When most people want a new device, they look online, check out a reliable local retailer, or talk to friends. When a business needs new tech, it has roughly the same options – with the noteworthy addition of tech resellers.
Resellers partner with technology manufacturers to make the process of selling and distributing products and services easier and more effective. Developing a relationship with a reseller is usually extremely profitable for both sides, but before companies go hunting for the closest reseller, they should know a bit more about the industry of reselling.
How Reselling Works
Technology reselling functions just like any other market: There is demand for technology, and suppliers aim to meet it. In fact, tech resellers are only one of a wide world of resellers, which includes businesses like retailers and affiliates. Essentially, any business that earns revenue with a product or service that it does not manufacture can be classified as a reseller.
A reseller begins by analyzing the market and learning what its customer base needs and wants, locating applicable products and/or services from tech manufacturers. Often, manufacturers require a formal agreement to ensure their products are not mishandled or misrepresented. Once an accord is struck, resellers perform all the regular tasks of companies looking to sell their goods: They market their goods, they develop relationships with customers, and they make sales.
Why Reselling Works
Tech resellers exist because most tech manufacturers are not interested in connecting their products with consumers. Selling something is actually extremely energy-intensive; it requires huge departments of specially trained staff, hundreds of procedures for attracting and keeping customers, and tons of experience in sales and marketing. Meanwhile, tech manufacturers must focus on managing existing products and creating new, exciting, and practical tech. It is much easier to partner with a trustworthy reselling business than to juggle so many responsibilities at once.
Therefore, resellers automatically add value to the products they sell. However, particularly within the tech industry, resellers usually contribute even more to the products they sell by bundling related products and services and providing outstanding customer service that keeps their customers coming back. Because tech companies cannot afford to supply any type of sales service, let alone generate tech packages or provide services beyond those they manufacture, resellers are a very real benefit to tech-lovers everywhere. Some resellers, like Cisco resellers, also work with distributors instead of directly with manufacturers in order to offer various additional services and support to their customers.
Types of Resellers
As mentioned above, resellers exist in nearly every market and nearly every industry – only most consumers do not recognize them thanks in part to alternative names. Entrepreneurs interested in entering the reselling business have many options to choose from.
The most popular type of reseller in the tech world is the value-added reseller, or VAR. The name comes from arises from the necessity of VARs to contribute more than a single base product. Often, VARs make their products more appealing to consumers by including warranties, tech services, customization options, and more. VARs vary in the amount of responsibility they are granted by their manufacturers; some merely provide selling portals through web or phone, while others are granted near-unlimited freedom in their marketing efforts and selling strategy. Nearly every tech company has different rules regarding VARs, which tend to focus on a local market.
When consumers are hardly aware they are purchasing tech through a reseller, they are likely dealing with a partner or channel partner. Often, manufacturers prefer their resellers to follow strict guidelines that adhere to the manufacturer’s established brand. As a result, many resellers seem to be merely an extension of the manufacturer. This ensures customers are receiving the exact tech they want with an experience that doesn’t change with the company they purchase from.
Retailers are another common tech reseller – and the type most consumers are likely familiar with. Unlike VARs, retailers purchase products from manufacturers, so manufacturers have little say about how retailers handle their products. Retailers can be international, like Best Buy, or local; they can exist only online or in physical stores; they can sell multiple brands’ products or specialize in one. As one of the largest industries around the globe, retailers certainly have the power to sell.