Tech Data customises channel education

"We have been investing in communicating a new value proposition to a huge portion of the channel in the first half of this year," says Eliot Shepherd, marketing director at Tech Data. "We have succeeded in doing that because of our unique approach in building value add in the channel: customization of training programs based on new technologies and resellers needs along with attractive cross-selling capabilities from our various business units."

Build VAR business with Tech Data is a yearlong program that targets resellers in the region. The program aims at building resellers' skills that are essential to deliver technical capabilities and other value added services to the end-user markets in the region. "Because individual reseller needs vary between and within the region's markets, our customized approach to channel education brings superior value than other approaches," said Shepherd.

General seminars talk to a general type of audience whereas customized seminars talk to the needs of a specific target audience; technical trainings talk to our technical people and sales training talk to our sales people. With Tech Data, all we have to do for example is call them up and ask for a product training on Veritas software, in a specific area, and they will bring it to Bahrain," said Haider Merchant, systems sales manager at Al Moayyed International. Tech Data conducted more than 30 seminar sessions around the region with technology vendors like Cisco, Intel, USRobotics and others. "Tareq Al Zubaidi, sales manager at Al Gosaibi Services Company Ltd said, a Tech Data customer in Riyadh, said:" Along with building skills, these seminars build our relationship with Tech Data and the vendor partner involved."

The company also uniquely carries the widest range of information technology products, thus extending its capability to cross-sell and bring the channel greater value proposition than its rivals. Tech Data distributes brands for 27 global technology vendors for PC components and peripherals, personal computers and laptops and software. "Our capabilities to bundle across and within our units bring price and volume benefits to resellers and therefore, expand their revenue opportunities," says Shepherd.

"While we continue focusing on delivering the fastest and most cost efficient logistics management, we will continue investing in our unique value added services that we bring to the channel. This is how we translate our commitment to the region," ended Shepherd.

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