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Kaseya CEO Sets the Record Straight On Channel Sales Strategy
2 Min Read
Kaseya CEO Gerald Blackie has strongly denied a rumor that the company plans to take its business direct and circumvent VARs and managed service providers. Here’s the scoop, directly from Blackie.
First, some background: During today’s N-able Partner Summit in Dallas, several managed service providers suggested to me that Kaseya has an aggressive direct sales model outside of the United States. Plus, those MSPs alleged that Kaseya plans to extend that aggressive direct sales model into the US … as an effort to increase US margins amid potentially slowing sales in the turbulent US economy.
Separating fact from fiction in this market is always a little tricky, especially when it involves MSPs using competing software products. Much like the old operating system wars (Apple vs. Microsoft), MSPs are pretty passionate about their platform providers.
Kaseya Responds
So, is Kaseya planning a purely direct sales model or an aggressive direct sales push in multiple markets that bypasses MSPs and VARs?
“I cannot think of anything more patently ridiculous than these allegations,” wrote Kaseya CEO Gerald Blackie in an email to MSPmentor. “So, let me put the record straight with the following points:
We have a hard policy that all SMBs under 100 employees seeking Kaseya solutions — software or services — be steered to a partner in their area. Period. And this is true for everywhere in the world: North America, LATAM, APAC or EMEA. We make no exceptions.
We do direct sales only in the corporate space where there is no partner who can reasonably manage the opportunity or where it is not feasible to expect partners, focused as they are on service delivery, to manage a large complex software sale with the reasonable expectation of success. However, we do quite regularly work with our partners on sizable software sales opportunities.
We have not deviated from this plan since our inception in 2003. We hold the line on pricing and all other partner related issues so that we are utterly transparent and beyond reproach in our dealings with our partners. They are our life’s blood, and will be for many years to come. We will do nothing to compromise our good standing in that regard.
Far from suggesting we are hurting, I can tell you that we are already on track for a record quarter and a record year, a year that has seen our revenue double. All regions and all business units are doing very well in this difficult economic environment.”
Blackie’s reply hit my inbox pretty quickly. If Kaseya did plan a pure direct sales model, I suspect it would have taken Blackie far longer to craft a response to my inquiry.
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