There is a huge perception gap between VARs and vendors. In vendor land, they eat, breath, and sleep their products every day. Vendor SE’s only have to know a handful of products and they work with these products on a consistent basis. In VAR world, the SE’s have to deal with multiple products from multiple vendors which are changing all the time. They are lucky to be an expert in a handful of these products, and it’s very challenging to keep this knowledge current.

We invest $10k’s of money training our SE’s on various products — it is a huge cost of business that is covered by slim margin (10-20%). Just because you get a 35% discount doesn’t you get margins that high — no one buys at list. In vendor world, the margins are far higher, which enables them to cover the cost of SE’s easier.

There was a response that you should have prepped on all products from that vendor before going into the meeting. How is that accomplished? You read their website, digest the marketing propganda, and hopefully can fake your way through a technical conversation? I see that fail time and time again.

I also applaud your honesty with the customer. That behavior is what customers need from VARS — honesty and objectivity. In VAR world you are really in it for the long term with every customer. In Vendor world, I know they care about the customer, but the relationship is far more transactional-based rather than relationship-based. I don’t mean this as a negative comment to vendors – it is just the way it works, and if I was at a vendor I would be operating in the same mode.

Anyway, I know you try hard as you can do a good job.

speak to you soon

I know the roles. This is why I have been trying to relax my attitude about the vendor / VAR relationship. You do what you do, and we do what we do, and I know I have to accept that and work within the constraints. Your comment is appropriate.

But your comment about not being to count on VAR SE’s was crap, and it set me off, plain and simple.

Michael

a

Thanks for the compliment, Sam. I appreciate it.

But honestly, I get how it works. I’ve seen it enough times. But what it comes down to is that customers get burned by vendors because of the vendor’s attitude that you mentioned. And when sales people get caught up in that, then they become a cog in that same machine, and it becomes real hard to see the difference between the two. I know I am probably being idealistic, and I have even learned lately to relax my attitude about it (maybe my blog hasn’t reflected that, but my job has). But this just set me off.

And maybe you are right about my comment not being fair about vendor SE’s. I was not trying to direct it at vendor SE’s since I obviously know a lot of those guys, and they are more often than not great people. I know they are doing their job in the way it is layed out. And I know those guys work their tails off. And I know they have helped me more than once.

But I am not going to sit here and let VAR SE’s get knocked around either. It is us who keeps the relationship with the customer so vendors don’t have to. It is NOT an easy job, and I won’t be made to look like I am some worthless screw up out here not willing to do my job. The vendor SE has the luxury of being steeped in his company’s technology all day and every day. I get to see that same technology every month if I am lucky. Yea, I can read a book and read a knowledge base, but it ain’t the same. Call me a whiner if you like.

So I think the most unfair comment made was from Alan. Again, I was ADMITTING I screwed up, and Alan kicked me while I was down. I’m a big boy. I can take a hit. But I’ll be damned if I am going to sit back and not hit back.

Michael

I can always count on you for blunt honesty. Remind me to punch you right before I hug you next time I see you.

And before I pull out the defensive attitude on you, I just saw the sales guy I was referring to about an hour ago, and he was totally fine with my performance. So that settles the nagging question I had.

So, NOW I will get defensive. As much as I appreciate the support of LV and Newby, I ADMITTED that I was not as prepared as I should have been in that meeting. The purpose of the post was not to get people to make me feel better. The purpose was to just get some thoughts down and kinda whine a little about all the products I am supposed to know. Though I got some supportive comments, I still felt like I let the guy down. So thanks for kicking me while I am down.

And when you say you can’t count on channel SE’s, I guess you can use me as case in point if you like. But when your SE is out in California or Colorado or wherever sitting on his ass waiting for the next call, I am the one keeping that customer happy by calling him to make sure things are cool, making sure he has all the support he needs, calling your SE to get him to kick your support team in the balls so they will actually answer the customer’s question, etc., etc. You guys have the luxury of making a sale and walking away. I have to stay behind and clean up your pile. So don’t tell me you can’t count on me.

And Alan, you know my issue with vendor sales people. Most care not a wit about the customer except for when they are directly in front of them. I have had that proved out time and again, and I had it proved out just last week once again. It drives me absolutely bonkers when a sales guy says that he doesn’t care what happens in 6 months when the customer has a problem, he just wants the sale to go through (that was the issue last week – long story, believe me).

So when a vendor says to me that I need to know his products inside and out, I say “OK, you need to know my customer inside and out.” That usually shuts ‘em up.

Your friend,

Michael

You probably know that I’d give you a pat on the back for admitting you don’t know a product as well as maybe you think you should. The honesty has mileage, even if the partner sales guy had to be disappointed. He should have had his own SE there, or should have used it as a way to continue talk with the potential client. Blah blah…to me, a good salesperson wouldn’t have been disappointed, but that’s me and I’m not a vendor or SE or sales guy.

Since you’re an IT guy, that means you can troubleshoot my slow computer, too, right? And my son’s games on why they shut off randomly? And clean out the dust in my computer case from my 12 cats…

I really like this post because it reveals a lot about the relationship between vendors and resellers/distributors/integrators. I’ve been both sides of the fence, and first off, I’m not surprised you didn’t know every single product inside out, even WITH an enormous brain like yours…

The vendor was probably more scared of his own shortcomings than disappointed in you however. It shows your committment and conscientiousness that you were concerned. Don’t beat yourself up though.

When a sales guy thinks you can’t talk about product, he thinks the sale is slipping away, and knows he can’t save it on his own. However, what you also know better than most is that the customer, Numero Uno, is far more interested in addressing his security than spending his money. At the end of the day, what you have done is ensure repeat business for YOU, not necessarily the vendor, but you know what? That vendor chose to take you in, you represent YOUR business, not his.

To put it in technical terms, he needs to boot up and detect the java.