Channel Partners Expo Blog: 101 Workshop Offers Crash Course for New Agents

Whether youre considering becoming an agent, just getting started or looking for best practices advice, this workshop is for you. It will address the basics, such as how to choose suppliers, the ins and outs of contract negotiations, how to manage commissions and more.

The three-hour workshop will be held at the Channel Partners Conference & Expo, 9 a.m. to noon, on Sunday, March 13. It is open to full conference pass attendees. Tutorial presentations will be followed by a Q&A panel featuring successful telecom agents.

The seminar was first presented at last years spring event to about 100 new entrants ranging from downsized carrier sales reps to voice and data VARs.

Based on feedback, the agenda is slightly different this year. A short primer on the telecom services marketplace by Channel Partners Editor Khali Henderson will lay the foundation for those that are new to the carrier world and its channel.

From there, agent Dan Vidal, managing director of Telecom Advisors Inc., will talk about choosing the right supplier from carrier to master agent. Attorney Neil Ende, managing partner with Technology Law Group, will follow up with key advice about negotiating contracts with your chosen suppliers. Managing those suppliers as well as your  (hopefully) growing list of customers will be the subject of a tutorial by agent Laura Bernstein, president of CRA Inc. And, you wont want to miss the critical segment on getting paid and optimizing revenue, which is presented by Bill Power, CEO of the Agent Alliance.

Once youve heard from the presenters, youll have time to ask questions to these same experts during a Q&A period.

The Telecom Agency 101 workshop is based, in part, on the Channel Partners FACT BOOK, which is a guide for people new to the industry. It can be downloaded free at http://www.channelpartnersonline.com/reports/2011/01/channel-partners-fact-book-2011.aspx