Adlib Recruits VARs To Resell Its Doc Conversion Product

Burlington, Ontario-based Adlib currently has 25 resellers and plans to enlist as many as 100 more during the next 12 months, said Brian Kernohan, the company's sales and marketing vice president. Adlib also has some 75 OEM partners.

Adlib is particularly seeking solution providers with experience in nine document-intensive vertical industries including legal, government, manufacturing, and life sciences and pharmaceutical. "We recognize that VARs are closer to their customers than we are and have incredible vertical market expertise," Kernohan said.

The company will be recruiting VARs by region, starting in the Midwest/central U.S. and expanding across the country. The vendor recently hired channel account managers for each region.

In time Kernohan expects as much as 80 to 90 percent of Adlib's sales to go through channel partners, in contrast to the company's current 50-50 direct/indirect sales split.

Adlib's server-based document conversion software, Adlib Express Server, is designed to work within a larger document workflow solution and the VAR program was developed for solution providers that sell and service content, document, business process and product lifecycle management systems. Adding Adlib to their product repertoire would give VARs the opportunity to expand licensing and service revenue with existing customers and add new customer prospects, the company said.

The Adlib product transforms documents from one format to another. An insurance company with millions of documents in a flat file or TIFF (tagged image file) format, for example, can use Adlib's software to convert them to searchable PDF documents. Pharmaceutical companies often need to convert scientific and clinical test documents before submitting them to the Food and Drug Administration as part of the drug approval process.

The channel program will offer VARs sales and technical training, marketing collateral such as joint-marketing activities and industry-specific case studies, market development funds and discounts based on sales volume. VARs will also have the option of performing front-line customer support for higher discounts.

Innovative Ideas Unlimited, a Wakefield, Mass.-based solution provider, has sold Adlib to banking, finance and government clients for about four years. But president Daniel Lieber said the new VAR program would provide more structure to the Adlib-reseller relationship. "It helps us as a partner in terms of expectations and in knowing who to contact."

It will also help Adlib understand its channel partners by formalizing processes for exchanging information and executing on sales opportunities, he said, and provides a route for funneling product requirements from customers back to the vendor.

Lieber said he hasn't taken advantage yet of Adlib's co-marketing programs, but expected he would. On the issue of potential channel conflict, he called Adlib "extraordinarily ethical" noting that the company has paid commissions to VARs in cases where the solution provider generated the lead but the customer opted to buy direct.

Adlib recently named Chris Yardley, previously the company's marketing manager, as VAR channel manager to head up development of the new reseller program.