Expertise helps wireless sell
Sony and Intel urge vendors to give wireless resellers 'the whole picture'
Vendors must provide resellers with the latest information on wireless technologies if they are to succeed in selling them, according to Sony and Intel.
At a dedicated reseller event last week, the two technology giants claimed wireless provides partners with the opportunity to work with SMEs and individual consumers.
"Manufacturers must give resellers the whole picture, showing how to sell, deploy, install and maintain wireless products for businesses," said Jonathan White, group marketing manager for IT products at Sony UK.
"Giving background information on wireless technologies through white papers also enables resellers to effectively answer end-user questions."
Both vendors laid out product road maps, and discussed such areas as individual businesses' wireless requirements, installation, maintenance and support.
"People rely on IT to transfer information between PDAs, mobile phones and computers, and wireless means they can go anywhere and do that," said Rick Skett, managing director of Intel UK and Ireland. "Events such as this aim to educate resellers on unfamiliar technologies and keep them up-to-date."
Manufacturers must provide technical support and communicate regularly with resellers if they are to provide an effective link with end-users, other attendees at the event said.
"Security skills and in-house training are perhaps the most essential for wireless resellers," said a representative at mobile technology VAR Hydra.
Keith Yaxley, sales and marketing director at data reseller Data2Hand, said: "How wireless resellers function depends very much on what background they have. Knowing the history of wireless is essential."
At last week's Intel Developer Forum in the US, Intel president Paul Otellini said he expects eight per cent of internet connections to be WiMax-enabled by 2008.