No-Code App Vendor Betty Blocks Launches U.S. Channel Partner Program

European-based no-code application development platform vendor, Betty Blocks, is expanding its channel footprint to the United States for the first time by starting up a new channel program that aims to directly serve its U.S.-based customers.

Betty Blocks’ Tom Oudhuis

The move is being made due to customer demand, Tom Oudhuis, vice president of channel sales for Betty Blocks, told Channel Futures. The company, which is based in the Netherlands, already has a small sales office in New York City, but more and more customers have been asking for a full-fledged sales and support network here so they can better support their adoption of the no-code platform, he said. Betty Blocks already has a partner program in Europe.

Under the new U.S.-based program, partners will be able to receive sales support, presales support, maintenance, hosting and security from Betty Blocks, as well as marketing and sales training, and access to new markets and customers. Partners who are ranked higher within the partner program will be eligible to receive additional marketing, sales, support and account management services, according to the company.

“We have a whole process to take away hurdles for partners,” he said. “We’re gaining more and more customers and what these customers are asking us for is to deliver our no-code services through partners in the U.S.”

Under the program, Betty Blocks will aim to partner with systems integrators that can provide consulting to customers as well as help with the development of applications on the Betty Blocks platform, according to Oudhuis. “We want to sit next to the client, so we want to work with partners who can work with clients onsite.”

What differentiates the Betty Blocks application development platform from competitors including Mendix, Appian, Progress Software and others is that Betty Blocks is a no-code platform, rather than just a low-code platform, he said. That means that business employees who need applications but are not trained developers can use it to create simple to complex applications using the platform’s drag and drop cloud-based web portal. So-called nonprofessional citizen developers are the prime target audience for Betty Blocks.

The platform is completely hosted in the cloud, including the applications that the citizen developers build, said Oudhuis. It is also available for on-premises use if desired. In addition, professional developers can use it and make code changes using “escape hatches” that are built into the application for more control, he said.

Fizor’s Joost Engel

Joost Engel, the global managing director for Fizor, a Netherlands-based business consultancy that is a Betty Blocks partner in Europe, said his company has gained valuable help and skills by working with the company’s partner program in Europe.

“They’ve really brought us up to speed with sales workshops, as well as teaching about what their technology is all about and where it fits in within the IT landscape of our clients,” said Engel. “They also give marketing help about optimizing our website for SEO and show us what kinds of marketing pitches work.”

Betty Blocks also has a favorable licensing structure compared…