Etelos Launches Server For Google Apps Platform
The platform, Etelos Server for Google Apps can be put on an appliance or accessed through a hosted model. It's designed to simplify the process of bringing existing applications or building new Google Apps applications through the company's Etelos Marketplace, according to Danny Kolke, founder and CTO of Etelos.
"Our main focus has always been to deliver a platform where we can deliver and distribute apps to different verticals. Google is in the infancy of the Web application space. Other companies have their own unique features, but Google has more traffic than any other. We see Google as a big distribution partner," Kolke said.
The Renton, Wash.-based company also announced this week its second application for Google Apps: a project management application called Etelos Projects for Google Apps. That application gives users an interface for managing complex projects and their teams with functionality including time logging, advanced reporting, automated messaging and task management functionality.
Etelos previously offered anapplication, Etelos CRM for Google Apps in four editions: Personal, Professional, Enterprise and Developer.
Etelos Projects for Google Apps is fully integrated with the Etelos CRM for Google Appsand can further extend the number of enterprise applications that work with Google Apps, according to the company.
Google has the right strategy for developing Web-based tools for the future, Kolke said. "A lot of it is around accessibility. The wrong move is trying to replicate Excel. That's a tough road to hoe. They're focusing on accessibility and ease of use. I use Google's Spreadsheets because I can easily share data. I'm not trying to map complex formulas," he said.
Etelos has been around for eight years building Web-based apps and got to know the Google team early on, Kolke said.
"As they were formulating their Docs and Spreadsheets, we had the opportunity to integrate our products," Kolke said. "Jonathan Rochelle, the Google Spreadsheets guy, thought our Etelos CRM was cool and said, 'Hey, you guys should integrate this.' That was before Google Apps was launched. I said yes. We saw lots of traffic, new customers, new partners for us."
"CRM for Google Apps is a nice solution for small business to handle contract management. It was a really good fit [with Google Apps], just to demonstrate that the platform could scale. Our goal all along has been to repackage the platform and enable other apps to build more quickly," he said.
Because Etelos has been focused on development, it's just starting to put together a channel sales effort, Kolke said. "We've been pulled into this market via our SMB traffic. It's a big evolution in the company. In February, we were a pretty small company, now we've tripled in size," he said. "For resellers now selling into vertical channels, it's always been close to our desire to get [partnerships] there."