Proofpoint’s historical focus has been higher upmarket, but Essentials, which came originally from a 2013 acquisition, and has been substantially rebuilt from the ground up with an SMB focus, is a key part of their strategy as well.
Comm100, which has been in business since 2009, just formalized its first partner program in September, and has onboarded four new partners, with many more in the pipeline. They are looking to build the channel business to 20 per cent within the next 1-2 years.
Commvault has greatly simplified its solution set, from 21 product areas to four, and consolidated its partner enablement tools, with the goal of both being to greatly scale the channel business.
Auvik has brought back a promo they ran last year, in collaboration with ten vendors in total, including competing RMMs. The low-cost program got a strong response last year, which the company is looking to replicate.
Nectar creates a new Chief Revenue Officer position to coordinate the company’s different channel routes to market.
The enhanced appMailer platform also provides the ability to share lead generation campaigns through social media.
While many channel partners still don’t think marketing is worth their time and investment, Intermedia stresses that it has become vital to survival in the digital age.
Igloo has transformed its customizable intranet offering into a portfolio of 13 solutions, offered in three separate editions aimed at different market sizes, and supported by dedicated professional services.
While many of the program’s components existed before, HPE is doubling down on promoting them as a bundle, looking to get greater numbers of them involved in an area where the vendor says many partners need to be doing more.
Partner presence at this year’s event increased massively over anything at either the Dell or EMC events, or the initial joint event in Austin last fall.
Other IDC projections for the year ahead include strong partner moves into the digital transformation market, an emphasis on Customer Success programs, and changes to vendor Partner Success models.
While Yappn has a hybrid go-to market strategy, they are looking to the channel to lead the way, and are particularly interested in attracting top eCommerce-focused partners.
The HP Co-Marketing Zone now allows partners to track the performance and ROI of campaigns as well as create them, while the Social Media Center is designed to establish partners as thought leaders by providing content that goes beyond HP materials.
Other important changes include the integration of programs for other groups which used to be outside the old umbrella program and the integration of the Aruba PartnerEdge and HPE Networking channel programs into the new Partner Ready for Networking program.
A highlight of the second day at the CompTIA ChannelCon event was a panel discussion of vendors on changes in the industry, and how to best adapt to them.
While Kaspersky is emphasizing the enterprise in its strategic objectives this year, it is also providing more segmented assistance to partners focusing on different parts of the market. This includes a new specialization which will see small business leads limited to partners who have secured it.
Unitrends is implementing a program based on five stars, with partners earning credit for ranking based on sales, marketing, customer satisfaction, training and social media achievements, in a system that can let smaller partners and even influencers rise in the program.
Both Powered by Avaya IP Office and OnAvaya – Google Cloud Platform have already been available to customers through the channel. Now however, their availability has been opened up to more partners, and both solutions have also been enhanced from their initial versions.
Avaya has reorganized its marketing strategies to emphasize joint go-to-marketing initiatives with partners, with an emphasis on obtaining case studies for customers.
Citrix channel chief Kimberly Martin was brought into the company last fall to restructure and improve the company’s channel operations. She discusses her mission, the changes that she announced at her first Citrix Summit, and what remains on the drawing board.
