Edward Berks, Vice President of Sales, BlackSpider Technologies, a managed services provider focused exclusively on the provision of email security solutions, discusses the company's channel strategy.
What is BlackSpiders route to market? 
BlackSpider sells exclusively through channel partners. Its commercial success and growth depends entirely on building successful business relationships with channel partners.
The company was formed in early 2002 and set up with a single-tier channel that delivers high margin, recurring revenue business to our channel partners. Our UK channel comprises two Premium Partners and fifteen Authorised and Service Provider Partners, providing managed email security services to over 800 organisations. Our customers include organisations throughout the public and private sector, including retail and distribution, manufacturing, IT and professional services sectors.
We are a managed email security services company, and enable our partners to earn recurring revenue over extended periods. In turn, their clients get a much lower total cost of ownership from our service, which includes spam, virus and content filtering in one service. A managed service that prevents unwanted email from reaching corporate networks removes the costs normally associated with managing protection in-house; freeing up network infrastructure and IT peoples time.
We have three main types of partner included in our partner program:
1.Service providers - seeking to offer high value additional services to customers
2.Systems Integrators - looking for a more cost-effective solution to email content filtering
3.IT security VARs and resellers - looking for a the most effective email security solution to complement their current portfolio
We also support our partners with a structured partner program, providing ongoing effective lead-generation activities and access to major account sales expertise to support enterprise-level bids.
Why do you think partners and customers choose BlackSpider? And, why should new partners choose to work with BlackSpider? We give channel partners a cost-effective anti-virus, spam and content filtering solution that integrates easily into their existing security products. Our partners choose BlackSpider because it offers the best protection, best value and the most manageability of any email security solution on the market. We are the only 100 per cent channel focused company in our market and whilst we offer extensive sales support our partners know we will never compete with them for a deal.
BlackSpider is also independent of any service provider. Most importantly to resellers, it offers high-margin recurring revenue.
Email security services represent a high-growth market and there is a sound business opportunity for partners with high levels of demand for effective protection. Analysts IDC believe that the managed email security services market is expected to reach $6.4bn by 2007.
How do you support your channel? BlackSpider supports its channel via a structured program for ISPs, resellers and integrators with commercial terms dependent upon the needs of those partners.
Our support includes a tailored partner program with a dedicated account manager, extensive sales and marketing support, a co-operative marketing fund, telemarketing lead generation, and a dedicated partner portal that includes evaluation and account tracking tools.
What benefits and incentives do you offer to your existing partners/new partners? Incentives for partners include various specific sales incentives, competitions, extensive channel marketing support, a generous co-operative marketing fund for partners and a kick-off marketing fund when they sign up with us.
At what times of the year do you recruit new partners? BlackSpider recruits new partners on an on-going basis. At the moment we're very excited about operations that we're running in France and Germany where we will employ the same go-to-market strategies as we do in the UK.
Do you want new partners now?
Absolutely!
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