IBM Launches Initiatives for Business Partners

IBM PartnerWorld 2005 -- IBM (www.ibm.com) today at PartnerWorld 2005 announced a new set of enablement initiatives designed to assist Business Partners selling into the lucrative small and mid-size business (SMB) marketplace.

The new development, sales and marketing tools are part of IBM's continuing focus on increasing Business Partners' success in deploying on Demand solutions to SMB customers through the company's IBM PartnerWorld program.

To assist with marketing Express Portfolio solutions and services, IBM announced the Built On IBM Express Portfolio initiative which allows IBM Business Partners to market their qualified Express solutions using an IBM approved emblem. IBM also unveiled additions to PartnerWorld Industry Networks including four new industries and a web-based showcase for Business Partner applications.

Also, IBM announced today at PartnerWorld 2005 the addition of industry sales support for IBM Business Partners through an expansion of the IBM Small and Medium Business Advantage (SMBA) initiative with the addition of SMB Industry Insights. In addition, IBM rolled out the SystemSeller initiative which provides Business Partners with competitively priced and pre-configured models of market-leading IBM eServers and TotalStorage products for the SMB market.

As part of today's announcements the company also detailed a new development initiative which is designed to simplify the building of applications using IBM Express middleware technology.

IBM's new "Built On IBM Express Portfolio" emblem is designed to enhance the marketing efforts of IBM Business Partners whose solutions and services include IBM Express Portfolio offerings.

The new emblem will be available for eligible IBM Business Partners, ISVs and Regional Systems Integrators to use as they market and sell their qualified solutions and services.

IBM today launched four new industries to mark the one-year anniversary of PartnerWorld Industry Networks, the company's broad enablement program through which it goes to market industry-by-industry with thousands of ISVs across 60 countries.

As part of these efforts, IBM unveiled the Business Partner Application Showcase, a customer-facing tool that will help them easily locate and select IBM Business Partners and their solutions by industry and country. Customers can quickly search for and find these applications, and through a "Contact Me" button will be able to connect directly with Business Partners to speed the sales cycle.

IBM today launched a servers and storage Business Partner program, called SystemSeller, which was created specifically to meet the needs of small and medium-sized businesses.

SystemSeller will allow Business Partners to rapidly acquire competitively priced and readily available product that is configured to address the needs of the end-user SMB customer.

IBM SystemSeller will be available globally this year and will include TotalStorage and eServer xSeries, OpenPower, pSeries, and BladeCenter systems.

IBM also rolled out an expansion of IBM SMB Advantage with the addition of SMB Industry Insights, an industry specific sales enablement initiative for Business Partners focused on vertical marketplaces.