Why the channel is key to SD-WAN success

SD-WAN technology has been garnering significant hype but it might surprise you to know that the technology is nothing new; in fact, it has been with us for many years under different guises and names. What has changed is the way vendors have packaged the various functions together to make it easier for companies to build and scale high-performing Wide Area Networks.

As a result SD-WAN is regularly hitting the headlines and the market is taking off. Analysts estimate that nearly a third of the enterprise market have either deployed SD-WAN or plan to deploy it in the next two years.

Opportunity knocks

Despite the surge in demand, there’s a huge lack of expertise, training and knowledge in the channel to deploy and manage the technology. While SD-WAN solutions leverage existing technologies and features, they still represent a step change in the way WANs are built and managed and so having the right expertise available is critical to guarantee that solutions deliver the benefits they promise.

This, matched with a real need from end users for a high level of service and technical support, provides multiple revenue avenues for channel partners.

Partners need to play a consultative role, identifying and understanding the unique needs of each individual customer in order to deliver a solution which can help transform their business and deliver a return on the investment they are making.

In addition, partners that can provide training and consultancy to their customers will add value and set themselves apart in the crowded marketplace and those that also offer managed services will enable customers to leverage the benefits of the solution without the need to manage it internally. Let’s face it, enterprises should be more focussed on leveraging the business benefits the technology provides, rather than the intricacies of running the solution.

Bridging the gap

It’s clear that SD-WAN is here for the long haul and there is real opportunity for channel partners to increase relevance to their end user customers and help them to bridge the gap from conventional WAN solutions to SD-WAN, maximising network performance.

To help make sense of the buoyant SD-WAN market and further explore the opportunities it brings, we have created a partner guide to selling SD-WAN. Click here to request your free eBook.