68% of Value Added Resellers Are Optimistic on Revenue Growth This Year Over Last

SAN MATEO, Calif. – July 10, 2007 – In a recent survey commissioned by BLUEROADS Corporation and conducted by eWeek Magazine, over 68% of respondents stated that they expect an increase in revenue this year over last. But the news from the channel isn’t all good – at the same time that partners report business optimism, over 64% of value added resellers (VAR) stated that they didn’t believe that their vendors had their best interests at heart. With vendors and partners alike having too much at stake to not fully align and optimize their revenue orientation, BLUEROADS probed further to understand if vendors are missing out on opportunities by not better engaging with their partners?

BLUEROADS commissioned eWeek Magazine to conduct a survey of VAR organizations selected from the Ziff Davis eWeek Subscriber community. In total, 215 VAR / System Integrator subscribers qualified for and completed the survey, which focused on the opinions, needs and ambitions of the technology reseller community as well as their relations with their vendors. Visit http://www.blueroads.com/landing/PS_wp_07_07.html to download an executive summary of survey findings.

"With the indirect sales model quickly outpacing the direct sales model in driving higher sales and revenue, and an increasing number of vendors striving to grow their channels it is increasingly important for vendors to understand the needs of their channel partners and arm them with the proper tools to sell more effectively," said Charles Watson, vice president, Marketing for BLUEROADS. "The findings of this study provide vendors a glimpse into the mind of the VAR community and identify improvements vendors can make to their partner programs that will increase the effectiveness and success of their partners."

One of the many surprising findings from the survey reported that almost universally partners won't walk away from opportunities that exist outside their scope of abilities. Regardless of channel tenure (Young (1-5 Years), Mid (6-10 Years), or Senior (11 to 16 years)), EVERY partner segment was most likely (42%) to report they would "Look for some way to service the opportunity themselves" when asked how they "...respond to an opportunity for products or services they don’t represent". Clearly, vendors must do a better job of making it easy for a partner to refer a lead rather than chasing down the 'long shots' themselves, and the BLUEROADS report explores some of those options.

In addition, the survey found that, partner revenue expectations for 2007 (compared to 2006) are closely related to how likely they are to partner with other VARs on projects. Specifically,

• Those who partner ‘frequently’ were most likely to forecast higher revenues in 2007 compared with 2006.
• Those who ‘occasionally’ partner were anticipating flat revenue, with 2007 revenues the same as 2006.
• Those who report they ‘rarely’ partner with other VARs were more than twice as likely to expect 2007 to have lower revenues as 2006.

Fortunately, many partners are beginning to understand the strategic importance of partnering with peers. Almost two in five survey respondents foresee the need for increased peer-to-peer partnerships in the next 12 months. Whether cause or effect, partnering makes a big difference in a VAR's success. Vendors must make it easy and safe for their VARs to partner by creating programs and initiatives that not only accommodate partnering with other resellers, but reward partners who proactively partnering with specialists.

As the leader in Partner Opportunity Management (POM), BLUEROADS works with leading channel-centric vendors to make their partners successful by helping vendors and partners better align on revenue-centric topics, including lead management, deal registration, partner programs and more. A full report on the findings entitled “8 Things Your Partners Want You to Know” can be viewed at http://www.blueroads.com/landing/PS_wp_07_07.html

About BLUEROADS Corporation
BLUEROADS Corporation delivers proven enterprise Partner Opportunity Management solutions that help organizations with complex, multi-dimensional channels market and sell more effectively. Customers like Avaya, Polycom and Juniper depend on BLUEROADS' unique closed-loop system which empowers individual partner representatives to actively participate in sales and marketing processes. BLUEROADS strengthens the bond between vendors and their partners, achieving the mutually beneficial goals of increased conversion rates, revenue and market share. BLUEROADS is headquartered in San Mateo, California and is financed by ArrowPath Venture Capital, Cardinal Venture Capital, El Dorado Ventures and The Halo Fund. For more information, please visit www.blueroads.com.