IBM To Beef Up Solution Builder Express Offerings For VARs

In all of the hubbub that the IBM division has created around ISVs as the key entry point for the small- and midsize-business market, it continues to enable VARs and integrators to sell its middleware offerings, company executives say.

Next Tuesday, IBM Software plans to unveil six new Solutions Builder Express Starter Point offerings tailored for the following segments: cross-industry B2B e-commerce, business-to-consumer e-commerce analytics, retail e-commerce Web sites, collaborative document management in banking, item management and synchronization for UCCnet, and collaborative community and employee portals for the eServer iSeries. IBM kicked off the Solution Express family this spring at PartnerWorld.

"In the SMB market of companies with 100 to 1,000 employees, people tend to buy from local individuals who understand their industries, talk their lingo and walk their walk," said Kevin Hooper, director of worldwide SMB sales and business development at IBM Software.

Essentially, that means VARs and integrators. The Starter Points can include tutorials, templates, suggested guidelines for implementation, downloadable software, marketing and sales collateral. VARs don't have to make an upfront financial commitment, but software sales quotas are associated with the program, Hooper said.

Scott Jones, account executive for Netcom Systems, an Edison, N.J.-based integrator, said those materials do help drive sales because a solution provider going into an account equipped with professional IBM-backed materials gets credibility. "You're working with a proven solution. It's already put together; it's not like we're working from scratch," he said.

"When you deal with the sales and marketing in SMBs, the IBM Express model gives customers the ability to have the same stuff as the big boys," Jones added.

The list price for IBM's full Item Synchronization offering for enterprises can run $130,000 to $140,000. The Express version, however, chops that cost down to a palatable $7,000, Jones said.

For more on IBM partner programs see the company web site.