Pitney Bowes program pays partners to 'place their bets'

Customer intelligence and geolocation services vendor Pitney Bowes has developed a channel program that pays partners to develop software even if there are no immediate buyers.The company calls the program “place your bets”.

It sees Pitney Bowes engage with its channel to explore their current prospects. If the   vendor and partner feel a deal might move faster if an advanced demo or other asset we're available I will pay it's partner developer some code.

The partner gets paid for its time, which is doubly welcome as the work is sometimes done by consultants who are on the bench awaiting their next paid project. Both the partner and Pitney Bowes also benefit from a new asset using the Pitney Bowes platform as that can be deployed either with the prospect or on another future project.

Anne Kenyon, the company’s global partner marketing manager told CRN the program has been welcomed by the Pitney Bowes channel who found it lucrative and innovative.

Senior veep for global software & data channels Shannon McWilliams added that the vendor is always on the hunt for more partners. currently does a lot of business with global system integrators and also operates a tier of smaller local integrators such as Ethan Group. The company values partners that already have some geolocation expertise or an interest in acquiring it. ISVs  are also a target as the vendor seeks partners who will build products around its platform, an extension of its previous OEM-centric approach to alliances. 

That means seeking out startups too, an effort made possible by the company's recent decision to expose APIs  and offer free access to its data in the name of spurring innovation.