{"id":68437,"date":"2026-02-12T18:37:49","date_gmt":"2026-02-13T02:37:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/?p=68437"},"modified":"2026-02-12T18:37:50","modified_gmt":"2026-02-13T02:37:50","slug":"so-you-want-to-offer-ecm-some-pointers-from-our-dealer-panel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/the-week-in-imaging-twii\/editors-blog\/2026\/02\/so-you-want-to-offer-ecm-some-pointers-from-our-dealer-panel\/","title":{"rendered":"So You Want to Offer ECM? Some Pointers From Our Dealer Panel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

As we\u2019ve observed countless times before, it\u2019s easy for a media analyst\/journalist to flatly declare that dealers need to diversify without having concrete data points to share. After all, considering the investments of time and finances, adding a new product or service can be a costly proposition for dealers. With emphasis on “costly.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As much as I love to promote the idea of diversification\u2014and I\u2019ve developed an affinity for physical security\/access control systems, which are ideal for education and finance clients, to name a pair\u2014there are simply too many variables that make blanket suggestions impractical. Geography, client base, direct and indirect competitors, market saturation\/maturity, SME additions\/internal training, learning curve, profit margin (!), time to ROI\u2026you get the picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s use my apparent desire to become a Verkada reseller an example. Do I know anything about cabling? Should I farm out that portion to a third party, which limits my ability to assure quality? Am I a rural dealership, where school budgets are typically smaller and security outlays are prohibitive? Am I familiar with the analysis paralysis that school boards often develop? Maybe there\u2019s a trusted provider just 100 miles away who\u2019s already entrenched. Do I acquire a security specialist firm instead of trying to grow my own?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don’t take my word for it. On the subject of enterprise content management (ECM) as a new offering, we\u2019ve turned to those who know best: your fellow dealers who are enjoying success in this discipline. They\u2019ve offered us their nuggets of wisdom for newbies seeking to branch out into the discipline. Read on\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Total Commitment<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Lauren Hanna, Blue Technologies<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps the one piece of advice that transcends products and service as the key to any new endeavor is a complete, top-down buy-in within the dealership. Lauren Hanna, president of Blue Technologies Smart Solutions in Cleveland, believes ECM is not dabbling material. She advocates for investments in people, process expertise and long-term capability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Success begins with a strong business analyst function, she noted. \u201cSuccessful ECM engagements start with proper discovery, understanding how work flows today, where friction exists, what compliance obligations apply and what outcomes the organization is trying to achieve,\u201d Hanna noted. \u201cWithout that level of discovery, even the best technology will fall short.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hanna acknowledges a strong bench takes time to develop. Scaling can be best achieved by partnering with the right solution provider, one who supports enablement, provides interim project management, and helps guide early implementations while internal teams mature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe right partner accelerates capability without sacrificing quality or customer experience,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Mark Ellickson, Proven IT<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s a linear approach offered by Mark Ellickson, director of business process automation for Proven IT of Tinley Park, Illinois. He suggests starting with clear objectives, among them compliance, efficiency and automation, and seeking out scalable, API-friendly platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUnderstand your core client base vertically so you can focus on what is important to them,\u201d Ellickson noted. \u201cThen look to partner with other dealers that have already established a seasoned team of engineers and project managers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Valuable Resources<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Marc Segal, Doing Better Business<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

A measured approach can enable dealers to avoid taking on too much at once. Marc Segal, solutions specialist for Doing Better Business of Altoona, Pennsylvania, suggests beginning with one software product and becoming fully immersed in it. He also suggests training a network engineer on staff to become the point person and in-house expert. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don’t be afraid to reach out to your contemporaries. \u201cCall other dealers that are not in your geographic coverage area for advice on what product they recommend selling and how to set up the support contracts,\u201d Segal said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As we\u2019ve observed countless times before, it\u2019s easy for a media analyst\/journalist to flatly declare that dealers need to diversify without having concrete data points to share. After all, considering the investments of time and finances, adding a new product or service can be a costly proposition for dealers. With emphasis on “costly.” As much as I love to promote the idea of diversification\u2014and I\u2019ve developed an affinity for physical security\/access control systems, which are ideal for education and finance clients, to name a pair\u2014there are simply too many variables that make blanket suggestions impractical. Geography, client base, direct and indirect competitors, market saturation\/maturity, SME additions\/internal training, learning curve, profit margin (!), time to ROI\u2026you get the picture. Let\u2019s use my apparent desire to become a Verkada reseller an example. Do I know anything about cabling? Should I farm out that portion to a third party, which limits my ability to assure quality? Am I a rural dealership, where school budgets are typically smaller and security outlays are prohibitive? Am I familiar with the analysis paralysis that school boards often develop? Maybe there\u2019s a trusted provider just 100 miles away who\u2019s already entrenched. Do I acquire a security specialist firm instead of trying to grow my own? Don’t take my word for it. On the subject of enterprise content management (ECM) as a new offering, we\u2019ve turned to those who know best: your fellow dealers who are enjoying success in this discipline. They\u2019ve offered us their nuggets of wisdom for newbies seeking to branch out into the discipline. Read on\u2026 Total Commitment Perhaps the one piece of advice that transcends products and service as the key to any new endeavor is a complete, top-down buy-in within the dealership. Lauren Hanna, president of Blue Technologies Smart Solutions in Cleveland, believes ECM is not dabbling material. She advocates for investments in people, process expertise and long-term capability. Success begins with a strong business analyst function, she noted. \u201cSuccessful ECM engagements start with proper discovery, understanding how work flows today, where friction exists, what compliance obligations apply and what outcomes the organization is trying to achieve,\u201d Hanna noted. \u201cWithout that level of discovery, even the best technology will fall short.\u201d Hanna acknowledges a strong bench takes time to develop. Scaling can be best achieved by partnering with the right solution provider, one who supports enablement, provides interim project management, and helps guide early implementations while internal teams mature. \u201cThe right partner accelerates capability without sacrificing quality or customer experience,\u201d she added. There\u2019s a linear approach offered by Mark Ellickson, director of business process automation for Proven IT of Tinley Park, Illinois. He suggests starting with clear objectives, among them compliance, efficiency and automation, and seeking out scalable, API-friendly platforms. \u201cUnderstand your core client base vertically so you can focus on what is important to them,\u201d Ellickson noted. \u201cThen look to partner with other dealers that have already established a seasoned team of engineers and project managers.\u201d Valuable Resources A measured approach can enable dealers to avoid taking on too much at once. Marc Segal, solutions specialist for Doing Better Business of Altoona, Pennsylvania, suggests beginning with one software product and becoming fully immersed in it. He also suggests training a network engineer on staff to become the point person and in-house expert. Don’t be afraid to reach out to your contemporaries. \u201cCall other dealers that are not in your geographic coverage area for advice on what product they recommend selling and how to set up the support contracts,\u201d Segal said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":166,"featured_media":68438,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[80,1650,82,1638],"tags":[798,2897,3448],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68437"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/166"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=68437"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68437\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":68439,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/68437\/revisions\/68439"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/68438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=68437"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=68437"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=68437"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}