Symantec announced today that it’ll beef up its SMB
Specialization for partners with new security and backup tracks to give them
even more firepower to go after the critical small business segment of the
security market.
Symantec’s new changes give SMB-focused partners the
opportunity to earn exclusive financial benefits by focusing on either the
security track, the backup track or both. Each specialization carries its own
unique benefits for proven points of product knowledge. The security track will
focus on Symantec Endpoint Protection and Symantec Endpoint Protection Small
Business Edition, Symantec Endpoint Protection.cloud, Symantec Protection
Suites (SBE/ABE) and Symantec Messaging Gateway Small Business Edition.
Meanwhile, the backup track will emphasize Symantec Backup Exec, Symantec
Backup Exec.cloud, Symantec Backup Exec 3600 Appliance and Symantec System
Recovery.
“Specializations are the cornerstone of the Symantec Partner
Program and we’ll continue to evolve our Specializations to meet the needs of
our partner community," says Randy Cochran, vice president, Americas
Channel Sales for Symantec. "The enhancements we’re making to our SMB
Specialization will give our partners the opportunity to drive more revenue and
increase the value they provide to our joint SMB customers.”
Overall Symantec offers 11 specializations in various
product bases and market segments. As with all of these specializations,
partners have to be enrolled in the Symantec Partner Program as a Corporate
Platinum, Platinum, Gold, Silver or Registered level channel partner or Global
Strategic Partner to be elgible for the SMB Specialization, and must complete a
course of training and accreditation for one or both of the SMB solution
tracks.
The SMB Specialization gives participating partners the same
financial, technical support and enablement benefits no matter which platform
they choose, be it cloud services, appliances or traditional software. The
specialization is designed to provide qualified partners with sales and
technical resources that will help them accelerate the sales cycle. The newly
enhanced program now also gives SMB Specialists access to a new dedicated
support team from the Symantec Technical Support Center (STSC) for SMB
Specialists. The STSC offers a team of technical support professionals trained
to help partners quickly resolve their SMB customers’ technical questions.
In addition to that support, the specialization presents
incentives, tailored promotions, tools and access Symantec Opportunity
Registration Program or up-front discounts at distribution. Participating
partners are also given the right to market their affiliation with a special
logo and customizable campaigns.
"The SMB Specialization is designed to provide Symantec
partners who serve the SMB market with enablement, incentives and support
tailored to their unique business needs as well as those of their customers,”
says Steve Cullen, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, SMB and .Cloud
for Symantec.