Expanding Channel Partners Base for Data Management

Mike Shay, Business Manager, India, Synology, discusses about the channel partnership expansion  plan of his organisation that is engaged in bringing data management solutions to India.

Can you elaborate on your plans to increase your network of channel partners in India?

We already have our business here for ten years. It’s already established in metropolises like Mumbai, Delhi etc. We also have the partner base in Chennai, Bangalore, Pune etc. The main thing is that in marketing this kind of product, you can’t just buy and sell. You have to convince the clients and explain to them its importance, especially if they haven’t seen it. So we usually invite our channel partners, let them try the products and they can existing the cases from the customers to understand what kind of solutions they can offer. They learn case by case and convey the message to the customers. We are also seeing a very good growth in the cities, but we’re not satisfied. So, Kolkata and Cochin would be the next cities for us. So we want to pay a visit and have a workshop or seminar, so everybody can know about our products.

If some channel partners want to partner with you, what is the process for them?

Some big giants already have a programme for partners. So far we don’t have it, but we’re working on it. We have a team to develop the programme for our data management business. In the future we’ll share more details about this to our audience. But right now, if a partner comes to us, we first have to understand their customer base, their capacity, the products they’re carrying, whether they’ll be suitable for our end customers. Based on that, we can decide whether they can be our distributors and we’ll give them training and collaborate with them. We shall explain our products to them, so that they can try first. Because a partner has to first sell the product. We’ll help them to become our partner.

Have you thought of any advantages or incentives that you’d be giving to your partners?

I’d say the best incentive is that this market is growing very fast. So, i believe that the opportunities and the potential is everywhere. Some, for some cases or projects, they can come to us and we’ll provide them support, so that they can build the project. For most of the small markets, the selling price is already recommended to them, because a lot of people require this kind of product.

You say that your product is not made in China. Is it made in Taiwan?

Yes, all of it is made in Taiwan and we import from Taiwan.

What about your R&D?

Right now, Synology has about 900 people around the world and 60% of these employees are engaged with R&D for data management. Right now, there are hundreds of R&D professionals working in the Taiwan office. This is why we can provide so many applications that are so powerful.

Do you plan to open both R&D and manufacturing units in India?

It can be an option in the future. But the status right now is that it will take a while. It’s not about whether it’s cheaper to import these data management products from Taiwan. We want to make sure that the products are of high quality. When you produce in a different country, you have to take care of many conditions.

I want to convey the message that data is the most important thing in the future. No matter how you want to protect your data, Synology has a solution for your data management needs.