The holidays are over and 1Q17 is well underway. That means new opportunities, new sales tools and new goals. So how do agents get the most out of their partners to make sure this year is their most successful yet?
Continuing our FirstLight Partner Program blog series for 2017, this piece looks at some of the most productive and rewarding ways for agents, VARs and systems integrators to work with partners to ensure the relationship is mutually beneficial and lucrative.
As you will see throughout this series, agents must first and foremost find a partner they can rely on and trust, which we believe are two of the most important elements of any prosperous business relationship. Agents and partners must align their efforts and goals to ensure the partner is providing what is needed to succeed, so that the agent can equip their customers with the connectivity necessary to keep their businesses up and running. Below are the top three key elements to consider:
- A Strong Service Portfolio. Of course, no agent will be successful unless what they are selling helps their customers to succeed. So this means making sure their partner offers the best possible product. That includes quality services (dense fiber networks, scalable data transport, fast Internet, secure colocation, reliable voice services, etc.), dedicated service and support that is locally based and cost-effective pricing that gives the agent a competitive advantage. When you’ve found a partner offering all of these elements, you’ve found a match.
- Information and Communication. For agents to be successful, they must be armed with the latest and greatest information about the services they are selling. That means ongoing communication and education. Agents and partners must be in constant contact to understand what offerings are available, what updates have taken place, and what changes might be coming down the road. This ensures that agents are prepared and informed, ready to intelligently speak about the products they are selling. That means agents should focus on regular emails and phone calls with their partner, asking questions and keeping up to date.
- Mutual Benefits. When it’s all said and done, the agent-partner relationship comes down to one thing – selling. Agents need a partner who will help them grow and evolve with the ever-changing needs of customers who require scalability, agility and reliability. They need to make sure their partner is assisting in lead-generation, and is creating solutions that meet the expectations of customers. The right partner will help an agent secure deals that generate recurring revenue while keeping competitors at bay. This means more sales and more commissions for the agents.
When these three steps are considered, agents earning potential increases and partners gain a larger share of the market. In short, everyone wins.
Find out why FirstLight is the right connectivity partner for your business. Explore all of the benefits our Partner Program has to offer. Learn more at https://www.firstlight.net/partners/.
