Answer What's in it For Your Customers.  If you can't explain to your customers why remote services are good for them, they won't be motivated to help you make it happen.

For Example...
Let's say you own a particular brand of car and you are standing in your driveway.  Some guy with a logo for that brand of car on his shirt walks up and asks for your car keys.  You kind of recognize the guy from the dealership where you bought the car, but you can't be sure.  Do you give him your keys?

Most people wouldn't think of it.  What is he going to do with the car? Is he going to drive it away?  What are the risks? Are there any benefits for allowing this to happen? Can he be trusted?

Now imagine this conversation.  You approach your customer and inform them of your new remote service offering.  It involves connecting their machine to the Internet so someone can remotely work on it.  Yikes!  They ask themselves the same questions you did when the guy asked for your car keys! 

There is not enough context around the request to elicit anything but a negative response.  It doesn't have to be that way...

A Lesson From Microsoft & Apple
Look at Microsoft with Windows update, Apple iTunes, all the various anti-virus products.  They all deliver remote service in the form of automated software updates to millions of computers every day.  And they don't answer a lot of questions each time they do it either.  Why?  Because they offer a specific and well understood benefit and do it from a position of trust.

The secret to customer acceptance success is to walk in the customer's shoes and understand why and how remote service is valuable to them.  Then articulate that value in a way that means something to their business and to them personally.

Why do People Buy?
I used to have a boss that said there were three reasons people bought something; to save money, to make money, and to stay out of jail.  It's rather crude, but it speaks to the challenge.  How will remote services help your customer achieve their goals?  What's the best way to find out?  Ask them!

Let's return to the car example.  What if before the conversation your dealership had notified you of a new service program where they would change your oil when needed between midnight and 4am.  Or they would remind you when it was time to have major service performed?  Or they would automatically upgrade the nav system with new maps?

Now when the guy walks up, rather than asking for your keys, he asks if you have heard of the new service plan.  Then he explains or reminds you of all the wonderful benefits of the plan.  He answers your questions about risks and process.  By now, convinced of the benefits, you ask how to sign up and what will happen.  The "sale" is made.

Why is All of This Important to Your Evaluation Process? 

• First, it's important internally for gaining corporate support and funding.  If you can't explain how remote services will help your customer and your business, then why do it?
  
• Second, you want to measure features and functions that contribute to value.  If I know what is important to my customer, I can determine what product features support that value. E.g., Data security?  Network security?  Changes to customer IT infrastructure?  Deployment steps?  How does each vendor score on these customer FAQs?
  
• Third, customer acceptance is a critical success element for your program.  The marketing and sales portion of the cross functional team needs to understand the customer's view of value and how to answer their concerns.

In the end, answering the simple question, "What's in it for me?" will result in motivated customers that want to help you get connected to their equipment.  After all, it's a requirement to enjoy all of those benefits you promised!