A solutions-based strategy is not an easy path to take. For many companies, it means never daring to speak the word. That’s because for many buyers, the S-word has become so overused that it has become meaningless.

But terminology is a trivial matter compared with the real challenges in solutions, say the companies in ITSMA’s Solutions Council. Solutions mean a longer sales cycle, they mean knowing the customer inside out, and they require unprecedented levels of cooperation both inside the organization and with external partners supplying pieces of the solution.

Yet despite all these issues, more than ever customers want what’s beneath these challenges—a true solution to their business issues—according to ITSMA research.