I need a favor from Do-more users...

[BobO]

I've recently had an epiphany and could use some help from y'all. A major part of ADC's business model is to develop high-RCA (Relative Competitive Analysis) products and sell them at better prices than the competition. Clearly that has been successful and it's most successful when the feature/benefit side of the equation is easily quantified. Do-more really doesn't fit that as well.

One of the hallmarks of Do-more has been a very high degree of satisfaction from our users, but honestly, we haven't hung our hat on specsmanship or easily quantifiable things like memory size or I/O count, we've primarily focused on product effectiveness: How well does Do-more solve your control problem? To those that have used Do-more successfully, it means "I can always make it work, and I write less code than on other platforms". People have come to trust that, and for many customers, Do-more is their go to for that very reason. It just works, or can be made to.

So how do we communicate that? What message about, or aspect of, Do-more do you think would get you to try it that first time? I feel like the biggest limitation to Do-more's growth is messaging, it's simply not something that lends itself to numerical analysis of features, but the high level of satisfaction our users have is testament to the benefits of it. I want to do better at communicating this. Any ideas?

[Controls Guy]

Excellent cost-benefit ratio.  It has many/most of the features of far more expensive PLCs/software (and in some cases even features they lack, or a better implementation), so it can compete for projects where a Compact Logix or S7-1200 would be the norm.

At the other extreme, it also bests traditional Koyo processors because, even while offering more hardware performance for the money, it got rid of all the things that made DL-classic processors a pain to program and troubleshoot.

Finally, it's also a hammer/saw thing.  I don't use Do-More exclusively.  I know what its strengths are just like I do with competitive PLC's.  When I get a new custom project or want to do a new standard product, typically one of the lines I know will stand out as the best match, and very frequently that's Do-More, and will be even more so now that BRX is available.  Unless there's something external putting a thumb on the scale, the answer almost always comes up Do-More or S7-1200/1500.

I realize that's not stuff you can easily advertise, but it gives you a peek into the mindset.

[BobO]

That's still useful. We need to understand why people use it...ultimately that's the measure.

Since the things it does are pretty easy to quantify, the Grail here is to quantify satisfaction. A common theme that we hear is that there are products that can do the job, but using them wasn't satisfying...was hard, off, just not quite right, etc. For many, Do-more is just satisfying...it just worked. What makes that true? It's like explaining the smell of a steak...but I want to try. It's frustrating to hear time and again that folks love it once they use it, but didn't try it because it didn't sound much different than X, Y, or Z...

[Garyhlucas]

The products that I am most happy with are those with great support from the vendor and no vendor hassles. Bought Rhino years ago and made a suggestion on the user forum. A week later they announced it was in the latest release! I use a Cam program called CamBam and both the author and user forum are outstanding, I've gotten plugins that add capability I needed in a vry short time. AD has been very responsive and has listened to my suggestions for product additions and they showed up.

Then there are Autodesk and AB. You always get the feeling that no matter how much you are paying they could care less what problems you are having.

Then there is Host, a lot like AD but even more responsive! You can see it how much user input you took on the design of the BRX and in how rapidly you are implementing suggestions for DoMore Designer. This stuff is really important to us. We have a hot product in an industry where AB has 85% of the controls. We love that our competitors use AB, everything costs them way more!

[jwbaker3]

One of the most impressive things I have found about the Do More is the PID loops, The auto tune has worked on every project we have loops. This may sound like a small thing but try to tune a loop on a Micrologix of Compact/controllogix. We send our Tech's to 4 day schools ($4500 each)just to learn how to properly work with AB PIDE loops.  we have had many hours trying to tune the system so it works for the customer. I had a project on a blow mold machine with 24 PID loops the auto tune nailed the tune the first time and the machines have been running for a while without problems, the Do More is controlling the temperature better than the stand alone Omron process controller. The other thing I think is a huge thing is the Do More stores the Doc's in the processor, if you want this in other brands get out your wallet for the hardware and the software. The support for the product is also a big cost savings, between AB, Siemens, GE, Modicon and Omron it cost us over $12,000 per year for support and software upgrades. Every project we do with one of these platforms we have to add this cost to the project, so the hardware cost more the PLC and HMI take longer to program and the added cost we have to charge to cover the support. The cost for these projects are much higher. We spend between $10,00 to $15,000 per Tech per year on training to keep up with the changes on all of the platforms we service. The Do More software is so easy to understand that our Tech's have watched the Vid's on the web and are using it without a problem.

JW

[DLTimmons]

I have to agree with JW.

To me one of the big selling points is the software is not lock to a licenses that can only be used on one computer. When you can buy 4 Do-mores a year for what one AB license cost there only one option!

[Garyhlucas]

A third on PID loops! FREAKING AWESOME autotune! I have lots of jobs with AB Plcs where I have never been able to tune the PID loops properly despite many hours spent trying to tune them. First time tuning blowers autotune nailed it. Tried it on a pH loop and after 1/2 hour I was sure it would fail. Nope 45 minutes and it runs stable as a rock. Tank level control with a diaphram pump, beautiful smooth control. I used to dread using PID control. Now I don't think twice.

[Evilbeard]

For me, it's three factors: cost, ease of use, and support. Cost is an easy one. For anything comparable from other manufacturers, you're going to pay considerably more. Not just for the PLC system itself, but for the software to program it. Ease of use. The software is easy to install, easy to understand, and it allows not just me, but anyone who would need service the system the ability to look at the program. In programming, the instructions are generally streamlined and easy to understand and use. You can generally get what you want done in a minimal amount of rungs. Support. Obviously typing this here means we all know how great the support is. I undertook my first "major" project of my own late last year. I had a few newbie problems. I made a thread, and the Host staff (as well as other experienced users) helped guide me through my errors. That's almost invaluable. Being able to get online, post about your problem, and then have it answered within a short timeframe is huge. Not only does the problem get solved, usually someone comes up with a sleeker solution to your operation that you would've never dreamed of. That kind of support is a major reason I use the platform in any application I can.

[HB_GUY]

I am a novice when it comes to machine controls. So community and support are of paramount importance to me. The hosteng community and support are stellar. I really mean stellar!
Coming from a computer/hardware programming background, I found it really easy to transition to do-more. The price/features are what led me to do-more, ease of use, flexibility, community, and the company behind the product are what made me stay!
I don't know how you quantify this into marketing mumbo jumbo but, there is no other product I own or use, that has this level of direct involvement by the manufacturer. You feel as though Host really cares.

[BobO]

Hmmm...here I am believing that it's because Host's PLC-fu is strong, but in reality it's just good old fashion product value + service and support after the sale.

I was trending toward something like "All the cool kids use Do-more. Find out why!" But now I gotta rethink the 'why'...

[Dean]

As someone who is self taught, and not a trained engineer, There are 3 features that really sell it.
1. The simulator. Being able to test a capability before I propose a solution to a project is huge. Not to mention the learning opportunities it affords.

2. The training and plethora of learning resources. I have a similarly skilled counterpart at our sister facility, and I've sold him on the Do-More platform as well. We both use these resources regularly.
 
3. The high level instructions. For a novice like me many of the higher level functions allow me to accomplish things quickly that might take weeks for me to figure out, if at all, were I forced to roll my own.
 
I'm sure these aren't biggies for an integrator that employs a team of trained control engineers, and will buy hundreds or thousands of units a year, but for the guy like me who is tasked with designing a 3 or 4 small projects annually, these are my top 3. This is, I'm sure a small part of the market you are targeting, and I would be more interested in selling to the big boys if I were you, but anyway, that's my 2 cents.

[davidbgtx]

Cost - Hardware and FREE software. And the support is AWESOME.

[OrionHE]

All of the above and MATH boxes!!

I'd say string control, but I'd really prefer those to have if/else support like MATH. The boxes (all of them) allow for flexibility that saves time and space when programming and make me feel like one of the cool kids as well. 

[BobO]

I'd say string control, but I'd really prefer those to have if/else support like MATH.

That would be cool, but quite a handful to develop. Lookup() helps for some stuff, but is limited in what it can do.

[OrionHE]

That would be cool, but quite a handful to develop.

That's, like, 90% of my requests.