Bobby Napiltonia shares his insights and experiences in building channel partnerships. He discusses his time at Salesforce, where he was responsible for building the app exchange and the Salesforce.com practices.

Bobby talks about the challenges he faced and the strategies he used to build successful channel programs.

He emphasizes the importance of trust, training, and communication in building strong partner relationships. Bobby also shares his thoughts on the future of partnerships and the role of channel programs in SMB and mid-market software companies.


Key Takeaways:

• Building channel partnerships requires trust, training, and communication.
• Repeatable models and packaged solutions are essential for partner success.
• Sharing the wealth and making partners famous are key to building strong partner relationships.
• The quality of leads from partners is often higher and leads to faster close rates.
• Channel programs are relevant for both enterprise and SMB/mid-market software companies.

Quotes:

• "Everything in this industry is about trust." - Bobby Napiltonia

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and Podcast Overview
00:39 Introducing the Special Guest and Sponsor
01:33 Building [Salesforce.com](http://salesforce.com/) Practices
05:39 The Genesis of Global SI Ecosystem Partner
07:35 The Role of Training in Partner Success
13:12 The Importance of Repeatable Models in Partner Success
15:34 The Impact of Verticals on Partner Relationships
23:02 Understanding the Importance of Leads
23:39 The Role of Trust in Business Relationships
24:39 The Challenge of Partner Recruitment
25:27 The Struggles of Traditional Partners
28:58 The Role of Services in Business
31:36 The Importance of Internal Communication
32:19 The Power of Making Partners Famous
36:24 Understanding the Difference Between Sourced and Influenced Deals
43:06 The Future of Partnerships