Big Brothe...eeh... NI is watching you

[BramJ]

My company decided not to renew the SSP licences since we don't update very often. We only recently moved from 7.1.1 to 2010 SP1, a few months before I started here. But 2011SP1 is still an option.

anyway, last weekend I got a new computer at home so I thought I'd give 2011 SP1 a go, so I downloaded it from ni.com, installed as evaluation (didn't know my serialno) and today I got a call from a NI sales representative asking if I wanted to update my SSP anyway because I downloaded the last version...

I have a feeling now that every move I make on the NI site is being watched :/

[crossrulz]

Oh, it has been that way for a long time. More recently I was browsing for information on being a Certified Professional Instructor and two hours later I get a call about it. Yes, NI logs everything we do on their site.

[crelf]

If you don't want NI to track you using their site, you have two easy options: don't browse their site, and don't login when you browse their site (but you won't get content you have to be authorised to see).

[asbo]

On the one hand, I see this as really smart - I can't how many times I'll look something up, get distracted about something else, and then forget about it. On the other, sometimes I really did have only thirty seconds of interest in the NI 9234.

shrug

[hooovahh]

Yes, NI logs everything we do on their site.

Wait...EVERYTHING...something tells me they should call them something other than "private message".

I know we've had some sales guys that will use some features of the website to see what hardware they would want. Using it to recommend hardware and a chassis and make a shopping cart just for a quote. NI has then called our sales guy and tried closing the deal, not knowing it was for a quote. All they see is a shopping cart filing up with tons of stuff, and then nothing.

[soupy]

yeah, those were super annoying. i think at some point i did something to make this stop happening. i don't see the setting in the "my ni" section. next time they call you, try asking them nicely to stop doing it. it never hurts to ask (nicely).

[crelf]

The more you build a relationship with your sales guys (local and inside) the better they'll understand your expectations and requirements. Remember that most of us aren't the architypal NI customer: we usually can put a system together on our own, and don't need a lot of help, but NI gets a significant portion of their sales from newbies that really appreciate someone in-the-know walking them through it. And, when it comes right down to it, NI's sales guys are there to, well, close sales - and few sales guys closed extra sales by doing nothing. Build a relationship with NI, and overtly tell them how you want your relationship to be - then you should get fewer direct sales calls.

They'll still track your use of their site (and why not? it's *their* site afterall), but you can mould the relationship.

...something tells me they should call them something other than "private message".

There's no such thing on the interwebs.

try asking them nicely to stop doing it. it never hurts to ask (nicely).

Right.

[Tim_S]

yeah, those were super annoying. i think at some point i did something to make this stop happening. i don't see the setting in the "my ni" section. next time they call you, try asking them nicely to stop doing it. it never hurts to ask (nicely).

Tried doing that a couple years back. It took a while for the regional sales manager to get the idea that I pull together a lot of numbers and "what-ifs" for quotes, but it did happen. That and the new regional sales manager has a better idea of what we do.

[Aristos Queue]

I still can't get them to stop, and I work there. I get occasional offers to purchase LabVIEW or take a training course if I go look something up for a user. :-)

[hooovahh]

I get occasional offers to purchase LabVIEW or take a training course

I think there was a T-Shirt that said something like

I don't RTFM I am TFM

This seems relevant.