never seen before. However, this tactic did not come from Salesforce but rather their competitor Sugar CRM. Salesforce, a Scribe partner, has done a tremendous job with this conference and has dramatically outperformed their upside attendance projections with some 19,000+ attendees. The keynote addresses have been completely packed and many sessions have been filled to capacity. The attendees are clearly happy customers and partners and this is their big party.

As always, Salesforce is innovating and leading the way. The announcement of Salesforce's chatter social computing platform is interesting and forward thinking. Marc Benioff is a great marketer and evangelist and there is no better example of that than the distribution of his new book "Behind the Cloud" (co-written by the talented Carlye Adler) here at the conference.

However, although this is Salesforce's event, Sugar CRM is here distributing copies of a mock book titled "Behind the Smoke Screen". The mock book is designed to look like Benioff's book but has fabricated mock endorsements and content that feigns humor.  Inside the book is an offer for a Salesforce to Sugar migration.  This tactic is similar to the types of things Salesforce themselves did at Siebel conferences years ago.

So, the question is whether Sugar's tactic will benefit them. I have to assume that the people who pay to come to Dreamforce are Salesforce's main proponents and come to Dreamforce to go deeper with Salesforce rather than find a replacement to it. Further, while business is a contact sport, is it acceptable for one vendor to encroach on another's event in this way? Some people believe that all press is good press but is that really true?

Ironically, after seeing copies of Sugar CRM's mock book I attended an invitation only session titled "Building Brand, the Salesforce Way" given by Salesforce Chief Creative Officer Bruce Campbell. The session was great and Mr. Campbell's main point was that your customers, not your company, are the owners of your brand. Mr. Campbell made the point that an organization's interactions with its customers, the quality of its products and everything else it does defines how people feel about the company and, therefore, the brand.  I wonder what Sugar's actions at Dreamforce will make people feel about their company and brand.

What do you think?

Comments

[Bob Baird]

I think it was brilliant! My first reaction was very similar to yours, but... here we are thinking (and talking) about it all over again.

Definitely bordered on rude, but some companies can't afford to always be polite.

Plus, if you remove the guilt from potential offense, you gotta admit - that's funny!

[chris]

as you said they are the same tatics sf used... and some how it seemed to work for them. customers are also fickle and will certainly take a better deal when and if there is one.

[Jim Ward]

What's good for the goose is good for the gander. And what better way to alert Saleforce cusotmers to a more cost efficient solution. Check Salesforce financials. See marketing and SG&A costs. You'll then know why Saleforce has to charge what it does, and why a company like SugarCRM keeps costs low for themselves and the ultimate consumer. Investing instead in technology.

[SQLCity]

"If you want to stop Salesforce.com, make a better product. Forget the cute book ideas and truth squads." - Denis Pombriant