We did it. I guess I should say, Happy New Year! But also, we did it. The thing I’ve been dreaming of doing finally happened, and it was a huge success.
Our first Channel Program pitch event brought together hundreds of MSPs, vendors and others in the IT channel space, for a day of pitching, learning and connecting. We had eight speakers, and provided qualitative and quantitative feedback for vendors and their investors.
And I’m so freaking excited.
What is the Channel Program anyway?
If you’ve been following my blogs (or if you’ve heard me yammer on in-person) you’ll know that I’m passionate about changing the IT channel to make it more efficient, effective, and innovative. It’s a place where even the little guy has a chance. It’s a place where everyone is supporting each other to enable success for all. And it’s a place where we build meaningful connections, do better work, and inspire change.
And how do we do that? Well, the Channel Program is the first step – or the incubator, if you will – where all that happens. (Or at least begins to happen.)
Simply put, it’s a place where vendors come to pitch and MSPs come to listen.
But we also go a little further. The vendors that are pitching are invited, the pitches themselves are timed and perfected, feedback is given, and MSP comments are anonymous. (No more being inundated with calls for weeks after!) We also enable MSPs to put their guard down and request direct follow-up with any vendor they want to connect with.
It’s smart, it’s fast, it’s collaborative, and it’s going to revolutionize the way we work in the channel.
But don’t take my word for it.
Jim Lippie, founder and CEO at SaaS Alerts, made his pitch at our December event. SaaA Alerts offers the only unified monitoring tool, purpose-built for MSPs to protect and monetize their customer SaaS applications. We gave SaaS Alerts the award for Innovation Excellence at our event, and Jim had a few things this to say about the experience:
“Thank you, Channel Program! SaaS Alerts has done a handful of in-person events in 2021, but we generated more leads and demo requests from the first Channel Program, Channel Pitch than we did from any other single marketing initiative this year! Some have already turned into paying partners in just a matter of weeks.”
Hold up. Did you catch that?! After just one event–an event that lasted about 90 minutes–SaaS Alerts garnered more hard leads and eventually more money than any other event last year.
That’s music to my ears. And it should be music to yours, too.
During these events, we limit vendor pitches to just seven minutes. That’s the time it should take to tell a prospective partner why you’re different, and how you can help an MSP solve problems and be successful. If vendors need some help focusing, I help them work on their pitch beforehand. Jim used my template, and it seems to have worked.
“Kevin’s template was great because seven minutes goes by fast, and it forces you to focus on sharing what is most important with the audience,” Jim told me.
“I think the biggest challenge for vendors in this space is creating awareness and then distinguishing your company from the crowd,” said Jim. “There is so much ‘tool fatigue’ in the channel and it can be difficult to stand out, but Channel Program’s emphasis on focus is key.”
“Kevin Lancaster and Matt Solomon: you are really onto something with Channel Program!”
Aw, thanks Jim!
Join us.
Channel Program is a unique event—the first of its kind, really. We’re influencing how MSPs talk to vendors in the IT channel space. It’s an opportunity to share thought leadership and insights, and to engage meaningfully with each other. We even host breakout rooms so that we can learn and connect in a collaborative, open way.
Our next Pitch event happens January 21st. If you want to scale, succeed, or simply get your foot in the door, you need to be there. You can register for free right here.
Let’s do this. Happy January!