Zoomtopia Partner Connect: New Zoom Phone Reseller Program Unveiled
Zoom will welcome a wider pool of resellers to the program by the end of the year.
![Flaming New Flaming New](https://eu-images.contentstack.com/v3/assets/blt10e444bce2d36aa8/bltca184fedf453eeeb/652444eb08c31b62656a3694/Flaming-New.jpg?width=700&auto=webp&quality=80&disable=upscale)
Shutterstock
Channel Futures: Did reseller partner input come into play when formulating the reseller program expansion? If so, how?
Zoom’s Laura Padilla: Our partners expressed interest in Zoom Phone beyond referring deals and wanted to start selling Zoom Phone. By expanding the program, we are supporting our resellers’ preferred route to market, which is to sell directly to their customer on their paper. The expansion of the program also helps to meet the needs of customers who prefer to buy through their trusted adviser, as they do for all of their IT and business needs.
As part of our pilot program, we have a handful of partners able to resell Zoom Phone, and many more partners that are ready to sign up. Partners are excited about being able to offer Zoom’s full suite of services to their customers.
CF: Will this reseller program expansion help partners better meet their customers’ changing needs due to the new normal and hybrid workforce? If so, how?
LP: Since the start of the pandemic, we have all had to shift our ways of working, our ways of hiring, and our ways of learning, and some great things have come out of it. The pace of innovation has never been faster. Our partner community, together with Zoom, has helped customers around the world transform their communications strategies, helping organizations adapt in the face of uncertainty and in the face of changes we have hardly experienced as a society.
By expanding our reseller partner program, we’re enabling our partners to grow and bring the benefits of Zoom Phone to more of their customers — whether it’s helping them replace an outdated legacy solution, consolidating communications onto a single platform, or enabling remote and hybrid teams amid COVID-19 (or all of the above). The expansion of the program also includes more training and enablement to better position the partner to be successful in selling Zoom Phone to their customers.
CF: Will the program expansion give Zoom and its partners a competitive advantage? If so, how?
LP: Yes, there is a growing need for a rich cloud telephony solution like Zoom Phone, which is simple to deploy and use on a mobile device, desktop or desk phone. Its innovative pricing model and widespread availability make it an attractive solution for many customers of any size and location.
Zoom Phone is built from the ground up on the same single platform and architecture, unlike competitor offerings. This gives Zoom Phone an easy, familiar user interface, and intuitive management and monitoring. We continue to innovate Zoom Phone, building hundreds of features in just a few short years, and our integrations are constantly growing as customers look to extend communication across a variety of lines of business applications.
During the past 12 months, Zoom has added more than 3,500 partners to its programs. Those include distributors, resellers, service providers, master agent/referral partners and ISVs.
“Our channel partners play a valuable role in helping to drive adoption of the Zoom platform while expanding their own businesses — and this year, our partners had to be even more innovative and adaptive than ever,” Padilla said.
Zoom’s channel is now contributing more than 20% to its non-online bookings globally, and nearly 30% internationally. Moreover, partners are driving more than one-fourth of Zoom Phone sales globally.
During Partner Connect, Zoom offered a sneak peek of its partner program advancements globally.
The advancements include:
A new partner program introducing levels, competencies and better incentives. It will reward partners for their investments, create a way to differentiate themselves, and increase their profitability and scale as they grow with Zoom.
An updated Zoom Phone Certified Integrator Program, offering improved training so partners are better equipped with skills and capabilities.
Enhanced cloud peering via the Zoom Phone Provider Exchange, improving the end-to-end experience with Zoom Phone.
Partner Use & Demo License Program (PUDL), which will provide licenses for demonstration, training or production use, and expand the partner types that will have access to these licenses.
ISV Program expansion into two partner types, builders and integrators.
Additional marketing benefits aligned with the most committed and qualified partners.
Also during Zoomtopia Partner Connect, Zoom unveiled the winners of its Regional Partner Awards.
The recipients are as follows.
United States and Canada:
Partner of the Year: SHI
Rising Star: ePlus
Service Provider: Lumen Technologies
Master Agent Program: Bridgepointe
Distributor: Carahsoft
Reseller: SHI
Certified Integrator: Cloud Warriors
APAC:
Partner of the Year: PT Kayreach
Rising Star: Savex Technologies
Service Provider: BT
Master Agent Program: Tradewinds
Distributor: Rhipe
Reseller: ESCO
Certified Integrator: ConnectNZ
EMEA:
Partner of the Year: Nuvias
Rising Star: Phone Pulse
Service Provider: Telefonica
Master Agent Program: Touch Conference
Distributor: Kern & Stelly Medientechnik GmbH
Reseller: Connect4Video
Certified Integrator: Datasharp Integrated Communications
Japan:
Partner of the Year: NEC Networks & System Integration Corporation (NESIC)
Rising Star: Ricoh Japan
Distributor: SB C&S
Reseller: Nissho Electronics
Certified Integrator: CTCSP
Strategic Partner of the Year: SoftBank
Financial Market Partner: Nomura Research Institute
SMB Market Partner: Otsuka Shokai
Deal Registration: V-Cube
Latin America:
Partner of the Year: XP On
Rising Star: Adaptor
Distributor: West Telco
Reseller: Cynersis
Reseller: MyMottion
Certified Integrator: Latamsul
Zoom’s first Partner Marketing Awards showcases channel partners’ “innovative and impactful” marketing campaigns around Zoom. The winners will receive $10,000 in Zoom marketing development funds (MDF) toward a future campaign.
The recipients are as follows:
United States and Canada:
Impact Rockstar Award: Carahsoft
Innovation Rockstar Award: 3Tree Tech
Social Rockstar Award: Lumen Technologies
APAC:
Impact Rockstar Award: Savex Technologies
Innovation Rockstar Award: Globe Telecom
Social Rockstar Award: PT Kayreach
EMEA:
Impact Rockstar Award: Naotech
Innovation Rockstar Award: Duppal
Social Rockstar Award: Kern & Stelly
Japan:
Impact Rockstar Award: NEC Networks & System Integration Corp. (NESIC)
Innovation Rockstar Award: Ricoh Japan
Social Rockstar Award: SB C&S Corp.
Latin America:
Impact Rockstar Award: Cynersis
Innovation Rockstar Award: XP On
Social Rockstar Award: SMARTISVOIP
Zoom’s first Partner Marketing Awards showcases channel partners’ “innovative and impactful” marketing campaigns around Zoom. The winners will receive $10,000 in Zoom marketing development funds (MDF) toward a future campaign.
The recipients are as follows:
United States and Canada:
Impact Rockstar Award: Carahsoft
Innovation Rockstar Award: 3Tree Tech
Social Rockstar Award: Lumen Technologies
APAC:
Impact Rockstar Award: Savex Technologies
Innovation Rockstar Award: Globe Telecom
Social Rockstar Award: PT Kayreach
EMEA:
Impact Rockstar Award: Naotech
Innovation Rockstar Award: Duppal
Social Rockstar Award: Kern & Stelly
Japan:
Impact Rockstar Award: NEC Networks & System Integration Corp. (NESIC)
Innovation Rockstar Award: Ricoh Japan
Social Rockstar Award: SB C&S Corp.
Latin America:
Impact Rockstar Award: Cynersis
Innovation Rockstar Award: XP On
Social Rockstar Award: SMARTISVOIP
At Tuesday’s Zoomtopia Partner Connect, Zoom unveiled a new reseller partner program for Zoom Phone Bring Your Own Carrier (BYOC).
The program offers a new revenue opportunity for resellers and more flexibility to customers. Resellers can sell Zoom Phone BYOC licenses.
They will also be able to connect customers who use cloud peering to access PSTN to Zoom Phone Provider Exchange. That’s a new way to find providers and follow a self-service journey to provision phone numbers securely.
Zoom is running a pilot program for select resellers that meet the requirements to sell Zoom Phone BYOC. It expects to welcome a wider pool of resellers by the end of the year.
Zoom Phone BYOC Offers Choice
Built on Zoom’s platform, Zoom Phone is a cloud phone system for businesses of all sizes. With Zoom Phone BYOC, customers can keep their current PSTN service providers by redirecting existing voice circuits to the Zoom Phone cloud, or implement a hybrid solution with Zoom Calling Plans.
Previously, only Zoom master agents could refer deals for Zoom Phone and Zoom Phone BYOC. Now Zoom’s reseller partners globally who meet the requirements and qualify will be authorized to resell Zoom Phone BYOC.
Zoom Phone BYOC customers who use cloud peering to connect to PSTN will also soon be able to access Zoom Phone Provider Exchange. It offers a streamlined experience for Zoom Phone BYOC customers to select the provider of their choice, download their app, and provision phone numbers directly in the Zoom portal. As a result, Zoom Phone BYOC customers will have more choice and flexibility in terms of providers and their geographic reach, the company said.
To learn more, we spoke with Laura Padilla, Zoom’s head of global business development and channel.
Channel Futures: What prompted the need for and the timing of the reseller program expansion? Can you give some examples of how the expansion will benefit Zoom’s reseller partners?
Zoom’s Laura Padilla
Laura Padilla: Our partner program continues to grow and evolve, and we have very strong interest in Zoom Phone. In fact, we achieved 2 million Zoom Phone seats in just 10 quarters. And in our last quarter, Q2 FY22, our partners drove more than one-fourth of Zoom Phone sales globally. We believe our reseller partners can further the adoption of Zoom Phone as they act as a trusted adviser to businesses making UCaaS decisions across the globe. This is one of the many reasons we created this route to market for them.
Scroll through our slideshow above for more about the new reseller program and more from Zoomtopia Partner Exchange.
Want to contact the author directly about this story? Have ideas for a follow-up article? Email Edward Gately or connect with him on LinkedIn. |
Read more about:
AgentsAbout the Author(s)
You May Also Like