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Print.IT Reseller
dealer conference
12
More than 250 people attended the
two-day event at Wychwood Park in
Cheshire. Headline sponsors included
Level Platforms, Cisco and Microsoft;
there were 40 supplier partners
exhibiting; and three keynote
professional speakers delivering
interesting opinion on the channel
direction.
Synaxon Managing Director Derek
Jones said: “We were delighted with the
speakers and with the turnout on both
days (the second day was a technical
workshops day). Without support from
our sponsors and supplier partners, there
would be no event.”
In his keynote presentation, Jones
talked about a number of new services
that Synaxon has recently introduced and
ran over the group’s plans for the year
ahead. In recent months, it has expanded
its services significantly, introducing new
online resources and forming partnerships
with third-party services providers.
Synaxon has already introduced
an advanced version of its e-commerce
platform, called
CLic2IT ULTIMATE,
and will
soon launch a ‘mini’ version of the service
that will be more accessible for smaller
members, Jones revealed.
One of the other main speakers, Dave
Sobel, Director of Partner Community for
Level Platforms, announced an exclusive
£1 per device offer on the company’s
renowned Managed Workplace platform,
which enables Synaxon members to get
started in the managed services arena with
almost no up-front investment. This is an
exclusive deal for Synaxon partners.
Also speaking at the Conference were
Bob Snyder, Editor-In-Chief of Channel
Media Europe, a renowned outside-the-
box thinker in the technology industry;
and expert retail analyst Carl West from
research firm GFK, who gave attendees an
insight into the current state of the market
and growth prospects for the coming year.
Selling tool
Jones ran members through the new
SYNprint TCO Analyser
, an exclusive
TCO print calculator that enables
resellers to calculate and compare the
full lifetime running costs of printers and
multifunctional devices. This is designed
as a non-invasive selling tool that will
also help members secure consumables
business and enter the managed print
services market.
Synaxon has been investing internally
as well, appointing two additional Business
Development Managers and a dedicated
communications manager. “The group is
working more closely with all its members
now to ensure they make full use of its
services,” Jones said.
It has been busy setting up new
agreements with third-party services too.
“One that has received an immediate
positive response is our agreement with
Synaxon looks to
the future
“The group
is working
more closely
with all its
members
now to
ensure they
make full
use of its
services.”
Handepay, the specialist provider of low-
cost merchant services, which enables
retailers and resellers to dramatically
reduce the cost of accepting debit and
credit card payments,” said Jones.
Synaxon has also forged a partnership
with BT main distributor DMSL, giving
members access to BT’s business and
consumer portfolios, including Infinity
broadband, Ethernet and Leased Lines,
calls and lines packages and hosted VoIP.
Online trading
Jones announced plans to introduce a
new Amazon-style online trading area for
members that will enable them to offer
surplus or unwanted products and to reach
out to the member community with their
own products and services. The SynMarket
service should be available by the end of
October.
“All of these services, along with the
core offering of Synaxon membership, which
provides access to the portfolio of more than
20 Synaxon distribution partner suppliers
through the company’s EGIS online system,
on special terms and conditions, are making
membership of the group more valuable and
appealing,” said Jones.
“Being part of Synaxon is a ‘win-win’
for members and for supplier partners.
All of these additional services combine
to make a really big difference for our
members. We are now helping them to
buy better, sell more and reduce costs in
so many ways – and with the excellent
supplier partnerships we have, being a
Synaxon member will really add value to
your business.”
Jones also said that the group will be
looking to sign new members over the
next 12 months but will place emphasis
on quality rather than quantity. “We
benefit and our partners benefit when our
members make good use of the services
and agreements on offer. Our focus is on
supporting members and making sure that
they get the very best out of all Synaxon’s
services,” he said.
www.synaxon.co.uk
Synaxon, the UK’s leading dealer group for IT and office products resellers,
has declared its third annual conference a great success. The Group is
looking to capitalise on the positive response by introducing a wave of
new services and boosting its membership.
Derek Jones, Managing Director, Synaxon