Enterprise agreements (EAs) are rapidly gaining in popularity, and Ingram Micro has taken steps to simplify the process of selling EAs for partners.
Shelby Skrhak speaks with
Carol Wright, senior technology consultant, and
Cori Hahn, senior technical account manager, both with
Ingram Micro, about:
- What EAs are
- How selling EAs affects business overall
- Ingram Micro’s Empower EA program
What are enterprise agreements (EAs)?
The beauty of enterprise agreements is that they provide the partner and end user some long-term objectives.
The typical period for an EA lasts 3-5 years which is beneficial for the partner because the end user is locked in for a longer period of time. However, it’s also beneficial for the end user because that extended time frame provides financial peace of mind.
Because of the proliferation of the cloud and the universal consumer acceptance of the Netflix pay-per-month model, EAs are growing in popularity and moving into areas where you wouldn’t traditionally see them.
Selling EAs
Selling EAs helps partners in two major ways:
- Captures recurring revenue from software subscriptions
- Unlocks solution-building conversations with customers which expands revenue
The main roadblock for selling EAs is some companies don’t meet certification requirements.
“EAs, traditionally, have been targeted towards partners that have been able to fully support a solution,” Carol says.
That means it hasn’t always been a good fit for the average partner. Consequently, they’ve been missing out on business opportunities because they lack specializations and certifications.
Empower EA program
Ingram Micro’s Empower EA program helps partners circumvent that challenge by allowing them to transact EAs without holding advanced specialization requirements from Cisco. Instead, the partner can leverage Ingram Micro certifications.
“We handhold the opportunity from start to finish,” Cori says. “So, we are creating the deal registration and the proposal, attaching pricing, and working with the software team to get final price quoting taken care of.”
Ingram Micro does all the heavy lifting and the partner simply presents that final quote to their end customers.
Benefits of the program
- Customers receive financial predictability
- Customers can receive a multi-suite discount (buy more, save more)
- Customers get products designed to work together which improves security overall
- Cisco offers true forward billing meaning no true-ups or retroactive billing
- Partners can capture larger deals
- Partners can use the cross-architecture EA to displace competitive point products
Ingram Micro’s Empower EA program is a win-win for all parties involved.
Contact the
Empower EA sales team or visit
Empower EA from Ingram Micro for more information.
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