'They're so good, I've applied to join them': 20 best comments from CRN Vendor Report 2021
Can you match the quote to the vendor in question?
The CRN Vendor Report is back, and this time it's bigger and better than ever.
Out soon, the 70,000-word report saw a record 335 UK channel partner executives rate up to five of their core vendors across four core services categories. The top 45 were then ranked.
It also offered them a unique opportunity to give anonymous, no-holds-barred written feedback on their key allies - good, bad or indifferent.
Respondents duly did not hold back, leaving 4,230 meaningful comments across the four categories (Technology Leadership, Channel Strategy and Account Management, Margins, Leads and Incentives and Training and Accreditation).
For more information on this paid-for report, please email [email protected].
Here we round up 20 of the most glowing comments from the report (read a collection of the most brutal ones here). But can you match them to the correct vendor?
Quote 1: "Two years ago I was seriously worried about whether [they] would survive. However, they have finally decided what it is they want to be and released a whole new range of innovative and inexpensive products and services. In my opinion they have placed themselves firmly at the top of [their] market."
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Quote 2: "[Their training and accreditation is] so good, I've actually applied to join them"
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Quote 3: "They know they are smaller than others and are willing to work with fewer resellers to build trust and higher margins"
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Quote 4: "If the best is required and the budget can stretch, then the choice is [this vendor]"
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Quote 5: "My sales guys like them"
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Quote 6: "Often customers refer to them as the reliable, cost-effective option, which says it all"
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Quote 7: "Although a challenger to HP/Dell/Lenovo, these guys work really hard to differentiate in a crowded market"
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Quote 8: "[They are] having to transition from being a virtualisation specialist to a hybrid cloud specialist. This is quite a stretch - but the quality of their previous offerings mean that the industry is likely to give them the benefit of the doubt."
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Quote 9: "They offer very good margins and are open book on everything, which makes dealing with them a lot easier"
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Quote 10: "Their recent move to exam renewals being conducted via Learn, for free, is a great move"
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Quote 11: "The team is super responsive, and we have regular face time with senior leaders and peer forums to discuss the channel, the leadership and what we feel it needs to change"
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Quote 12: "The line-up of products is forever being updated and moving ahead of its time. Though there's some obsolescence, we can forgive this with their opportunities to upgrade."
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Quote 13: "Support is second to none, and the leadership is rock solid"
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Quote 14: "Margins are tough but worth it for the solutions - they are the best we've come across"
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Quote 15: "[They] have a technology leadership in most areas they play in. Their influence is huge, and they are the benchmark for every other vendor"
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Quote 16: "We work very closely with [them] and I have always been very impressed with their entire channel operation. We have dedicated channel managers, good escalation processes and an excellent working relationship. We always get good visibility of product roadmaps and access to early field trials"
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Quote 17: "Although they have some direct business, it's never an issue when talking to them about deals"
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Quote 18: "We are a long-term partner and their account management, support, marketing investment, and rebates are a benchmark"
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Quote 19: "We find that [it] offers the greatest amount of innovation and product differentiation of any vendor. Whilst [it] has never been a competitively priced product, they don't try to compete on price, only on performance and features"
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Quote 20: "Lovely account managers so far. Very trusting of us and their experts in sales/commercial/marketing and so happy to take our lead as opposed to dictating to us."
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