Reality Research Releases New Study Results As Software Vendors Struggle With Evolving ChannelPRNewswire As the number of solution providers recommending software products continues to grow at a rapid pace, software vendors are finding themselves re-evaluating their partner program offerings to retain the loyalty of the highly influential solution provider channel. The number of influencers in the channel will more than double to 47,000 companies in 2001, according to a just-released study by Reality Research & Consulting, an independent business unit of CMP Media LLC. Despite the move away from product sales in the channel, vendors recognize the influence that solution providers continue to have with end customers. Two thirds of all solution providers are recommending the products used in software solutions. These solution providers report that their customers accept recommendations 81 percent of the time. This has prompted every major software vendor to add or consider an influencer program component over the past year. The most common factors driving the move towards product recommendations, as opposed to resale, include a lack of authorization due to difficult program requirements, cited by 55 percent of influencers, as well as revenue issues. Nearly a third of influencers are finding margins have slipped too low to be profitable and 39 percent are simply unable to compete with declining prices. "The most common reason for recommending products as opposed to reselling is a lack of authorization," said Dean Mayo, Manager of Consulting at Reality Research, a leading market research and analysis firm. "Program commitments such as minimum purchase requirements, not to mention program fees, prohibit solution providers from joining programs that are not going to offer a significant return on their investment." These findings are based on 400 telephone interviews completed with systems integrators in the United States and Canada. The respondents in the survey are executives at companies that recommend enterprise software such as SQL databases and e-business applications to their customers. Reality Research conducted the survey with sample drawn from the Reality Universe Database of 93,500 North American solution provider organizations in the value channel. Reality Research & Consulting delivers strategic and tactical market intelligence and analysis on the IT market and channels. Its client list includes major technology companies, such as Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Intel, 3Com and Microsoft. Reality is an independent business unit of CMP Media LLC. It is based in Jericho, NY, with offices located in Waltham, MA and Redwood Shores, Ca. For a complete listing and description of Reality's products and services, visit http://www.realityresearch.com/. CMP Media LLC (http://www.cmpnet.com/) is a leading high-tech media company providing essential information and marketing services to the entire technology spectrum-the builders, sellers and users of technology worldwide. Capitalizing on its editorial strength, CMP is uniquely positioned to offer marketers comprehensive, integrated media solutions tailored to meet their individual needs. Its diverse products and services include newspapers, magazines, Internet products, research, direct marketing services, education and training, trade shows and conferences, custom publishing, testing and consulting. Contacts: Dean Mayo, Reality Research 516-733-8764; dmayo@cmp.com Elizabeth Gallagher, Reality Research 516-733-8698; egallagh@cmp.com SOURCE: CMP Media Inc. Contact: Dean Mayo, 516-733-8764, dmayo@cmp.com, or Elizabeth Gallagher, Website: http://www.cmpnet.com/ Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/181993.html or fax, |