Skip to main content
The ISV Society

The ISV Society

By Amiee Keenan

Collaborate. Educate. Generate.
Available on
Google Podcasts Logo
Pocket Casts Logo
RadioPublic Logo
Spotify Logo
Currently playing episode

How is PCI Compliance like the DMV?

The ISV SocietyMar 09, 2022

00:00
26:52
Community, Copilot & the Color Code to Success

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.
Mar 19, 202428:54
3 Practical Tips to Squeeze the Most Out of Your Marketing Budget

3 Practical Tips to Squeeze the Most Out of Your Marketing Budget

Welcome to episode 30 of The ISV Society Podcast.

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
Mar 12, 202413:08
Bringing More To The Table

Bringing More To The Table

It's time for episode 29, and my guest is Ashley Spence, Marketing Manager at Klear Systems, Inc.

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

Feb 28, 202422:45
Community is Key
Feb 20, 202419:42
Partnerships should be at the TOP of the list
Feb 06, 202427:50
You Win or Loose in Discovery
Jan 23, 202428:48
Are Partner Portals Part of Your Partner Strategy?
Jan 02, 202410:31
All in the Analytics
Dec 26, 202326:56
Let's Talk About SaaS
Dec 19, 202329:07
Put Education First
Dec 05, 202327:41
All About the Levels
Nov 16, 202320:43
Swimming with Sharks
Nov 07, 202322:13
Trusted Lense in the Industry
Oct 31, 202329:45
You Have To Be Proactive
Oct 24, 202335:12
4 Digital Transformation Tips & Tricks
Sep 26, 202319:57
Use Humor to Break Down the Barrier
Sep 13, 202329:24
The Multifaceted Approach
Aug 22, 202318:15
Your Partners Are Your Champions
Aug 08, 202327:28
The Value of Community
Jul 25, 202328:02
The Power of LinkedIn Personal Profile
Jul 11, 202326:11
SEO Trends: Are you keeping up?

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.

Jun 27, 202332:39
How can ISVs stand out in a crowd?
Jun 19, 202326:28
Marketing to Millennials
May 31, 202321:34
It isn't ALL about the Relationship
May 16, 202327:13
Email Done Right

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

May 02, 202323:46
Just Do Video
Apr 04, 202335:02
Our Customers Dictate Our Focus

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.


Mar 21, 202323:01
Not just a search engine, it's an answer engine
Mar 09, 202331:18
18 Event Best Practices for ISVs
Feb 21, 202332:19
The Future of Dynamics GP Report
Feb 07, 202317:26
New Initiatives in 2023
Jan 24, 202333:38
How do ISVs fit in the Acumatica ecosystem?

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!

Jan 11, 202321:24
The Global Community
Dec 28, 202225:50
The 4 Pillars
Dec 14, 202216:60
4 Things ISVs and VARs Can Do Better to Work Together

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.

Nov 29, 202226:57
Demystifying Data with Analytics
Nov 15, 202239:02
Thought Leadership & Becoming the "Go To" Resource

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/

Nov 01, 202221:26
My Top Takeaways From Community Summit
Oct 18, 202211:01
It's Always About The Customer
Sep 28, 202226:01
Social Media Strategies with Jon Rivers
Sep 13, 202227:12
Best Practices When Working with Microsoft

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.

www.venvito.net

Here are the questions we covered:

  1. What are the main platforms that Microsoft provides ISVs to get their solutions out to the market?
  2. What programs are available to support ISVs?
  3. With the upcoming changes to the Microsoft partner program, how will that affect ISVs?
  4. How does an ISV get their solution to stand out in the Marketplace?
  5. 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. 


Aug 30, 202229:39
Evolving AI Technology in Accounts Payable Process Automation
Aug 17, 202224:33
It's All About The Micro Moments
Aug 09, 202219:51
LinkedIn is a Powerful Tool

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:

  1. Why LinkedIn is a great social platform for B2B
  2. What are the do's and don'ts when using LinkedIn
  3. 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!

Jul 28, 202237:14
3 Ways To Get Personal With Your Audience

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/

Jul 12, 202210:34
It's All About Differentiation
Jul 05, 202226:27
Play Well With Others
Jun 28, 202232:40
Celebrating 1 Year

Celebrating 1 Year

It's Episode 23 and it's the 1 Year Anniversary of The ISV Society! So it seems fitting to start at the beginning.

I’ve worked for some amazing ISVs over the years and if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be where I am today. They all deserve a huge shout-out.

Right out of college

First up, Blue Moon Industries. What started out as an internship in 1999 turned into a full-time career. Not only was I the first intern, but I also paved the way for more interns. I started out with marketing initiatives for the VAR side which soon turned into marketing initiatives for the ISV side as well.

Getting my head in the clouds

Next up, Myappsanwhere. This is where I learned all about the cloud, data center security, and hosting. Now I am selling Dynamics in the cloud, not only the ERPs but CRM and Exchange as well.

I was responsible for building out the partner program, educating partners on the cloud offerings, and helping partners sell Dynamics in the cloud.

Time to drink the orange Kool-aid

Avalara is up next. I have to say it was one of my dreams to work for such an amazing company. It started out by going to Seattle and Bainbridge Island in January for 2 weeks. First for sales kick-off and second for a week of learning about all things sales tax.

I know way more about sales tax than I ever thought I would. It is crazy to think one side of the street can pay a different tax than the other side of the street just because they are in different jurisdictions. And some candy bars are charged sales tax and others are not just based on the ingredients. I could go on and on but I will spare you that.

Let’s Rock

Last but not least, Rockton Software. I was back in the Dynamics space which I missed so much and also the Acumatica space. It was great to work with so many familiar faces again.

My role here was a little different in that much of my focus was on lead generation, filling the sales funnel, and content creation. I loved that I could focus on creativity and trying new things especially when everything went virtual.

I was able to step up my game with content creation, bring the GP Optimizer to life, and build new relationships.

The ISV Society is Born

I am so grateful for all of these opportunities with all of these companies. They all shaped my career in different ways and gave me a tremendous amount of experience.

It paved the way to launch my membership and community just for ISVs. The ISV Society is a labor of love. I am able to use all of my marketing, ERP, and channel experience and scale it to help the masses.

I learned that there really needs to be something just for ISVs that is ERP agnostic. We all struggle with lead generation, reaching the masses, having time to launch new marketing initiatives, and doing joint initiatives. So, why not have a membership that does just that.

Download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience.

Email me to learn more about The ISV Society. amieek@theisvsociety.com



Jun 21, 202217:09
We're All Superheros
Jun 14, 202227:19
The Long Term Relationship

The Long Term Relationship

Hello everyone! Welcome to another episode of The ISV Society Podcast. I am excited to chat with Ed Kless, Senior Director, Partner Development and Strategy at Sage and Host of the Sage Thought Leadership Podcast. (Check it out)

We talked about:

  • Sage over the years
  • Sage rebranding 
  • The subscription model - even for services
  • What ISVs can do in this space

We go way back to when there was a time knowing your TCPIP address was important.

Follow Ed, @edkless

Thanks for listening. We hope you enjoyed it. Don't forget to leave a comment or subscribe.

If you want to be a guest let me know. (amieek@theisvsociety.com)

Also, if you didn't already download The ISV Guide to Grow Your Audience. 

Jun 07, 202227:46