Master Agent Featured Articles

Recently, the crew at Geek Squad, which is Best Buy's (News - Alert) electronics repair arm, revealed that they had selected their fifth master agent for their new partner program. The program in question was launched at the Channel Partners Conference & Expo back in the spring, and now, Digital Planet joins a lineup of master agents that includes Network Solutions Provider, Carrier Access Inc., MACH (News - Alert) 4 and Access Media 3.

Digital Planet's master agent status now allows them to offer up Geek Squad IT services as part of their repertoire, while in turn, Geek Squad will get access to Digital Planet's substantial network of indirect sales partners, as well as their VARs (Value-Added Resellers) and Interconnects. Since Digital Planet's focus is on a single-solution source for telephony hardware and voice and data networking alike, it gives Geek Squad access to a growing market, while the master agent can offer some tried and true service capability to its current customer base and potentially get some new ones in the fold.

The offer to become one of Geek Squad's master agents came at an opportune time for Digital Planet, as its President Shawn Schmidt was actually working on a new program at the time to present to the company’s own various partners. Geek Squad's offer helped provide some necessary insight on how to make the presentations to their VARs and the like, so the end result yielded no small amount of help on that front.

Vice President of Sales for Digital Planet, Jonathan Watkins, further spelled out the motivation behind the agreement with his remarks: “Our clients and national partners demand quality solutions to their IT service needs at a fair and competitive price; Geek Squad does this exceptionally well. The 24/7 anytime, anywhere service and national reach of 20,000 Geek Squad agents is unmatched in the industry.".

Working with a name like Geek Squad gives Digital Planet that little extra note of credibility, the benefits of which can never be fully dismissed, especially in a slumping economy where every little bit that may make a sale helps. Meanwhile, Geek Squad also gets its own win with access to new expertise and new markets, giving it an edge that it sorely needs considering the sheer number of Best Buy locations that either have closed or are closing in the not too distant future.

Making arrangements like this should prove helpful for both companies, as well as provide a framework for other companies to take advantage of the core competencies inherent in those arrangements.

Looking to grow your channel opportunities? Then be sure to attend Channel Vision Expo (CVx), collocated with ITEXPO West 2012 taking place Oct. 2-5, in Austin, TX. The CVx Showcase at ITEXPO (News - Alert) was created specifically to help channel players and wholesale service providers develop partnerships that cross traditional lines of business and provide all players with opportunities to expand their service portfolio through new suppliers and new relationships with other types of services and equipment distributors. For more information on registering for the Channel Vision Expo click here.

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