After eight years of direct sales, a Texas manufacturer ofWindows enterprise utilities is broadening its channel.
Winternals Software announced a three-tier resellers program this week, hoping to round up a half-dozen upper-level solution providers in the first year.
“Our capacity
model (under direct sales) has capped out,” Mike LaPeters, the company’s new vice-president of sales, said in explaining the move.
“We need to extend our reach. And our customers have been asking for it. They want to work better with their reseller partners, but we haven’t had the infrastructure to support that.”
LaPeters was recruited from Veritas six months ago to create the new channel program.
The company’s three main products are Recovery Manager, an enterprise-strength recovery application; Administrator’s Pak; and Defrag Manager.
While it has a direct sales staff, the software has also been available through Softchoice and CDW. Now it’s looking for VARs.
“We want solution providers who have a fair-sized customer base in SMB and enterprise markets, involved with the Microsoft operating system, who understand the recovery market,” said Melissa Hadley, Winternals’ director of channel marketing.
Under the channel partner program there are three levels: Elite, who commit to bringing in $100,000 business in the first year (all figures U.S.); premier, who commit to bring in $50,000 in the first year; and select.
Elite partners get a 25 per cent discount on product, plus another five per cent for registering deals, while premier partners get a 20 per cent discount plus the five per cent. Select partners only get 10 per cent off software.
Winternals is also insisting that its sales staff help seal deals over $10,000.
It is promising to refer leads to elite and premier partners.
Hadley said she’d like to see six elite or premier partners signed up here this year
Product will be purchased direct from Winternals.