Hyperscalers such as major cloud service providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP), have significantly transformed the channel sales landscape in the technology industry.
They have introduced digital marketplaces that offer customers direct access to cloud-based services, making them a preferred option for purchasing IT services. Consequently, many vendors are looking at marketplaces as an alternative to traditional channel sales, capable of delivering a more cost effective route to revenue and market share growth.
The promises for vendors are clear: an easier access to the market via the hyperscalers' vast customer base; infrastructure and platform leverage allowing vendors to focus more on their core competencies and accelerate time to market, rater than invest in infrastructure; collaboration and co-selling opportunities via joint sales efforts, as hyperscalers compete with traditional distributors.
So, does it get easier to sell? With hyperscalers, vendors certainly get an easier way to transact (less risks), and customers find the cloud a much more straightforward way to consume technology. However, as marketplaces mature, vendors are in fact discovering limits to hyperscalers, much like with the traditional channel approach.
First, you still need to differentiate on the marketplace, in order to progress to a qualified opportunity stage. The hyperscaler is selling your competitors' solutions as well, and these are increasing in numbers. How are customers suppose to choose and what's their journey? How can you differentiate among the myriad of options and stand out?
Then there is the local touch, especially in Central (CEE) and South East Europe (SEE), where consumption is still driven overwhelmingly by the traditional channel. Having an access to relevant contacts both at the customer and partner side is an important asset.
As vendors turn from products to more service oriented offerings (SaaS), they find it even more relevant to have a loyal channel partner ecosystem (admittedly MSP-based), that can complement their offering with locally delivered managed services.
Finally, in a landscape of escalating labor costs, everybody is struggling with a shortage of people and talent. That is equally valid for vendors, distributors and channel partners. So how do you get proper attention so that everybody from marketing, sales and presales is aligned with the messages you need to push to the market to get opportunities? This is an ever present issue, made even more pressing when resources and attention is scarce.
With Bridge IT you get an indispensable set of services regardless your preferred route to market (traditional channel, hyperscaler or direct). From marketing to sales management and technical selling, we can complement your sales efforts in IT networking and security across the South East Europe (SEE) markets.