Estimated reading time: 3 minutes
The year 2020 has been very different than what we used to know; it has also been the biggest year in terms of outcome for many. As our President Michel Sirois says, we have to “Adapt, Rebound, and Accelerate.” This is why we decided to launch a new event format adapted to the new realities for our VARs and ISVs.
On Nov. 19th, we invited our partners and clients to “Stay-At-Home” and to learn more about solutions and the impact of this pandemic on our market. A full afternoon was composed of high-level keynote presentations and followed by sessions featuring our COVID-19 solutions, displayed by our partners.
This first virtual event was organised at the end of the year to evaluate the market and bring first conclusion as the feedback rolls in. After surveying attendees, it seems as though the Canadian tech industry is handling the situation, because we were able to collect that 88% feel optimistic or good about the state of business in 2020.
Why? How?
This was our goal during our latest event, BlueStar Stay-At-Home TEConnect Fest, on Nov 19th, with experts from the Canadian Technology Industry, including the CoCard Owner, Dan Brattland, and our BlueStar Canada President, Michel Sirois, who analyzed and answered several VAR and ISV concerns. They both summarized their experiences during their respective sessions:
Dan Brattland: Protecting Your Pipeline in an Uncertain Economy
Michel Sirois: State of the Business
“CUSTOMER LOYALTY” – Michel Sirois
Across both sessions, speakers arrived as the same conclusion: “customer loyalty” and how one can keep a loyal customer base. This is not the time to speak about our company, but to focus on our clients and their realities. Moreover, they gave insights on how the market was impacted and where we were going.
A MUST READ: 5 KEY CONCEPTS OF THE CANADIAN TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY
VENDORS
We also had 8 vendors participating in 10-minute sessions that showcased their COVID-19 Solutions, ready to sale, and relevant for today’s market. We learnt how these technologies can be applied, so that VARs and ISVs can open new doors and grow their sales:
- Protecting remote workers against spear-phishing attacks
- Touch Screen Access
- Temperature Sensors
- New products built to withstand rigorous cleaning protocols
- Leverage LTE & 5G
- Easy and flexible label printing
- Contactless payments
- Facial recognition
- Loyalty integrations
- Protecting remote workers
- Safe guard shields
- Tamper proof labels
If you were registered, you can still listen to all sessions and view the slides via this link – https://www.accelevents.com/e/BlueStarCanadaStayAtHomeTEConnectFest
Featured guests included:
- Alain Constantineau, Sales Director – WatchGuard Technologies
- Roch Guilbault, VAR Partner Manager – Honeywell Scanning & Mobility
- Fadi Mansour, Channel Sales & Distribution Director, Canada – Cradlepoint
- Christophe Naasz, Business Development Director – Star Micronics
- Kristin Roubie, Channel Sales Manager – Elo Touch Solutions
- Team COLORWORKS – Epson Canada
- Nathan Wheeler, Distribution Merchandising Manager – SATO
- Denis Wills, Sales & Channels Director – Zebra Technologies
WHAT WAS THE PROFILE OF THE AUDIENCE?
We wanted this event open to the whole market and adapted to all verticals in the Canadian Technology Industry.
Here are the main verticals:
HOSPITALITY 37.5%- SUPPLY CHAIN 25%
- HEALTHCARE 16.6%
- MANUFACTURING 8.3%
- FIELD SERVICE 12.50%
CLOSING TAKEAWAYS FOR YOU, VARS AND IVS:
- Empathy! Focusing on the VAR, not on us! Understanding each customers’ reality is now crucial.
- Grow your “customer loyalty” and re-visit your relationship with them.
- “Adapt, Rebound, and Accelerate”, it is time to restructure, you need to have agility.
- GOOD NEWS, we have all COVI-19 Solutions gathered in one place, click here
- “We have to work together, not in silos”.
The audience gave us a positive insight for 2021, as 77% of the attendees see the market in 2021 as ‘’Better’’ or ‘’Good’’. We agree with them. We’re positive that with all the solutions promoted during this event and all tips received from our 2 Keynote Speakers, we know how to thrive and survive during the Pandemic. Q4 is almost done and 2021 is at the corner. We hope all this help you out and keep an eye on the ground.
