How do you fix bad VAR Websites? (Part 3)

In post 1 and post 2 on this subject matter I noted that we see a couple of common problems with our VAR websites:

1. VAR websites exhibit low, slow adoption of our marketing assets
2. VAR websites frequently exhibit product branding violations

I noted that before now the only way we had to fix the situation was to nag each individual VAR to add new marketing programs, discontinue outdated marketing programs, and fix branding violations. It was like a game of "whac-a-mole" because as soon as you fixed one problem you were on to attack a long list of others.

So we were trying a new service called SharedVue Website Content Syndication...

Problem: Solved!
How do you fix a bad VAR website? My little joke was that you don't fix *a* VAR's website; instead you fix *all* of them. Well, I am pleased to report that we have launched the service and gone "live" with our first four VARs. (Not nearly all of them, but a good start, and I expect adoption to be brisk.) Take a look:

1. Customer Driven Technology: http://www.cdtplm.com – click the banner on the left that says "PTC Business Solution Center"
2. Impac Systems: http://www.impacsystems.com – click the text link at top right that says "PTC Business Solution Center"
3. Global Product Delivery Systems: http://www.g-pds.com – click the text link in the middle of the screen that says "PTC Business Solution Center"
4. Maintenance Reseller Corporation: http://www.mrcpds.com – click the text link in the middle of the screen that says "PTC Business Solution Center"

This "PTC Business Solution Center" that is common to each site is the product of the SharedVue Website Content Syndication. It delivers:

• Quality marketing content – we can now easily drop into any VAR website our best ~25 marketing campaigns
  
• Easy to deploy – the VAR pastes one line of HTML code onto one page of their website to accept the syndication feed, it takes less than 30 minutes to set up
• Hands-off maintenance – takes away the burden of website maintenance for the VAR because campaigns & product collateral are refreshed centrally by my team and changes are automatically and instantly syndicated to the VAR websites
  
• Lead flow – certain campaigns have lead capture forms, and the leads go directly to the VARs

Pretty cool, eh? What do you think?

How do you fix bad VAR Websites? (Part 2)

In "Part 1" of this topic I identified what I mean when I say most VAR websites are a disaster (low, slow adoption of marketing assets; and outdated, out-of-brand product content). And I noted the reason why the websites are in such bad shape (VARs simply have too much stuff on their plate, so website maintenance tends to fall off the edge and get neglected).

So here's the part where I answer the original question:

• Question: How do you fix a bad VAR website?
• Answer: You don't. You fix all of them.

Website Content Syndication
Website content syndication allows PTC to create website content for the VARs and then stream it directly to the every VAR website.

• Step 1: We take the key handful of marketing campaigns that every VAR should be deploying, and we stream them directly to every VAR's website. We take core product content (standard description, PDF brochure, etc.), and we stream it directly to every VAR's website.
  
  
• Step 2: When PTC creates new marketing campaigns, PTC can swap them into the syndication feed and the content is instantly updated on every VAR's website. When PTC releases Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 6.0, PTC can swap out the Wildfire 5.0 content, and swap the new messaging and brochure into the syndication feed and the content is instantly updated on every VAR's website.

Benefits for every VAR:

• Liberates every VAR from the burden of website maintenance ...so they can focus on other critical marketing priorities.
• Populates each VAR website with professionally developed marketing and product content, to support their sales activities and to generate leads.
• Easy to set up (one line of code pasted onto one page of the VAR website -- this line of code accepts the syndication stream).
• Ability for every VAR to manage the content that is syndicated to them (can opt out of content they don't like, and can control the method by which leads flow to them).
  

Benefits for PTC:

• No more out-of-date, out-of-brand content proliferated on VAR websites.
• No more "whac-a-mole" exercise in chasing every VAR to adopt marketing campaigns and correct branding violations.
  
• Massive distribution of our "pure" marketing and product content.
• Liberates VARs from the burden of website maintenance ...so they can focus on other critical marketing priorities.
  

Stay tuned to this space. My "Part 3" post will include live examples of this in action as we pilot this and roll it out.

How do you fix bad VAR Websites? (Part 1)

It's a common complaint: "Our VARs' websites are a disaster!" The typical problems are:

1. VAR websites exhibit *low*, *slow* adoption of marketing assets
2. VAR websites contain *outdated*, *out-of-brand* product content

I could show you several hundred examples of this. VAR websites showing Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 4.0 content even though we released Wildfire 5.0 six months ago... VAR websites promoting a free trial program that we discontinued 12 month ago... VAR websites promoting "MathCAD" even though the appropriate product branding is "Mathcad"... It goes on and on. I would estimate that 1% of our VAR websites have strong product marketing info and compelling up-to-date marketing programs.

How do you fix it?
Really the only tools I have had to utilize (until now) are a combination of nagging, and awarding/withholding MDF (Marketing Development Funds):

• Nag each VAR to add new marketing programs to their website every time a new program or asset is rolled out.
  
• Nag each VAR every time a product is rev'ed. References to version numbers need to be changed; linked product documentation needs to be changed; and new functionality and positioning needs to be documented and promoted.
  
• Award a VAR MDF funds to hire a web consultant to make the updates
• Withhold MDF funds from a VAR until they get their website updated with appropriate content

These solutions are terrible. Nobody likes to be a nag, including me. The VARs simply have too much stuff on their plate, so website maintenance (and indeed many other marketing tasks) tend to fall off the edge and get neglected. And most VARs do not have dedicated, well-trained marketing headcount that can take care of projects like this.

Also, these efforts are all one-off. After nagging, cajoling, and bribing one VAR to get their website updated, you need to turn around and do it all over again for the several hundred other VARs who are exhibiting problems. And then 6 months later you need to go back to that same VAR and do it all over again.

Yesterday I kicked off a project with a company called SharedVue which I believe will solve this problem. Stay tuned to this space to learn more about it.