HP Exstream Results Tour 2010

Marketing managers often find themselves stumped when trying to devise ways to get C-Level Fortune 500 executives out of their offices to attend a trade show or presentation. The standard sales tactics just aren't as effective today as they were five years ago.

Compounding that problem at HP was a long sales cycle.  The HP sales team was tasked with making results happen in a short time span - within the existing quarter. The solution would have to not only help close deals already working through that long sales cycle, but also uncover new opportunities with existing clients as well as new corporate partners.

They knew they would have to do something big to break through to C-Level decision makers. The HP team decided to take a risk, creating a 23-city Exstream Results Tour featuring an 'executive briefing centre on wheels'.

'We knew we needed a fun and impressive, yet informal, way to allow the HP sales reps to engage clients directly and to showcase HP's enterprise solution product,' said Tami Webster, HP's marketing manager. 'And since travel budgets have been cut in this economy, we also knew we would have to take the solution to them.'