How do I get software resellers to sell my software?
Does anyone have recommendations for how to convince software resellers to sell the product? Is there any recommended procedure that should be followed when contacting vendors? Is there any listing of area software resellers that I can use to find potential vendors?
I have the utmost confidence that our product is the best product available. However, I am aware that it is not always the best product that succeeds. Any help you can give would be most appreciated.
Answer:
Look for local system integrators (LAN,WAN guys). offer them a hefty margin (30-50 points) and if your co has marketing dollars offer them dollar for dollar co-marketing campaigns...
Most integrators have a solid base of customers and you can work with them to land a few test customers...
Find a reseller and ask for a meeting face to face / one on one. Schedule the meeting in a room where the reseller and yourself will be alone. Hand the reseller a copy of your software with one hand and in the other pull out a gun and aim it at the resellers face. Then look the reseller in the eye and say "Either you sell my software or I splatter your brains all over the wall, which will it be". This will most likely end with the reseller agreeing to sell your software. It may also end in a lengthy prison stay but at least you can say you tried.
From the point of view of the resellers, I'd say you have to do these 3 things in this order.
1) make it profitable for the resellers
2) make it easy to sell. It should have attractive packaging, to catch the buyer's eyes. It should be easy to store and display, but be hard to shoplift. It should be easy to use, so that sales staff can recommend it.
From the point of view of the end user:
1) Price it so that it is cheaper than other products
2) Make it better than the other products
3) make it easy to use - to configure, to get updates, to monitor activity, etc.
Of course, if you're at the point of marketing it to the resellers, points 2 and 3 are pretty moot already.
There are plenty of products in your category already, including some that are free in basic versions. The vast majority are not sold through resellers; only big companies such as Symantec can afford this channel. Even Computer Associates only uses resellers for small business products; security products are sold mostly online.
My suggestion to you would be to put out a free fully-functional Starter Edition including some nagging functionality (such as displaying a message urging the user to switch to a Professional Edition every time they update the signature file) and have Professional and Enterprise Editions (and possibly other related products) ready for purchase online.
For an example of similar strategy, see:
http://www.avira.com/
__________
I can't help you with convincing software resellers to pick up your product but what I can do is tell you about some software that we've devoloped that will help you build a list of targeted companies and ways into those companies. Check it out www.broadlook.com, my number here is 262-754-8080 ext. 228 and ask for Christopher.
give out free softwares to resellers and give them good support and incentives
The answers post by the user, for information only, BAnswer.com does not guarantee the right.
Other Questions and Answers: