ARC: Best Vendors, Worst Vendors For Services Opportunity

Which vendors are the best at providing VARs with services opportunity? Our Annual Report Card research asked VARs how they felt about their vendors' programs. Here's a look at the five best at offering services opportunity to VARs and the five worst.

SonicWall, the fifth-best vendor at providing solution providers services opportunity, is working closely with its channel to offer new ways of boosting the bottom line.

The security vendor, for example, last January debuted its channel program, Channel 2.0, which addresses the demand for SonicWall services and provides benefits to help SonicWall partners achieve financial goals. Also, this summer SonicWall unveiled the Next Generation Managed Service Provider program, geared toward providing partners with new revenue opportunities.

EMC's Velocity2 Authorized Services Network Program provides the advanced technical training that partners need to offer maximum customer value by offering independent certification of each participant's ability to deliver high-quality professional services. Velocity2 ASN partners can differentiate their value in the marketplace, build customer loyalty and maximize profitability.

Partners needing help with presales virtualization opportunities and predesign activities can find an assessment services kit on VMware's Web site that will help them make the case for virtualization and help move customers through adoption.

Fortinet runs numerous lead-generation campaigns and offers programs to drive sales and marketing of Fortinet products and services, including a customer evaluation program, a lead referral program, access to co-op funds, support for industry and partner events, a reference program to publish customer success stories, and development of topical white papers, and technical and application notes.

As part of its Velocity program, EMC has developed a survey the vendor uses to determine customer satisfaction on quality. EMC has made that instrument available to its service partners so they can receive direct feedback on their performance. In addition, solution providers that are part of the Velocity program receive EMC's endorsement to delver services on the equipment sold.



Next: The 5 Vendors Scoring the Worst In Services Opportunity

VARs were critical of the services opportunity provided by Dell. The vendor fared poorly in criteria that helps provide VARs services opportunities, including quality, compatibility/ease of integration, marketing support and training. In each of those particular criteria, Dell's scores were far below the category average.

Within its technology category, Seagate had only one other competitor, Western Digital. Seagate finished 7 points behind WD in the services opportunity category, possibly reflective of what VARs saw as poor training. If a VAR isn't confident in the use and potential of a product, its services opportunities involving that product would therefore be limited.

Fujitsu's score was nearly 15 points lower than Panasonic, which finished first overall in this technology category. The vendor's scores in 17 of the 18 criteria were lower than the category average. The exception was in quality and reliability.

Resellers really slammed CA in the services opportunity criteria, giving a score more than 11 points lower than McAfee, which placed fifth overall -- just ahead of CA -- in this technology category. CA was hurt by its poor performance in the related criteria of marketability and ROI as well.

Viewsonic's VARs gave the display vendor low scores in services Opportunity. Viewsonic's sole competitor in the category was Samsung, which had a higher score in the criteria by seven points. The display market is particularly difficult to create services opportunities for the channel -- a challenge both vendors are facing.