Help getting started with delivery partners in SaaS

Greg Higgins

Hi TSIA Community,

We're close to the point in our SaaS marketing tech growth in which it makes sense to build a more formalized delivery partner network. We have a decent-sized in-house team with a positive profit margin service operation running completely in PSA tech built into our Salesforce instance. We also have a formidable number of agencies that work with our clients to consult on our tool, former power users that have started their own consultancies, and former employees that have ventured out on their own as well.

I'm really excited about scaling the operation through partners and hopefully making their businesses a ton of healthy $$$.

To date, we have only engaged subcontractors to manage overflow as our service delivery required some behind the scenes product work due to some product gaps. Not a lot, but enough where it previously would've hindered any delivery partner trying to work autonomously. Now we're close to closing those gaps.

Here are a few things on my mind:

1. What are some key steps you would advise to take when you started to build your delivery partner network? What are some things to look out for?
2. Did you have your delivery partners contract with clients on their paper or did you facilitate it through your services SOW? If the latter, did you take a percentage for managing any part of the engagement?
3. Did your partners offer the same services that your in-house team offered or did you create swim lanes there?
4. Did you have all of your partners managed through a channel partner manager or was it another resource on your services team/leadership?
5. Did you start co-marketing with your delivery partners right away?
6. Did you integrate your partners into any user group communities that you had/have? If so, in what capacity (sponsor, speakers, leader, participant, etc.)?

Your input to any of the above or anything else you feel important would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Lexi Provost

Hi Greg! Thank you for your thorough question. Our VP of XaaS Channel Optimization has some great content around this topic, including her recent webinar The Building Blocks for an XaaS Partner Framework.

@Andréanne Young and @Scott Thomas do you have any color to add on this topic? Thanks!

Greg Higgins

Thank you for sharing, @Lexi Provost! I watched that one and then went on to the Optimizing Channel Revenue webinar. Anne was great. I think the framework will definitely help me build this out and I will lean on the Exchange for some tactical execution questions. I'll report back on my progress as I build.