Distributed networking giant Citrix has developed an SMB Edition suite of products specifically designed by and for small and medium-sized business customers, catered to how they purchase. It bundles VDI-in-a-Box, XenDesktop, NetScaler, ShareFile and support for companies with 25+ and 50+ users, and is rolling out through Citrix channel partners.
The launch is part of a renewed strategic focus on the SMB market. The SMB suite will carry an additional five percent margin for partners, and, the company has lowered the Citrix Advisor Rewards threshold from a minimum of $10,000 down to $2,500, to make it more profitable for partners to sell in the SMB space.
In addition, John Hurley, a 15-year Citrix veteran, has been appointed to director of SMB sales and strategy, tasked with developing sales strategies specifically for the SMB market and for partners.
“At the onset of 2012, I laid out my goals as the new Citrix Americas Channel Chief, which included a larger investment in the SMB market,” said Mike Fouts, the head of the channel at Citrix, in a blog. “In July, I informed you that as part of that commitment no Citrix field resources (Sales Reps, SE’s, etc.) would be compensated for SMB sales, and the partner community would become our sole field based sales team for all SMB business.”
The new SMB packages have been created as a result of the lessons of the past three quarters of partner selling in the space he said. SMB sales have grown 38 percent year-over-year between 2011 and 2012, and Fouts predicts about 40 percent growth between year-over-year as of the first quarter of 2013.
“While we have seen our partners have great success with SMB customers, we wanted to provide the added assistance to make the process even more fluid,” he said. “We have also been encouraged by sales growth in the past year and wanted to sustain that momentum.”
For those who purchase the bundle designated for more than 25 but fewer than 50 users, XenDesktop will be replaced by the simpler to manage VDI-in-a-Box solution. The price for each package is $6,600 for the 25-user bundle and $21,000 for the 50-user bundle.
