On Their Own

During one particular quarter, Didlake sold three STORServer backup appliances,resulting in a chunk of money for both his company and himself. But then Didlake's account manager told him to quit selling the appliance, directing him to keep selling Oracle databases and high-availability server solutions from Sun Microsystems and Compaq Computer. The reason? Those systems helped keep the reseller's consultants busy because they required a high level of expertise for installation. STORServer, on the other hand, is a bundled solution with an

easier daily administration.

"My customers had certain ideas about what they wanted to do with technology," Didlake recalls. "And I was told to push another product. I was like, 'That is not what they need.' [My company's response was, 'Well, that is what we sell,' even if it was not the best solution for the customer."

Didlake solved his quandary: He quit to work on his own. He is one of a number of resellers who now call themselves independent agents,the kind of one-man shops that gives individuals the freedom to back the products they believe in and the flexibility to build long-term relationships with loyal customers. The storage industry, in particular, has become a lure for this cottage industry, says John Pearring, president of STORServer, based in Colorado Springs, Colo.

"As long as you have a very good product that solves the customer's problem, agents will be successful," Pearring says.

Since November, Pearring says his company has received a marked increase of weekly and monthly calls from resellers looking to take that road. STORServer is using this opportunity to bolster its sales force; by year's end, Pearring says he plans to sign up 100 agents willing to sell the STORServer appliance, a device that handles backup, archiving and disaster- recovery, and centralizes those processes on multiple operating systems.

STORServer has created the kind of support environment that enables salespeople like Didlake and others to be self-sustaining free agents. Recently, the company installed proprietary B2B software to enable agents to handle all their sales support activity online, such as putting together customer quotes, developing a proposal and support documentation, and scheduling conference calls. Agents can also register their leads online, basically ensuring other agents can't take their sales away. In addition, agents receive a pipeline report of sales online, so they can see the progress and success rates of their sales on a monthly basis.

"My overhead is nothing," says Adam T. Maguire, a VAR who works out of his home in Camas, Wash. "Give me a cable, a modem and a laptop, and I'm ready to go. Big companies have big overhead. There is a squeeze out there, [but I think small resellers can function more efficiently in this market because we have low overhead."

Betting On Themselves

Agents striking out on their own all believe in a basic tenet: It's not just about pushing products, it's about solving the customer's problem. And it's also about the best interests of the customer for the long term, adds Didlake, who works out of his home in Wichita, Kan.

"[Many resellers are in it to sell products, sell products, sell products," Didlake says. "They may not be looking at the best interests of the customer for the long term."

Didlake's approach is to research the customers' environments, look at their technology and examine the way they do business. He finds out how they are doing backup, and then introduces the STORServer solution. He doesn't push Unix over Windows NT; it all depends on what platform a customer needs.

"I can make more money if it is done on Unix," he explains. "There are a lot of [resellers who will [tell their customers, 'Well, you have to do it on Unix because Windows is not that stable.' The reason they say that is because they can make more money on Unix%85I was told to do stuff like that before. Now, I don't have to do that."

Given the number of solution-provider companies that have gone under or merged with another firm, it has also been tough for resellers to find a good niche they can play in for the long term.

"You look at what is going on out there: There is no security. Layoffs. Buyouts. Enron," says Bill Brennan, who has worked as an agent with STORserver since last fall. "If I have to bet on someone, I'll bet on me."

Through the '80s and '90s, Brennan worked as an IBM Business Partner with a strong background in IBM's midrange AS/400. He worked in product testing, customer support, presales support and even as an independent consultant for the AS/400 product line. In addition, for about three years, he worked at a Boston-based start-up called Security Integration.

"You learn a lot," he says. "You get a few lumps in the head. But you come out a little bit brighter."

What is most important to Brennan is that the products he sells hold up to scrutiny and that the manufacturer comes through with the support. "I'm putting my reputation on the line," he says. "I'm better now at recognizing good solutions, [having been at the receiving end of some bad products."

Rich Kuhar Sr., who founded his own company, Arkay, in 1989, also values his ability to choose what he wants to sell. During his more than 30 years in the technology industry, Kuhar has worked alongside a few notables, such as Richard Egan, who went on to become one of the founders of EMC. In addition, he worked at Intel during a time when it was making less than $100 million in annual revenue.

"I probably sold hundreds of millions of dollars of products," he says. "And I found myself, at times, selling products I did not believe in. I really didn't think that was fair. I wanted the opportunity to be selective and enjoy my freedom."

Along with his sons, Rich Jr., 34, and Chad, 31, Arkay services customers from coast to coast and overseas with clients including the Cleveland Clinic and Westinghouse, and partnerships with companies, such as NexSAN, QualStar, STORServer and Veritas Software.

Kuhar Sr. says it takes a certain personality to be successful as an agent: a sincere person who represents only the products you believe in. There are many storage products available that Arkay won't touch simply because it doesn't believe in them. "We don't believe in their longevity. We don't believe in their design," Kuhar says. "And, many times, we don't believe in the companies' management."

As a company of agents, Arkay has the ability to be much more agile. And because it is smaller, it can react more quickly to market shifts. "We are actually more on the customer's side now," says Kuhar Jr., who had to learn the multiple technologies of servers, clients and workstations from multiple vendors when he worked for other companies. That got to be a little crazy.

"It was way too much," he says. "To learn them all and sell them effectively was difficult%85Working with my father, I could learn an awful lot more through his experience%85It's nice to build our own company."

The key to Arkay's success is a strong customer base. That means building a reliable bond with both manufacturers and customers. The reason is simple: Customers will then see the company as an extension of their organizations in solving internal problems. That also leads customers to refer Arkay to other customers.

"Once they see what we can do, they share us with others," Kuhar Jr. says. "After that, there is just good old- fashioned prospecting."