Integrate Ramps Up Channel Efforts After Announcing Marketo, Oracle Partnerships

Marketing technology provider Integrate is taking a strategic approach to its channel. Shortly after joining the Marketo LaunchPoint Ecosystem and integrating with Oracle Eloqua, the solution provider has focused extensively on building up its partner network.

In the below Q&A, Scott Vaughan, CMO at Integrate, discusses the company’s strategy moving forward.

Channel Marketer Report (CMR): Who is Integrate’s target customer?

Vaughan: Marketers and their agency partner organizations focused on prospect acquisition and performance marketing.  Specifically, our target customers are:

• B2B marketing organizations, particularly those in tech-related industries;
• B2C direct brands that are aggressively scaling their performance-based customer acquisition efforts; and
• Media companies that are trying to align their tech and processes in order to more effectively serve their clients.

CMR: What role does the channel play in your sales and marketing efforts? How many partners do you currently have?

Vaughan: The Integrate channel is being ramped up now as marketing technology takes root within companies and skills are needed to automate and integrate marketing and other business systems. We have a handful of channel/delivery partners we are onboarding now. Our channel is comprised of two main types of partners:

• Marketing systems integrators: Professional service firms who work with marketing (and sales) organizations to automate their sales and marketing processes, develop marketing technology strategies as well as execute, deliver and measure marketing and media campaigns.
• Technology integration partners who work with Integrate to build apps and APIs that can be accessed and integrated via the technology partner’s platform, such as Oracle, Marketo or Salesforce.

CMR: What is the overall format of your channel program? 

Vaughan: We are in phase one of the Integrate Channel program, partnering with a small group of system integrators/tech partners on projects with identified mutual customers to further validate business benefits. During phase two we will roll out a tier structure, co-marketing/communication plan and onboard more partners.

Our key channel partner prerequisite is that they must have active engagements with marketing organizations within our three target audiences. Our intent is to move towards certification and a tiered program based on quality (customer success/feedback) and quantity (number of customers) in phase two.

CMR: What marketing and sales support do you provide to your partners? 

Vaughan: Today, we have a dedicated channel partner director, who is supported by a channel success team. The “success” team focuses on training, ramping up and supporting our channel partners.

CMR: How do you ensure partners have access to the tools partners need to succeed?

Vaughan: Because we are in phase one and ramping up our channel program, we have a very high-touch focused approach with specific partners to assure we define and develop a high-impact channel program that works for customers/marketers, the channel partner and Integrate.

CMR: How do you plan to further improve your channel marketing initiatives and overall partner program moving forward?

Vaughan: Phase two will focus on co-marketing and increased support for selling and servicing mutual marketing clients using the Integrate software platform. Specific marketing activities have not been defined at this time, but as experts in prospect acquisition and marketing technology it is very safe to say marketing will be part of the program.

• acquisition
• cloud
• Integrate
• marketing
• Marketo
• Oracle Eloqua
• SaaS
• solution providers
• system integrators