The ISV SocietySep 08, 2021
Always Add Value
What burning questions did we tackle in this episode, ones that are likely on your mind too?
Should I sell products through a partner channel?
Can you sell both direct and through partners?
What do my partners need to be successful with my product?
We wrapped it up with a simple message…., a simple mission statement….live it …and most importantly, believe it.
What would a course for Partner Marketing Managers look like?
If you follow me on LinkedIn, you may have seen a poll asking if you would be interested in a course on Partner Marketing.
Well, the majority said, YES!
So, I thought why not create a podcast about what I was thinking, the outline, and what I would like to cover.
So take a listen and let me know what you think.
I would love to hear your feedback so I can include your ideas and input into this course.
Also, did you hear? I made it on the list of the Top 121 Podcasts by Canalys.
Excited to see this podcast grow. Please make sure to subscribe and give a review to help it reach more people.
Short But Not Shallow
I got to chat with Suzanne Scanlan, Director of Marketing Operations and Digital Experience at ArcherPoint.
We chatted about a book, Smart Brevity, by Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz.
The topics we covered are:
What is it?
How can you incorporate it into your meetings, emails, presentations, and more?
Have you read it?
Let us know.
Community, Copilot & the Color Code to Success
What did we chat about:
ISV Engagement
Community Events
Copilot
Power of Branding (Yellow and Purple)
Follow Bobby on LinkedIn.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Community, Copilot & the Color Code to Success
It's Episode 31, and I chatted with Bobby Small, Channel Development and Alliances Manager at Ellipse Solutions. He's also a podcast host for Ellipse Unsealed. Check it out.
What did we chat about: ISV Engagement Community Events Copilot Power of Branding (Yellow and Purple)
Follow Bobby on LinkedIn.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
3 Practical Tips to Squeeze the Most Out of Your Marketing Budget
Yes, it's just me this week. But don't worry I've more guests lined up for you.
Marketing success as an ISV doesn't require a bottomless budget!
In this podcast episode, I dive into these 3 practical tips:
Free and freemium tools
Repurposing content creatively
Strategically engaging on social media
As I mentioned on the Podcast.
Check out Just Connecting for information on their LinkedIn™️ Algorithm Report and there are some great tips and such from AuthoredUp as well.
I also have a few social media podcast episodes you can check out as well.
The Power of LinkedIn Personal Profile
Social Media Strategies with Jon Rivers
How well do you know LinkedIn?
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets:
The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
2024 Event Calendar for ISVs
Bringing More To The Table
What did we chat about:
Focus for 2024
Coffee Chats
Personalization/Personal Touch
Not always about the numbers
Trusted form of referral
Follow Ashley on LinkedIn
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets:
The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
2024 Event Calendar for ISVs
Community is Key
It's episode 28, and my guest, Anne Sawyer, Executive Director of 90 Minds, Inc.
What did we chat about?
- Community engagement
- Aligning ISVs and Partners
- Direction of 90 Minds
It's all about collaboration, helping each other, building relationships, and extending your reach. In the end, we all want to be part of a community, engage with others, and build our network.
Learn more about 90 Minds.
Learn more about Meeting of the Minds.
Follow Anne on LinkedIn.
Partnerships should be at the TOP of the list
It's episode 27! My guest this week is none other than Asher Mathew, CEO of Partnership Leaders.
What did we chat about? Partnerships - all the different types The direction of the ecosystem Why partnerships are important for ISVs Check out Partnership Leaders. Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets: The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience 2024 Event Calendar for ISVs
You Win or Loose in Discovery
Welcome to episode 26! This week's guest is Jeremy Potoka, Founder and Principal Solutions Architect at Technology Leaders Company.
What did we chat about?
- Discovery call best practices
- Demo best practices
- Product Marketing - why and the benefits
Follow Jeremy on LinkedIn
Learn more about their services:
- pre-sales
- demos
- product marketing
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets:
Are Partner Portals Part of Your Partner Strategy?
Welcome to the first episode of 2024!
Yes, it's just me, but don't worry, I have a great lineup of guests, so stay tuned for that.
Today, I'm talking about Partner Relationship Platforms.
Key points are:
- The Partner Portal Advantage
- 4 Tips for Launching & Optimizing Your Partner Portal
- What to look for
- Exploring Platform Options
While implementing a partner management platform may seem like a big project, the long-term benefits far outweigh the initial investment. It's a strategic move that saves valuable time and makes it significantly easier for partners to engage and collaborate effectively.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets:
All in the Analytics
Hello everyone! Here's season 2 episode 23.
I had the opportunity to chat with Amanda Sherry who is the Director of Marketing at Western Computer.
What did we chat about?
- Community Summit and the process and behind the scenes of giving away a car
- LinkedIn Ads - tips and tricks
- 2024 Initiatives
Follow Amanda on LinkedIn.
Register for LinkedIn Ads workshop, https://www.channelmktgacademy.com/classes
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets:
Let's Talk About SaaS
It's season 2, episode 24! The last one to wrap up 2023. Excited to have Feyzi Fatehi, CEO of Corent, as he answers these questions and more:
- Can you clarify the difference between the cloud and SaaS or Software as a Service?
- Have you ever wondered about SaaSOps as the Netflix for Software?
- Who can benefit from SaaSOps?
- Is there more to SaaS than just subscription models? Special complimentary Limited Time joint offer with AWS. A 30-min Recorded Webinar Sponsored by Microsoft: How to transform your Software/SaaS into SaaS 2.0 in days without any programing. Moving a Silicon Valley star MapR – an existing SaaS to SaaS 2.0Enabling a key modern database to become Database “as a Service” Link to our, Democratizing SaaS, now a best seller in Silicon Valley and among the Software/SaaS industry.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets:
Put Education First
Hello everyone! It's episode 22.
My guest is Elif, CEO and Founder of Item by Item.
What did we chat about?
- Some comments and takeaways from Community Summit.
- Upgrading from AX to D365 was a big topic
- What are the things that customers are struggling with when preparing for an upgrade?
- What are some opportunities, low hanging fruit as a company is considering an upgrade?
- If there were a few things that you would recommend to companies planning an upgrade, what would they be?
Follow Elif on LinkedIn.
Learn more here.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download these ISV assets:
All About the Levels
Yes, Foy Mainor is back for episode 21.
What did we chat about?
- The Acumatica ISV Program
- The different levels - did you know there are 3
- What these levels entail
To learn more and chat with Foy, feel free to schedule a call.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download the 2024 Event Calendar for ISVs.
Swimming with Sharks
Are you ready for season 2 episode 20?
My guest is none other than Time Rodman, Independent Acumatica Reporting Consultant.
What did we chat about:
- His role and what he focuses on
- Insights on the partner and ISV ecosystem
- Acumatica Summit - yes we will both be there
- How has the ecosystem evolved over the years
Check out Tim's resources below:
- Tim's Acumatica Podcast
- Acumatica Forums on AugForums.com
- Acumatica Generic Inquiry Video Training Course
- AugSQL - SQL for Acumatica
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download the 2024 Event Calendar for ISVs.
As always, thanks for listening!
Trusted Lense in the Industry
It's time for season 2, episode 19. My guest is none other than Jay McBain, speaker, author, and innovator in the IT industry as well as Chief Analyst of Channel Partners and Ecosystems at Canalys - which BTW means channel in Latin.
What did I ask him:
- Why do we need to think about the channel globally?
- What are the 14 spheres of influence and where should we be visible and how often?
- What is the Total addressable IT market by category and segment, and where do ISVs fit?
Follow Jay on LinkedIn.
Download my new 2024 Event Calendar for ISVs!
You Have To Be Proactive
It's Season 2, Episode 18! Today, I had the chance to chat with Khaled Nassra, Head of Marketing at Binary Stream, Co-Founder, Marketing Chair of Futures of Dynamics, and Podcast Host for The BizApps Springboard
What did we chat about:
- How do you create a successful relationship with Microsoft as an ISV?
- How do you motivate partners to resell your solutions?
- What are the biggest challenges when migrating your solutions to the cloud as an ISV?
- What advice would you give to someone who's in the place you were in 5 years ago?
Follow Khaled on LinkedIn
Listen to The BizApps Springboard Podcast
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
4 Digital Transformation Tips & Tricks
We're bringing some episodes of What's the Buzz to The ISV Society Podcast. How exciting!
Join me for Episode 18 as I chat with Matt St. John, Senior Sales Executive, from V-Technologies.
We chatted about:
Cloud Solutions – Always on the Latest Version - Imagine never worrying about outdated software again!
Reasons to Consider Upgrading Legacy ERPs - Is your legacy ERP system feeling a bit dusty and outdated?
Healthy Mix of Integrated Technology Solutions - One-size-fits-all solutions are so yesterday!
Why You Should Reevaluate Digital Transformation Now
Digital Transformation is such a buzzword, so it just makes sense to chat with you about it.
Learn more about V-Technologies
Follow me on LinkedIn
Register for What's the Buzz
Use Humor to Break Down the Barrier
It's Episode 17 and I had the opportunity to chat with an Award-winning Keynote Speaker, Presenter, Winery Consultant, Author, Leader, as well as President of ITA.
Who is this amazing woman? Geni Whitehouse.
She wrote a book called How to Make a Boring Subject Interesting - 52 Ways Even a Nerd Can Be Heard
So I thought why not share the following:
- Why you wrote the book ( the backstory)
- Why 52 ways
- Pick your top 5 to chat about
Learn more about Geni and buy the book.
Follow Geni
Follow Amiee
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
The Multifaceted Approach
It's Season 2, episode 16! I had the opportunity to chat with someone I've known for a while and I had the privilege to work with in the past as one of my partners: Samantha Flynn, Hyperscaler Partner Marketing Manager at Dynatrace.
What did we chat about?
Topics:
- Content development
- The multifaceted approach
- How to maximize the value of content
Tune in as we unpack the strategies for The Multifaceted Approach. Learn about smart distribution, repurposing, and optimization techniques.
It's an episode you don't want to miss.
Follow Samantha on LinkedIn.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Learn more about Dynatrace. Learn more about The ISV Society
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
Your Partners Are Your Champions
It's episode 15 and I had the opportunity to speak with Sarah Scudder at SourceDay.
Sarah Scudder is a self-proclaimed supply chain nerd. Sarah is a sustainability nut and lover of all things Bradley Cooper. She’s been trying to get a dinner date with him for over three years. The struggle is real. She’s good at loading the dishwasher but can’t keep potted plants alive. Green is her favorite color. Sarah is the CMO at SourceDay, a Unified Supplier Collaboration platform which automates price, quantity and delivery date changes to direct material purchase orders (POs) and provides complete visibility into your direct material PO lifecycles. Sarah hosts the What the Duck?! direct materials podcast and a monthly Voice of Supply Chain show that features people in supply chain doing extraordinary things. She also hosts monthly Manufacturing Supply Chain Woes and Women in ERP shows and enjoys speaking about marketing and manufacturing supply chain related topics. Here are the questions I asked Sarah in this amazing episode.
What is your partner strategy? How do you co-market with partners?
How do you support user groups in ERP Ecosystems?
What do you do to differentiate in a very crowded ISV ecosystem like in Acumatica?
What makes SourceDay partner-friendly and trustworthy to VARs looking to work with ISVs? Follow Sarah LinkedIn.
Follow me on LinkedIn. Learn more about The ISV Society
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
The Value of Community
It's episode 14 and I have Pam Misialek, Community Director, and Ryan Gonzales, Sr Director of Sales and BD, from Dynamics Communities.
What did we talk about:
The community and why it's so important
Summit - breaking records
Users getting the most of the Summit experience
ISVs - still time to sponsor and be part of this major event
It really all comes back to relationships and community.
Join the community
Learn more about The ISV Society
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
Sponsor Dynamics Communities
The Power of LinkedIn Personal Profile
Hello all! It's episode 13 and I'm excited to chat with Digital Marketing Expert and Marketing Automation Expert, Roland Chi, Marketing Manager at Technology Management Concepts.
The topic is Showcasing our expertise through our people’s personal branding.
Hear how Roland is improving key employees' LinkedIn presence through personal branding and creating videos (interviews) to answer FAQs that accelerate the pre-sales process as well as the hiring process.
It’s not only about the expertise anymore, but also about the culture and people you work with.
Implementations take months and months, so you want to be working with the right team, not just the right product.
What are your LinkedIn strategies as a company?
This episode will help you get started on the right path.
Check it out!
Follow Roland on LinkedIn
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
SEO Trends: Are you keeping up?
Hello all! It's season 2, episode 12. This week's guest is Erica Hakonson, Principal and Founder of Maven Collective Marketing.
Erica Hakonson is the Principal and Founder of Maven Collective Marketing, the multi-award-winning Microsoft Partner Marketing agency, as well as a recognized and awarded entrepreneur, woman-in-tech and business leader. Hakonson has been awarded Female Entrepreneur of the Year, Silver Award by the international Stevie Women in Business Awards, Editor's Choice by the CanadianSME National Business Awards and Top Small Business Female Executive Bronze Award by DataBird Business Journal. She's also a champion for women in tech, boosting their representation and elevating their presence in the industry.
What did we chat about?
- Marketing trends of 2023
- What should partners and ISVs focus on
- Website SEO
- Your new self-audit
Maven Collective Marketing has been the Marketing Partner for Microsoft Partners since 2012 working with outstanding clientele, like Microsoft Corporation, PowerObjects, Companial, ClickDimensions, 1ClickFactory, BDC and MS Dynamics World. Well-honored and awarded, Maven Collective Marketing has been named 2023 PRDaily Top B2B Marketing Agency, 2023 Clutch Top Global Experiential Marketing Firm, 2022 AVA Platinum B2B Website Award Winner, to name a few.
With the recent launch of the only Microsoft Partner Digital Self-Audit Product, Maven Collective Marketing expands its value and vitality in the Microsoft Partner ecosystem to put affordable, practical and predictable marketing performance at the reach of any MS Partner, start up to industry aggregator. As highlighted on the ISV Society podcast, the new Maven Digital Self-Audit Package exclusively for Microsoft Partners is now available at: https://www.mavencollectivemarketing.com/services/digital-audit-self-service/.
Tell them you are a friend of the show for a 5% discount on your purchase.
Follow Erica Hakonson on LinkedIn | Twitter
Follow Maven Collective Marketing on LinkedIn | Twitter
Plus, subscribe to the Mavens monthly LinkedIn Partner Bytes Newsletter
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
How can ISVs stand out in a crowd?
Welcome to season 2, episode 11. I had the opportunity to chat with Donna Krizik, President and Owner of Krizik Marketing Group.
What did we chat about?
- ISV Best Practices
- Tips & Tricks
- How you can stand out in a crowded space
Donna shares some great insights and examples. Like, what are your only's?
Follow Donna on LinkedIn.
Learn more about Krizek Marketing Group.
Don't forget to download the updated version of The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Marketing to Millennials
Hello all, it's season 2, episode 10. I had the chance to chat with Sam Bush, Marketing Programs Manager, at FloQast.
Studies show that Millennials are now the largest B2B tech buyer group, making 59% of B2B buyers, with over 30% leading the charge and making those purchase decisions. Is your marketing meeting millennials where they are, with the content they enjoy consuming? Some bullet points: Talk about how Millennials search for new B2B Tech How to leverage content and social sharing to get in front of a millennial audience Learn how to turn millennials into advocates over the lifespan of the buyer’s journey
(A 2019 TrustRadius study found that Millennials are the largest B2B tech buyer group, makeup 59% of B2B buyers, and 30% of them are lead buyers for their B2B brand.) Check out their TV show, https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLp0NhJVOmekhUUrtRXGJAF6DijBsFzPWZ
Follow Sam
Follow me
Download the Updated ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
It isn't ALL about the Relationship
Hey everyone, it's episode 9. I'm excited to chat with Maeve Naughton, President and Owner of MKN Consulting.
Despite what many believe, working with Partners isn’t “all” about the relationship. Sure, it’s a part of it. Still, you need to know about your partners:
- how they market
- what they can and can’t do (from an expertise perspective as well as what’s available to them)
- make joint plans with them (when appropriate)
You're the bridge between the Partner and your corporate side of the house…to name a few things. This episode is jam-packed with info. So have your pen and paper handy. Connect with Maeve.
MKN Consulting Group
650-704-3416
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
Email Done Right
Hey everyone, it's season 2, episode 8, and I'm excited to chat with email expert, Jay Schweldelson.
Jay Schwedelson is the founder of SubjectLine.com, the leading free subject-line rating tool ranked in the top 1% of all websites worldwide. Having led SubjectLine.com through the testing of more than 15 million subject lines, Jay uses his knowledge to guide organizations across multiple industries on how to implement impactful email marketing.
Jay is also the president and CEO of Outcome Media, a multi-brand marketing services company whose portfolio includes SubjectLine.com and Guru Events.
Schwedelson is a recognized marketer who plays a significant part in sharing thought leadership throughout the industry. He has keynoted and presented for more than 50 organizations and has been named to Crain’s Top 100 Industry Leaders for 10 consecutive years.
What did we chat about:
- What are some hot trends you’re seeing with subject lines right now?
- Tips for crafting a subject line that will increase open rates.
- Does personalization matter?
- What are the most ideal days and frequencies for sending email?
- Are there any key components for getting an email opened and clicked?
- What are some major pitfalls to avoid?
Follow Jay on LinkedIn
Try out subjectline.com
Reserve your spot at the Guru Conference-It's the largest email conference
Checkout Outcome Media.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
Want to learn more about The ISV Society? Email me, amieek@theisvsociety.com
Just Do Video
Hi everyone, it's episode 7 of 2023. Today I have Peter Matejcek, Chief Efficiency Officer, at WorkflowX, joining me to talk all about video and why it needs to be part of your marketing strategy. We chatted about:
- Top video strategies for ISVs to drive digital engagement, even with limited resources.
- Effective ways to use video to showcase your expertise and stay ahead of changing technology trends.
- Where to start with video marketing when you have no experience, budget, or time.
- How to use video to stand out in a highly competitive market and effectively promote your software product.
So if you're not doing video, why not? Just start right now.
Yes, I will finally be incorporating it into my marketing strategy too.
Follow Peter on LinkedIn. Learn more about WorkflowX
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Our Customers Dictate Our Focus
Hi everyone! It's episode 6 and I got to chat with Adam MacIntosh, Director of Emerging Technology, at WebSan Solutions. What did we chat about:
Our EVOLUTION
We started in the Dynamics GP space 15-20 years ago and had IP we offered for that product. Some of that migrated to Business Central, but like most other partners, our IP offering grew organically as our Business Central practice grew.
Ultimately, our customers have helped to dictate where we focus out efforts. They’ve wanted experiences to stay within Business Central. They want plug-and-play experiences wherein onboarding is simple. And many SMBs want self-serve options, which is why we post on YouTube and provide user guides for our applications. All our resources are public. We even hear from other partners that tell us they love our YouTube content.
SALES PROCESS
With the sheer volume of apps in the marketplace. How do you stand out? We feel we are differentiated because we have actual users for all our apps. We are one of the largest CSP for Business Central in the world, giving us a massive built-in user base for our apps. When partners or third-parties find us, they know we have a reliable solution already in place. We have support processes in place. We have dev-ops process in place. Etc.
WHAT WE BUILD
Many of our customers tend to be in the distribution space and have a need for efficient and reliable supply chains. We saw many supply chains disrupted during COVID. Microsoft recently released “Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management”. While that solution isn’t focused on the SMB customers that use Business Central, clearly there is a need in the market for supply chain solutions.
OUR APPS
We have 24 apps on the marketplace as of today. I have two more that will be published this month. While Business Central does a great job of capturing the basics, we are finding customers need a number of applications in order to optimize operations and minimize manual efforts.
FUTURE OUTLOOK
AI is obviously on everyone’s minds. We have an app that incorporates Microsoft AI into a demand forecast. We are looking at adding AI to our Sales and Operations Planning application as well. We are strong consumers of AI today and looking to provide more AI solutions in the future. I am studying AI tools and so are my staff. The demand from SMBs in the AI space is massive.
Learn more about WebSan Solutions.
Follow Adam on LinkedIn.
Check them out on YouTube.
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Not just a search engine, it's an answer engine
Hello everyone! It's episode 5. I'm excited to chat with Cheryl Salazar, Partner and MVP, from The Partner Marketing Group.
Today we chatted about:
-Cheryl's background and role - she's been in the technology space for over 30 years throughout the US and Africa
-What services they provide both partners and ISVs - it's pretty much everything you can think of from a marketing standpoint
-Their infamous Technology & Marketing Benchmarks & Trends Report - What are the Top 10 MOST EFFECTIVE Lead Generation Tactics in 2022, Most ACTIVE Lead Generation Tactics, and Top 10 LEAST EFFECTIVE Lead Generation Tactics in 2022
-The NEW service they're offering for all Microsoft partners
Learn more about The Partner Marketing Group.
Download the marketing report.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Learn more about The ISV Society.
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Thanks for listening!
18 Event Best Practices for ISVs
It's episode 4! I’m joined by industry expert, Liz Hallen from Dynamics User Group. This is the audio version of a webinar we just did where we shared our top tips for getting the most out of those events you sponsor!
Because, events are a huge investment of both time and money whether it’s virtual or in-person. You want them to be successful and prove the ROI. I’m right there with you. We all want to be the one that says….. yes, it was successful, let’s do it again.
That's why we put together 18 Event Best Practices for ISVs.
You'll learn about:
- Strategies for standing out
- Tips for engaging attendees
- Maximize your spending and success
- And much more, 18 in all.
Join DUG for free to receive email updates at www.dynamicsusergroup.com.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience!
Follow me on LinkedIn
The Future of Dynamics GP Report
Hello everyone and welcome to episode 3 of 2023. Brian Whipple, Marketing Manager from CoNetrix parent company to AccountingWare, was my guest this week.
They conducted a survey asking GP users about their future plans, migration timeline, and more. The survey resulted in 164 responses which led to several informative observations on what decisions companies are making concerning their current ERP solution.
So we chatted about:
- Brian's role and background
- the story behind the report and why you decided to do this survey
- findings from the report
- where you can download it
- a little about AccountingWare to wrap it up
Here's the link to download the report, https://accountingware.com/future
Website: https://accountingware.com
ActivReporter Page: https://accountingware.com/activreporter
Follow Brian on Linked: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dbrianwhipple/
Follow me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amieekeenan/
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
New Initiatives in 2023
It's episode #2 of 2023! This week I'm chatting with Adam Berezin, Co-Founder and CEO of MSDynamicsWorld.com (MSDW).
So what did we chat about:
- Celebrating 15 years
- How has MSDW evolved over the years
- How they help partners and ISVs
- What's to come in 2023
Plus, we have an exciting NEW program launching as well.
Learn more about MSDW programs.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow your Audience.
How do ISVs fit in the Acumatica ecosystem?
Hello everyone! Welcome to the first episode of 2023.
I'm excited to chat with Louisa Gooding, Senior Business Development Manager at Acumatica and acu-connect Board Member.
In case you didn't know we are both on the acu-connect board so we work closely with the Acumatica community in many aspects.
If you're going to Acumatica Summit please make sure you join the acu-connect session on January 29 from 3:30-4:30.
Today we chatted about:
- ISV - drive revenue program
- The pivot in 2023
- The Importance of Acumatica Summit
We hope to you at Acumatica Summit.
You can also follow Louisa on LinkedIn.
Follow me as well.
Email me to learn more about The ISV Society and how you can do more joint marketing initiatives. (amieek@theisvsociety.com)
Download The ISV Guide to grow your audience.
Please leave a comment and subscribe to keep this podcast growing.
Thanks!
The Global Community
It's episode 38 and the last episode of 2022! Wrapping up the year with Part 2 of my discussion with my guest, Aaron Back also known as The Bearded Analyst. He's the Chief Content Officer, Principal and Founding Analyst of the Acceleration Economy, the VP of Dynamic Communities and the Podcast Host of the Back @ IT Show.
We talked about:
1. Microsoft Biz Apps
2. Specific product
3. Microsoft and other platforms
The landscape has changed. There are hybrid, cloud, and multi-cloud. We need to be more flexible. It's not just about Microsoft solutions anymore. Microsoft is just one part of the technical landscape.
We need to evolve and adapt, especially ISVs. You can't be a one-trick pony anymore. You need to diversify, shift your focus, and become more agnostic.
Where can you find Aaron:
Join the Dynamics Communities
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Leave a comment and share your feedback.
Thanks for listening!
The 4 Pillars
Welcome to episode 37 and part 1 with my guest, Aaron Back also known as The Bearded Analyst. He's the Chief Content Officer and Principal and Founding Analyst of the Acceleration Economy, the VP of Dynamic Communities and the Podcast Host of the Back @ IT Show.
Today we chatted about the 4 pillars:
- Considering a new Business Application
- New to
- Migrating to another
- Optimizing what they have
Where can you find Aaron
Join the Dynamics Communities
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Leave a comment and share your feedback.
Thanks for listening!
4 Things ISVs and VARs Can Do Better to Work Together
Here's episode 36! Today my guest is Carol Livingston, Founder of Dynamics Connections.
It was such a great conversation. We started off with a quick discussion on trends impacting VARs and ISVs and then onto Four things that ISVs and VARs can do to better to work together:
1. Building a relationship/partnership
- VARS vetting partners
- VAR’s getting agreements/margins/expectations set upfront
- ISV’s working on structuring partner programs
2. Setting Expectations – once engaged
- Will the partner be involved – to what extent
- Help with test vs. production environments
- Who is going to manage the project
3. Who owns the client – for billing, services, communications, etc.
- VARs are starting to not want to be involved after the sale
- VARs would like to be kept in the loop – esp if there are unexpected issues
- VARs whose paper is it put on
- ISVs want partners to take on more of the selling and services – willing to give margins
- ISVs need VAR’s help in implementation - logistics
4. Marketing
- How ISVs get messaging to partners
- Marketing to partners
- Marketing with partners – have a strategy for partner management
We wrapped up with the services both Carol and I provide and how they're different and actually complement each other.
Carol’s Twitter: @clivingston102
Dynamics Connections Twitter: @DynConnection
Dynamics Connections Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/24978128/admin/
Carol Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carol-livingston-1b50b717/
Follow me on LinkedIn.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Demystifying Data with Analytics
Hello all! It's episode 35 and I have not one but two guests with me this week. We have Kamil Karbowiak, Managing Director and Tristan Threlkeld, Director of Sales and BD at Data Courage.
We chatted about:
- How does your company help partners and their clients with automation?
- Does your app replace a person/job or is this solution help the resource/associate be more efficient?
- So, this will help employees with their day-to-day job duties?
- What kind of Support do you offer Partners and clients?
- What's different about your solutions that separate them from the other similar solutions on the market today?
- What about pricing? Do you have a partner program?
- Are you a competitor to partners in any way?
- How knowledgeable are you in the Microsoft Dynamics suite of ERPs?
You can reach out to Data Courage to learn more at sales@datacourage.com.
Feel free to follow them on LinkedIn.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Follow me on LinkedIn
Thanks for listening!
Thought Leadership & Becoming the "Go To" Resource
Hello everyone! It's episode 34. I'm excited about this episode and my guest this week.
With everyone working from home and spending their days online, capturing the attention of your clients – or more importantly, your future clients – is more challenging than ever. With marketing emails staying unopened and search engine ads being ignored, how can a growing ISV make a name for itself in a crowded, noisy space? The answer is deceptively simple, yet tough to achieve: you must deliver value and insight from the very first interaction. In this episode, we catch up with Danica Weappa from Greenshades Software and learn how this 20+ year-old brand stays connected with its 3500+ customers and keeps attracting new customers to their cloud-based Payroll and HR platform.
1. How do you distinguish yourself from competitors? What types of marketing tactics do you deploy?
2. How do your marketing team and your sales team stay in synch? What best practices have you worked out to keep everyone on the same page?
3. What metrics do you monitor and how do you use that data to continually improve your marketing efforts?
4. What advice would you give to ISV marketers to keep their brand top-of-mind for clients?
Follow Greenshades on LinkedIn
Follow me on LinkedIn
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Microsoft Clarity is a free user behavior analytics tool that helps you understand how users are interacting with your website with usage statistics, session replays, and heatmaps. https://clarity.microsoft.com/
My Top Takeaways From Community Summit
Well, I'm back from Community Summit. It was such a great time and it was so great to see everyone.
This conference certainly grew from last year with a few thousand attendees.
Today I am going to cover my top takeaways from the conference and my overall feedback on how this one went regarding the:
-Welcome reception
-Expo
-Partner Solution Showcase
-Summitland program
It was so great to see everyone! I can't wait to see you all in NC next year. So glad it is somewhere new, warm, and still on the east coast.
Learn more about The ISV Society.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience!
Follow me on LinkedIn.
It's Always About The Customer
Hello all! Welcome to episode 32. My guest today is Todd Bowlsby, Senior Manager at Armanino. He's passionately helping people and organizations solve their business-related challenges with technology.
He and I chatted about:
- Being in the channel over the years
- What do you focus on now
- Working with ISVs
- Best practices/mgmt skills
Have you downloaded The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience yet? If not here's the link.
Come follow me on LinkedIn.
Don't forget to add this Podcast to your library and comment as well.
Thanks for listening!
Social Media Strategies with Jon Rivers
Here's episode #31. Today I chatted with Jon Rivers, President of Marketing Monarchs and Co-Founder of Marketeery.
We all use social media to grow our business and it's always evolving and changing. Get some amazing social media strategies and tips such as:
- Researching what platform to use and how to use it
- 3 keys goals when building your social media strategy
- How often you should post
- and more
Where to find Jon, https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonrivers/ and https://twitter.com/jon_rivers
Learn more about his services:
https://www.marketingmonarchs.com/
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Learn more about The ISV Society.
Best Practices When Working with Microsoft
Welcome everyone to another episode of The ISV Society podcast. My guest this week is Rob Fegan, Founder of Venvito. Venvito's mission is to help partners demystify working with Microsoft and set themselves up like Microsoft's most successful partners. Creating messaging that engages the Microsoft field team supported by a co-sell win formula that delivers a winning partnership.
Here are the questions we covered:
- What are the main platforms that Microsoft provides ISVs to get their solutions out to the market?
- What programs are available to support ISVs?
- With the upcoming changes to the Microsoft partner program, how will that affect ISVs?
- How does an ISV get their solution to stand out in the Marketplace?
- Should applications listed in the Marketplace be transactable?
Download Rob's free eBook "4 Questions to answer before Co-selling with Microsoft".
Follow Rob on LinkedIn.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Join us on September 20 at 4:00 EDT on LinkedIn Live as Rob and I chat about all the NEW changes happening and how they can affect you. Stay tuned for more info.
Evolving AI Technology in Accounts Payable Process Automation
Hi all! It's episode#29! Today's guest is Doug Bertram, Regional Account Manager, at Metafile.
Today's topic is all about AI. I asked him:
1. How has AI evolved?
2. What role does AI play in AP Process Automation?
3. What benefits are being achieved with advancing technology?
4. What does the future of AI look like?
Learn more about Metafile and its AP automation solutions.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
It's All About The Micro Moments
It's episode #28 and I had the opportunity to chat with Tori Barlow, VP of Marketing, at Allbound, The #1 Partner Preferred Portal.
Here are the questions I asked:
- What are the partner program best practices?
- What do companies struggle with when developing or tweaking their partner program?
- Have you seen any trends on what works and what doesn't?
- How does Allbound help?
Follow Tori
Follow Allbound
Allbound Channel Health Quiz - What’s your channel score?
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
LinkedIn is a Powerful Tool
Welcome to episode #27. This week my guest is Candyce Edelen, the Founder of PropelGrowth. She's a LinkedIn expert and helps B2B companies find more sales opportunities.
We chatted about:
- Why LinkedIn is a great social platform for B2B
- What are the do's and don'ts when using LinkedIn
- Tips and tricks
Follow Candyce: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candyceedelen/
Save 10% on her course, PropelGrowth Prospecting Mastery, using this link,https://propelgrowth.thrivecart.com/prospecting-mastery-checkout/?coupon=ISV and the code is ISV.
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience
Thanks for tuning in!
3 Ways To Get Personal With Your Audience
How many emails do you receive, either personally or professionally, that are personalized? When creating content it’s so important to not only speak to your audience but personalize it in some way as well. One thing that drives me crazy are all the emails that I get that are so generic. I get ones that are talking to partners, ones that are talking to customers, and ones that are speaking to everyone. So what do I do? Delete them. If you aren’t taking the time to personalize your content then your audience isn’t going to take the time to read it. How can you personalize your content and what should you personalize? Here are 3 ways: 1. List segmentation When I get a list from any event, conference, or marketing initiative I am segmenting it out. I segment by: Relationship type (end-user, partner, ISV) ERP You can also segment by product, industry, role, and more. This will result in them connecting to your email, engaging with it, and hopefully, completing the action you want them to take. If you take the time, they will take the time. 2. Subject Lines & Preheader Text Let’s start with the email subject line and preheader or preview text. The preview text is the sentence under the subject line that’s available in some email clients. Many of the automation tools out there make it simple and easy to add a person’s first name in the subject line or preview text. By adding personalization you’re also boosting your open rate by 50%. The body of the email If you’re writing your emails correctly, meaning speaking to your audience, then incorporating their name in the body of the email should be easy too. It helps marketers give subscribers more relevant, individualized content. Plus, many of the email marketing tools make it easy to do this as well. Personalization sends a message that you understand, you have been in their shoes, you know how it feels, and you can help them. You don’t always have to personalize the beginning of an email. You should also think about including it in the body of the email as well, if it makes sense. The purpose of personalizing emails is to make your subscribers feel like VIPs, they’re not just an email address in your database. 3. Demos Take your demos a step further and actually personalize them to your prospect. Imagine providing a demo that actually speaks to them and what they do. First, do the research by visiting their website and have them fill out a questionnaire or requirements document so you can better understand their business and unique requirements. Demos that speak to them do require work but they’re more effective. Sure this requires more time and effort on your part but I guarantee they’ll be impressed and it will not only make the demo go smoother but they may even buy the product sooner as well. Personalization can go a long way so really take the time, do your homework, and create great content that speaks to your audience. Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience This episode is also available as a blog post: https://theisvsociety.com/2022/03/02/want-better-engagement-take-the-time-to-personalize/
It's All About Differentiation
Welcome everyone to Episode 25! Today I'm chatting with Sam Gupta, Host@WBSRocks | Independent ERP and Enterprise Technology Selection Expert | Supply Chain Transformation and IT Procurement Adviser | Digital and E-commerce Strategist | Fractional CIO.
We talked about things such as:
- ElevateIQ - mission and what he does
- How he helps customers
- How ISVs help him
Links to Subscribe:
👉 https://podcast.wbs.rocks/
👉 https://www.youtube.com/c/ElevatIQ
👉 https://www.tiktok.com/@elevatiq
Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.
Email me to learn more about The ISV Society. amieek@theisvsociety.com