https://www.channelfutures.com/wp-content/themes/channelfutures_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Master Agents
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • Diversity & Inclusion
  • MSSP Insider
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • Apply Now
    • 2020 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2020 Hot 101 Rankings
    • 2020 MSP 501 Report
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Channel Educational Series
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
    • Channel Convergence
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Content Resources
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2021 MSP 501
    • Circle of Excellence
    • Excellence in Digital Services
    • Top Gun 51
  • Events
    • Back
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Evolution Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • DE&I
Channel Futures
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Master Agents
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • Diversity & Inclusion
  • MSSP Insider
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • Apply Now
    • 2020 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2020 Hot 101 Rankings
    • 2020 MSP 501 Report
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
    • Channel Educational Series
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
    • Channel Convergence
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Content Resources
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2021 MSP 501
    • Circle of Excellence
    • Excellence in Digital Services
    • Top Gun 51
  • Events
    • Back
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • Channel Evolution Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • DE&I
    • Newsletter
  • REGISTER
  • MSPs
  • VARs / SIs
  • Agents
  • Cloud Service Providers
  • Channel Partners Events
 Channel Futures

New/Changing Channel Programs


PHONE+ Readers Provide Feedback From the Field

  • Written by Channel
  • November 12, 2008

There’s always a channel conflict with any vendor that has direct sales force. How that conflict is managed separates great channel carriers from poor ones.

— Jeff Ott

AT&T (T), Verizon (VZ) and Embarq will not work with channel partners. They have house account lists and if they allow a channel partner to help the client, they reduce your commissions by up to 50 percent. They feel their resources justify this policy. In my opinion, the largest carriers have done nothing to embrace channel partners.

— Brian Miller

Direct vs. agent should be transparent, as long as both sides exhibit proper ethics: share pricing adjustments, present professionally and let the buyer choose with whom they prefer to have the relationship. Agents generally win 80 percent of the deals, anyway, stressing their positions as independents with longevity. Sometimes splitting a deal with another agent or direct rep can earn you more dollars over time, if the value is there to join forces. Don’t be short-sighted; I’ve seen more deals feel apart because of greed.

— Gary Eisenberger

I have yet to see a program where everyone is comfortable with the process and rules of engagement. Agents can’t get their accounts protected like the direct side, which doesn’t give you a warm and fuzzy feeling about bringing in the direct side. You usually only do it when you must or it’s required.

— Ted Schuman

I know if we had access to carriers’ provisioning portal, things would go more smoothly.

— Bob Morrison

If channel partners had to write their orders into the provisioning portal, things would run more smoothly because the orders would not be accepted until all necessary information had been provided.

— Dale Schneberger

My answer is split. Some carriers now do an excellent job of provisioning, because they’re studied the process and optimized their approaches. We also have carriers who still struggle with provisioning, which is unfortunate, because a poor provisioning experience leads to an angry customer and a short relationship with that customer.

— Adam Edwards

Three years and 6,000 users later, we think so!

— Joe Gillette

The success or failure of hosted VoIP as well as any true VoIP application is still dependent on the bandwidth as well as the last mile provider. All the QOS in the world cannot compensate for a provider that is over-subscribed. TDM is still at a major advantage in today’s market.

— Ron Bornstein

TDM has the advantage; cable has the backbone and is going to rip AT&T apart if AT&T doesn’t hit the ground with some major price changes. Customers are willing to sacrifice quality for price in the five line market, but I still think VoIP has some fine tuning to do when it comes to stability.

— Robert Davis

Hosted VoIP has come of age for the five-to-50 employee small business market. With five nines reliability coupled with low deployment and support costs, VoIP’s advantages are becoming more clear.

— Andrew Skafel

Whoever has the best relationship with the decision maker. If neutral, the data VAR and interconnect/dealer win when the customer falls within their core competency. Generally speaking, the telephony agent winds due to broad expertise and the consulting/outsourcing aspect.

— David Goodwin

Any experienced carrier-neutral consultant will prove themselves very valuable to the business entity. The client had already experienced the handoff of at least three telco reps over the past year.

— Ron Borstein

The only chance dealers and interconnects have for survival is to adapt — and adapt now! They often have great relationships with their clients and will maintain a good-to-excellent chance of closing new business and retaining existing business as long as they adapt by adding IT-related services and products into their portfolio of offerings.

— Bill Taylor

The vendor or consultant with the most friends wins! Your track record for always being there and being honest wins in the end. When it is time to spend the money to solve the problem, they believe you!

— Ed Bernstein

Fixed mobile convergence will combine both the power of the network and the power of the PBK directly to the handset.

— David Blau

I have gotten more interest and positive feedback from our customers about the advantages of VoIP than any other.

— David Goodwin

To me, mobility — the iPhone and other smartphones — are the wave of the future.

— Peter Radizeski

I think software as a service (SaaS) can be applied to any of these apps and technologies, since it’s really just a new way to bill the client in its simplest form.

— Dany Bouchedid

Renewals are typically more successful if worked jointly — at least from a master agent perspective.

— Ted Schuman

It really depends on what kind of “help” you’re referring to — help in managing when clients we have activated are coming out of contract, assistance in performing the transaction (for VAR reps who are road warriors) or even calling clients to clarify something on an order are all fine. If the master agent is unwilling to do anything involving direct contact with the client, it can add hours and even days to the completion of an order. Collaborative efforts should be made when it benefits the client and the subagent. The master agents should be willing to support the subagents in whatever way necessary to maximize the selling model.

— A.S.

Typically, we prefer to work renewals ourselves, since the agent usually has a working relationship with the customer. In addition, since pricing can affect commissions, we prefer providers not offer a customer some new pricing that may reduce commissions without first discussing it with the agent. If a provider is going to be involved, we definitely prefer them to work back through the agent to the customer.

— Scott Hailey

Tags: Agents Business Models New/Changing Channel Programs

Related


  • Convergence
    New, Changing Partner Programs: HPE, Zoom, Fortinet, Microsoft, More
    Telecom and IT vendors are courting partners to sell their solutions.
  • Business handshake
    Ujet, Peerless Network Enter Master Agent Agreements with PlanetOne, Intelisys
    Ujet’s channel partner program supports strategic business partnerships, master agents and integrators.
  • Merge road sign
    Agents Voice Concerns, Hopes for Master Agent Consolidation
    Subagents weigh in on how mergers and acquisitions could impact them long-term.
  • Advantage
    TBI Adds Rival Intelisys Alum, Tech Data, 8x8 Vets
    The new leadership members are already making improvements at TBI.

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your Channel Futures account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • Top 20 Channel Stories in March: Telarus, Synnex-Tech Data, Microsoft Hack
  • Intermedia Delays Going Public, Cites 'Adverse' Market Conditions
  • Exclusive: As AWS Turns 15, Doug Yeum Predicts Even More Innovation
  • Welcome to the Future

Galleries

View all

Biden Administration Issues Russian Sanctions in Response to SolarWinds Hack, Election Interference

April 16, 2021

Industry Perspectives

View all

SD-WAN Supports More Purposeful Shift to Cloud

April 16, 2021

How Tech Is Transforming Public Safety–and the Implications for Channel Partners

April 15, 2021

Exercising Your Organization’s Data Loss Recovery Abilities

April 13, 2021

Webinars

View all

What to Look For: 2021 Threat Report

April 22, 2021

Health Care and SD-WAN: A Seller’s Guide

April 27, 2021

How MSPs Can Leverage SOCaaS to Improve Security & Grow Revenue

May 4, 2021

White Papers

View all

Carbonite Data Protection and Cyber Resilience

April 15, 2021

Top Tips: How Resellers Can Leverage Rackspace to Enhance Customer’s Cyber Security Protection with Microsoft 365 Security

March 30, 2021

Top Tips: Optimize Your Microsoft 365 Investment with Rackspace Technology

March 30, 2021

Upcoming Events

View all

Channel Partners Conference & Expo

November 1, 2021 - November 4, 2021

MSP Summit

November 1, 2021 - November 2, 2021

Channel Evolution Europe

November 30, 2021 - December 1, 2021

Videos and Fastchats

View all

5 Reasons Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Is Important

Five9 Shares Insights on Implementing a DE&I Strategy

April 13, 2021

FASTCHAT: How Fortinet Reduces Complexity Through Networking, Security

March 31, 2021

Strong Customer Experience Needs Strong Partner Experience

December 22, 2020

Twitter

ChannelFutures

If you needed any more reason to submit your @MSP_501 application, this promotional video will get you fired up!… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

April 16, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@FrontierCorp just weeks away from exiting #Chapter11bankruptcy. dlvr.it/RxqkK1 https://t.co/yxyChKL9Um

April 16, 2021
ChannelFutures

#SDWAN supports a more purposeful shift to the #cloud @ComcastBusiness #networksecurity #hybridwork #security #SaaS… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

April 16, 2021
ChannelFutures

RT @alysfitz: 67% of respondents reported burning out since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. We need to do better to support #WomenInTech, especi…

April 16, 2021
ChannelFutures

RT @AllianceofCW: #ACW members Mayka Rosales-Peterson and Raquel Wiley were elected to @ChannelFutures' #Diversity, #Equity, & #Inclusion B…

April 16, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@ZiplyFiber rolls out agent #partnerprogram. #networking dlvr.it/RxmM4K

April 16, 2021
ChannelFutures

New #Microsoft #SurfaceLaptop4 is an incremental update with an improved CPUs webcam, speakers and dual mics.… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

April 16, 2021
ChannelFutures

.@okta hires @InsightEnt vet as global channel chief. #cybersecurity dlvr.it/RxmM20 https://t.co/ImWRZp2qHt

April 16, 2021

MSSP Insider

Business advice for MSSPs and news from the broader security channel.

Newsletters and Updates

Sign up for The Channel Report, Channel Futures Update, MSP 501 Newsletter and more.

Live Channel Events

Get the latest information on the next industry-leading Channel Partners event.

Galleries

Educational slide shows and images from live events.

Media Kit And Advertising

Want to reach our audience? Access our media kit.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • Channel Partners Events
  • Telecoms.com
  • MSP 501
  • Black Hat
  • IoT World Today
  • Omdia

WORKING WITH US

  • Contact
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter

FOLLOW Channel Futures ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2021 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X