Digital?s divisions to get it together

UK marketing council plans united corporate message but no single point of contact for the channel

Digital has set up a UK marketing council to improve cross business unit relations,but it looks unlikely to address channel wishes for a single point of contact.

Network products marketing manager Nick Goshawk said that until the end of last year, Digital divisions had operated almost as separate firms, but the council was intended to deliver a cohesive corporate message.

Enzo Brienza, Digital sales manager at Metrologie, said the firm had to deal with four different Digital account managers, and handle four separate business plans and marketing development funds.

The distributor deals with Digitals?s SBU, NPBU (network products), components and the MCS services division.

?We have to order Digital networking kit from Holland, but source systems kit from Ayr in Scotland. Digital seems to be getting its act together on the marketing message, but has some way to go in terms of a single branding image and channel service. It would be a good idea for Digital to have an overall manager of the channel to sell a complete Digital story,? he said.

Guy Tarring, marketing manager at Digital?s systems business unit (SBU), said the purpose of the marketing council was to ensure the co-ordination of demand.

?The channel will see more consistency from Digital in terms of demand and how it is structured around our strategy,? he said.

But he denied the firm had plans to make things easier for the channel by creating an umbrella division to handle channel sales and marketing. ?Digital is fully aware of the channel?s concerns and is always trying to improve things,? Tarring said.

?We have fewer business units than last year, as storage has been put in with systems, but at this stage we have no plans to bring a single point of contact, or single MDF for partners who deal with more than one Digital business unit.?