CAD Dealer : How did Diehl Graphsoft and MiniCAD/Vector Works get started? Richard Diehl : The first version of MiniCAD was originally started in 1985 as a "resume" project. I was working on semi-conductor systems at Bendix, and I decided that I wanted to go into computer science. Being a newcomer to computer science, I wanted to write a program from scratch. The PC didn't interest me personally, but when the Macintosh came out, I found something that I felt I could use. I spent a few months developing it (MiniCAD) and thought that I would take it further and go into business for myself. As soon as I began selling the product, I noticed that a lot of my customers were Architects and Construction professionals. It quickly became apparent that it was important for us to figure out what their needs were, and to develop our product accordingly. CD : What challenges result from having customers worldwide? RD : Selling a product in over eight countries can be overwhelming if you do it the wrong way - especially if you are a corporate "control freak". We have strategic partnerships with our distributors; we allow them quite a bit of autonomy to tailor the product to their specific market. Our products are very customizable, and our distributors know the best ways to bring it to the marketplace within their respective countries. CD : How do you go about penetrating a new foreign market?
RD : The reason we can successfully penetrate foreign markets is because we recognize the value of the relationships that we have with our authorized resellers. For instance, we don't know the in's and out's of doing business in Scandinavia. In my opinion, the proper person to market and sell our product in Scandinavia is a Scandinavian. Our resellers decide everything from how to advertise the product, right down to whether or not the manual should be in English or some other language. CD : Diehl Graphsoft recently announced their dominance in the Japanese CAD marketplace. Tell us more about this achievement, and how your Japanese reseller(s) helped to accomplish it. |
RD : Our Japanese reseller has been very active in building the Japanese Market for VectorWorks. Because Apple Computer is much stronger in Japan, than in the U.S., being the leader in the Apple Market means more in Japan than in the U.S., A&A was able to leverage this position to obtain faster penetration into the Windows market. We expect that our Windows sales will follow suite, but not at the same rate. CD : What is your definition of an "ideal" CAD reseller?
RD : It's relative to what the customer wants. CD : In what countries are you currently looking to add a reseller?
RD : We have distributors in over 80 countries currently. I'm not aware of any significant markets we don't cover. CD : Do you have an "exclusivity" agreement with your resellers, or are they allowed to sell other products as well? Why? RD : Our resellers are provided exclusive territories, and thus are not allowed to do anything that may undermine their ability to represent our products. However, we encourage them to represent other products, because it strengthens them as a company. Frequently, these other products are competitors, although usually not direct competitors. CD : What type of goals do you have for your resellers?
RD : We don't set numeric goals for the resellers; instead, we work with them as long-term partners to develop the market in the best manner possible. Service to the customer is as important as raw sales. When we have to let a partner go, it hurts. These are friends who are working with us to reach a common goal. |
Richard Diehl founder of Diehl Graphsoft, the company which developed MiniCAD and Vectorworks, met recently with CAD Dealer's Dale Batko to discuss his company, products and reseller strategy.