As part of a continuing effort to create an online channel ecosystem that spans multiple vendors, BlueRoads this week launched version 5.0 of its partner relationship management (PRM) software.
Available as a service hosted by BlueRoads or as software that can be purchased by a vendor, the BlueRoads PRM application has been adopted by Nortel Networks, Sun Microsystems, Hitachi Data Systems, Sophos and SurfControl, among others.
Mark Pierret, senior channel marketing manager at Nortel Networks, said version 5.0 has given 150 Nortel solution providers a higher-quality view of leads. Nortel, which has been using the BlueRoads PRM software since July 2002, upgraded to version 5.0 several weeks ago.
"It was a fairly natural decision to upgrade to release 5 since it immediately gave us some things we needed in terms of a quality index that allows sales reps to view the quality of a lead before they select it," he said.
Since moving to BlueRoads, Pierret said the networking vendor has doubled revenue year over year for six consecutive quarters from its lead share program, which is run through the BlueRoads PRM system.
Pierret said the use of the BlueRoads software has had a dramatic impact on lead close rates, but he would not specify how much close rates have gone up.
Axel Schultze, president and CEO of BlueRoads, said the San Mateo, Calif.-based company's goal is to give as many VARs as possible a common interface for engaging online with multiple vendors.
Version 5 adds modules for managing account registrations and contract renewals. Using the registration module, VARs can register an account, which can be compared against a list of named accounts that a vendor supports directly, while keeping the particulars of that deal confidential. The contract renewal management module alerts partners when a customer's contract is about to expire. Existing features include modules for campaign management, partner profiling and lead management.
Pierret said the "beauty" of the BlueRoads solution is it establishes ties with the sales reps in the field. "This gets right to the rep who is responsible for contacting the sales prospect and closing the deal," he said.
So far 700 channel and Nortel sales reps use the BlueRoads software, Pierret said, adding that there's a list of resellers waiting to get access to use the system.
DeMarie Malner, director of Americas Channel Marketing at Sophos, said the antivirus and antispam software vendor has about 10 partners on Version 5 and plans to add another 10 by the end of the month and 40 more over the next year. She said the deal registration module was key to Sophos' decision to use BlueRoads PRM software.
"Deal registration was absolutely the deciding factor for us," she said. "We are now able to tell our partners they can register leads, we approve them and protect them through the sales cycle."
Rolling out BlueRoads 5 should end the "mad flurry" of phone calls and Excel spreadsheets at the end of each quarter "trying to figure out where deals are in the pipeline," Malner said.
"The channel has been asking us for lead distribution and deal registration," she added. "Their overwhelming response was 'Thank you for listening to us.' Partners have been very impressed by the software."
