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Ingram Micro Restructures 2 Key Sales Networks

Fago: company will “double down” with top performers

Santa Ana-based Ingram Micro Inc. has restructured two of its reseller groups in the U.S. to focus on its most loyal customers and top performers.

The company, which relies on thousands of resellers to sell goods and services, has reduced membership in its small-to-medium business group, dubbed the SMB Alliance, as well as another that targets public sector customers. Both reseller groups get special incentives from Ingram Micro.

“Our purpose is to take those efforts in sales and double down in the community, so they can have those resources and relationships they need in those growing markets and with those manufacturers who create those technologies in a much more efficient manner,” said John Fago, Ingram Micro’s senior director of channel marketing in North American.

Ingram Micro is the biggest distributor of computers, software and other technology products in the world, and the largest public company based in Orange County, with more than $36 billion in sales in 2011.

Most of its customers are known as value-added resellers, often technology consultants that sell goods and services to small and midsize businesses. The company also sells to retailers.

Ingram set out to restructure the two reseller groups in mid-2011 and implemented the plan late last year, according to Fago. The number of SMB members has been reduced from 2,000 to roughly 500 “aggressive, engaged” partners.

A public sector group, rebranded as Public Sector Elite, has been pared down from 1,600 to 500 members, he said.

Resellers cut from the preferred groups remain affiliated with Ingram Micro. The company works with tens of the thousands of resellers overall, with approximately 17,000 in the small-business segment.

Requirements

The SMB Alliance members met the following requirements:

• 50% focus on customers with less than 1,000 employees,

• vendor technical certification specific to the program,

• 50% sales through Ingram Micro and

• $200,000 in sales of products through Ingram Micro.

Public Sector Elite members will be required to maintain:

• at least $225,000 in annual revenue from sales to the public-sector,

• 50% focus on public sector customers and

• at least 60% of their public-sector business through Ingram Micro.

Benefits for SMB members include six months of free pre-sale technical support, a discount on registration fees for the Ingram Micro Cloud Summit, a dedicated services inbox and an airfare voucher to attend one SMB Alliance training session.

PSE members will get their costs covered for General Service Administration passes to procure government contracts, free unique identification number tag registration, exclusive deals on professional development services for education and warehouse storage at no cost during peak seasons.

Members of both groups also will receive sales and marketing support and discounted rates on services from the company and third-party service providers.

“Investing A Lot”

“We are investing a lot in these partners,” Fago said. “We’re going to give an incredible amount of engagement here.”

Expected growth areas on the public-sector side and small business segment include cloud computing, physical and digital security, remote communications, and mobility, according to Fago.

The restructuring of the reseller groups marks the first major changes Ingram has implemented since establishing them more than five years ago.

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