Alteva Unveils Cloud-Based UC Certification for Partners
After spending a few years as the upstart technology in the channel, unified communications finally seems to be coming into its own. The VAR Guy has always had high hopes for UC as a great add-on technology for communications- and convergence-focused solution providers, which is why his ears perked up over Alteva’s new Unified Communications Certification (UCC) program. Read on for the details …
Alteva’s new UCC program focuses on cloud-based UC solutions based on VoIP integrated with Microsoft Communication Services. The program is three-tiered and includes not just sales training, but also a technical overview to educate VARs on the functionality of the technology they’re providing — which is excellent news for partners who are just dipping their toes into the UC waters.
Alteva’s program approaches unified communications training from ground up. Level One Day One training includes the history of telecom, LAN/WAN and customer network design and sales expertise. Level One Day Two training includes education on “tactical sales and communication skills” to help build a lasting relationship for long-term sales goals. Moving forward, Level Two training includes the Alteva Sales Process and Level Three training offers a “deep dive” on advanced questioning, training and negotiation techniques. The VAR Guy sees this type of training a pure “stickiness” for partners — the more they know, the more comfortable they feel selling the technology.
After completing all three levels, partners can receive a Reinforcement Training package, which is delivered via the web and includes training on Alteva’s Marketing Tool Box, which provides partners with e-mail templates, phone scripts and more.
For solution providers already in the UC space, The VAR Guy thinks Alteva’s training may be a bit overkill. But as customers look to cloud-based services to help build out or upgrade their existing communications networks — rather than adding another network layer or doing a full rip and replace — The VAR Guy sees a real future in solutions such as Alteva’s.
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