Sales and SE Roles in VAR Recruitment

A post by my friend Pat Taylor on the ChannelPro-SMB site got me thinking about the "Yin and Yang" of channel recruitment.  Pat is referring to the VAR sales and SE in his article, and suggests that Sales should endeavor to become more technically competent rather than over-rely on the SE for backup. 

The VAR sales and SE counterparts on the vendor side face the same situation. Vendor sales reps may miss building credibility with a key influencer in the recruitment process--the VAR technical lead. I was calling on a major solution provider in the New York area a few years back on behalf of a storage client. I met with the economic buyer, and about two minutes into the conversation, he asked for a "timeout" so he could wrangle his SE into the meeting. Fortunately, my client's SE had prepped me well in the event I came face-to-face with the technical buyer. As it turns out, the VAR SE was quick to pick up on the value proposition and told his boss that if the technology worked as advertised, it would solve a lot of client problems.

Bingo! That's the ideal situation in VAR recruitment--the VAR SE knows where the solution will fit and will seek some bench time to vet the technology. We arranged an eval unit and a few weeks later signed a reseller agreement with the VAR. My SE became engaged during the trial and further bolstered my client's credibility. 

Recruiting new channel partners is never just about the program benefits, deal registration and leads. The vendor's Yin and Yang must align with the counterparts on the VAR side in order to achieve win-win.

How the State of the IT Market Affects VAR Recuitment

Where is the IT market headed and how do IT trends affect VAR recruitment?

Tiffani Bova, VP, research, indirect channel programs and sales strategies at Gartner, provided her insight into where the IT markets are headed during a recent industry event (as reported by BSM Magazine).

• Systems integration is key, particularly around cloud services and IT management
• Managed services remain a growth area
• Growth and innovation are taking priority over price

Vendors that want to exploit these trends through the channel may need to adopt new strategies for VAR/SI recruitment.

The 5 Overlooked Truths about Channel Recruitment, Part II

Author's Note: This is a continuation of an interview with Pat Taylor, founder and principal of Atypical Business, a firm dedicated to helping vendors and channel partners achieve real-world objectives.

Pat is a well-known channel advocate, having served on the Intel® Board of Advisors since 2004 and as president during the last 3 years. Pat has what I consider to be one of the best 360-degree views of the channel ecosystem, both vendor and reseller. He’s known for his homespun style and straightforward talk on channel challenges.

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BB: Would you advise vendors to build their business ahead of developing a channel?

PT: The channel is every customer’s trusted advisor. And we’re not going to jeopardize that integrity with a partner we can’t trust with our business. It is the vendor’s obligation to establish credibility – with case studies, sales and service metrics, and some roundtables with prospective VARs. Once he’s established, he can begin to court the channel.

BB: How does a reseller with a current stable of vendors decide on which new vendors should be added?

PT: It's usually a reaction. There's a hole or two in my product portfolio and I keep an eye out to fill it. And that's generally the first thing that catches my attention with a vendor. They show up with a product that I need to plug a hole in my solution set.

BB: What's your process for adding vendors?

PT: The process is like this: I identify a portfolio problem, you know, [or] our customer identifies it for me. Then I look around for some products that meet the specs. In today's world I'm going to network; probably call my friends to see if they've heard of this product or something they like better. I'm going to get their experience with it. And that's really going to influence me. Social networking is a big part of the purchasing process nowadays.

BB: Some vendors may not be well known, you can't check their references or socialize among your network. In these cases, are you willing to take a leap of faith?

PT: Well sir, I reckon channel players take leaps of faith on a regular basis. Representing a little known product that is well-built, well-priced, and absolutely solves a business problem is a lot fun. It can also be very lucrative; there’s nothing as tasty as the fat margin that comes with being ‘first to market’. We don’t have time to do the vendors’ testing, but a tested product with a commitment to support (and a motivating margin) might justify a leap of faith.

BB: How often does your customer help you identify a portfolio gap?

PT: Often, if I’m doing my job. Good sales people listen. Easiest way to sell a product is to listen to a customer describe what he needs. He tells me, and I ask him a couple more questions. I’m going to get more information and I’m going to get a sale. It all starts when I ask if the stuff he needs is in my toolbox.

The same dynamic exists with the channel and the vendors. If the vendor gets the channel involved in defining and developing the product, he greatly increases his chances for success.

Authored by Brian Berlin, President and Founder, Straightline Strategies, Inc.