TM
Company
Systems Supply, Inc.
Location
Twinsburg, Ohio
Type of Business
IT Solution Provider
Solution
Avocent Partner Network
Business Benefits
• Leverage a full team of Avocent partner resources
• Create more customer confidence
• Open doors to executive decision makers
• Build stronger customer relationships
• Generate and win more opportunities
Founded in 1987 and with headquarters in Twinsburg, Ohio, Systems Supply,
Inc. (SSI) selectively engages best-in-breed manufacturers to provide electronic switches, command center, power protection, imaging, storage, printing and a variety of hardware solutions. As an Avocent® partner, SSI has been able to deliver data center management solutions that enable its data center customers to reduce time to provision, decrease outages, improve mean time to repair, efficiently plan and manage changes, track rack capacity and reduce the need to physically access the data center floor. In fact in the second quarter of 2010, through a combination of joint marketing events and strategic leveraging of Avocent partner resources, SSI closed more Data Center Planner™ software deals than any other Avocent partner and was recognized as the 2010 Avocent Take Command™ Program Regional Partner of the Year.
Engaging the Full Resource Team
Even though SSI has the knowledge and expertise to help its customers understand how the various Avocent products can address their needs, it realizes it doesn’t need to go solo. In fact, it views its primary role as one of prequalifying an opportunity and then engaging and aligning all of its available resources in a strategic manner.
“Beyond products that deliver as advertised and the Avocent credentials, the reason we win so many deals boils down to taking a team approach that leverages all the partner resources that Avocent offers,” says Todd Lewis, President of Systems Supply.
“We walk into a customer presentation with the expertise of Avocent standing with us. We engage the Avocent territory representative, Avocent sales engineers and
Avocent software specialists. We introduce them and involve them throughout the entire sales process. By bringing in such a significant cast of players, we give our customers a much higher comfort level and our own credentials go way up in the eyes of the customer.”
In discussing how SSI takes advantage of this full complement of Avocent team resources, it indicates that it views the local territory representative as having the greatest single impact in instilling confidence in the client’s eyes.
“If the reseller doesn’t engage the manufacturing rep as step one, [he/she is] missing the springboard of the entire sell cycle,” Lewis says. “The local rep is not there just to develop a sale, but to develop an opportunity, ensure the customer benefits from the right solution and establish a local presence for the customer.”
While some solution providers might engage vendors with caution, for fear of losing control over customer opportunities, SSI points out that Avocent believes its channel partners play an important and critical role in the sales and support process by delivering increased value above its products and services. Avocent provides a clear

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channel program structure and is selective about the partners it brings into that program.
“With the Avocent opportunity registration program there’s no fear in bringing the factory rep to the client,” Lewis says. “Avocent territory representatives do a superior job in support of the reseller. They’re there to help the client and the reseller simultaneously. Avocent reps are product trained, efficient and they’ve got your back.”
In addition to the territory representatives, SSI also takes advantage of
Avocent sales engineers to reinforce the sales cycle and take the process beyond just introducing the various products. “We use our Avocent sales engineer on almost every significant project we’re involved in,” Lewis says. “Even though we have the ability to do our own configurations, by involving the sales engineer we can continuously validate that our configuration will embrace the customer’s needs. It also creates a relationship that lets customers feel like they can reach out and ask the engineer—rather than tech support or a salesperson—questions during the sales process and implementation.”
Avocent software specialists are another key partner resource that SSI leverages to ensure its success. SSI uses the software specialist in a similar manner as the sales engineer, but with the addition that it uses the specialist to handle software demonstrations and proofs of concept through either a Webinar or at the client’s site.
“Every time we’ve closed a software opportunity, it’s been a direct result of our team approach, with the Avocent software specialist playing a huge role in that,” Lewis says. “Some resellers might not have the absolute skills on every nuance of the software. So, rather than resellers losing an order due to inadequacy in their ability to present or answer a question, they can use the Avocent software specialists as if they’re sitting in the room with them to present and field questions. And for customers with unique environments, the software specialist can walk them through a potential solution geared to their specific requirements.”
Opening More Doors, Winning More Deals
In addition to the full team of resources that Avocent provides to help it win deals, SSI also believes that the credentials that Avocent and its parent company, Emerson, bring into the relationship play a major role in enabling them to get that first appointment, as well as to have a face-toface with its customers’ real decision makers.
“As an industry leader, Avocent and Emerson have significant preestablished credentials and credibility,” Lewis says. “You don’t have to waste time establishing the credentials of the brand. It’s already a given. But not only is it easier to get that first appointment, because they’re known entities, but it allows me to go higher up in the client’s IT organization to the director and C-level executives. Being able to open those doors is a great benefit.”
Avocent also opens up ongoing doors of opportunity for SSI as well through its renewable site licenses, warranties and service agreements.
“The renewable opportunities that Avocent provides allow us to stay in contact with the customer in a way that lets us explore additional opportunities where we can deliver added value,” Lewis says. “On the revenue side, Avocent is an excellent partner fit. Its products are legitimate, best-of-breed solutions, but it also continues to develop new versions, new technology and new software tools that create reoccurring opportunities for us with our clients.”
In addition to these reoccurring opportunities, SSI has become very proactive in creating its own opportunities through a series of local marketing events, at which it invites Avocent and representatives from other manufacturers to speak.
“Rather than doing these events in terms of hard line sales pitches, we do them under the role of education to allow us to get the message out to a broad base of clients and prospects,” Lewis says. “Everybody benefits from these events. Attendees benefit from being enlightened on a great suite of Avocent products, hearing it straight from an
Avocent spokesperson. SSI and Avocent sales organizations both benefit because there will always be something from a discussion that leads to a purchase. It also often opens up secondary conversations between attendees and us on other solutions that might not have been considered before.”
While SSI feels its partnership with Avocent might be unique, it knows it’s a relationship that any reseller can develop.
“I think what separates us from other resellers is that we engage Avocent and all its resources with full disclosure on every opportunity,” Lewis says. “Avocent backs me up by sales, engineering and service, so I have a full deliverable package for my clients. Sharing in the sales cycle, service and support with Avocent not only generates more revenue, but it also frees up our time to develop the next opportunity.”
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