Staying Informed

By Doug Dennerline, Senior Vice President of US Enterprise Sales, Cisco Systems

Information is Power—power to approach customers with confidence and speak knowledgably about their business problems. In many cases, the seller who fully understands the customer's needs and can articulate the optimal solution is the one who wins the business.

Keeping up to date with new products and service offerings is the first step to winning lucrative deals. To that end, Cisco and BellSouth have gone to great lengths to create sales and marketing material targeted to your specific needs.

BellSouth sellers should begin with Sales InfoWatch on the BellSouth intranet. Then, for additional information about Cisco products, they can check out Cisco Connection Online. Cisco account managers regularly tap into this treasure trove of information. The information is also available to BellSouth sellers.

If you aren't a registered user, please go to http://www.cisco.com and click the Register button at the top of the screen to obtain a username and password. Once you have logged in, click on the "Partners & Resellers" tab to access an extensive library of product information and marketing collateral.

For example, Cisco Partner Marketing Kits are designed to help you boost sales and keep up with the latest news, programs and resources for a specific technology or vertical market. This site is constantly being updated with new, innovative sales tools to help you be more successful in your dealings with Cisco.

That's not all. By registering for Partner Access, BellSouth sellers can obtain exclusive information and collateral we've designed just for them. Follow this link to gain access to this portion of the site:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/partners/index.html

Once you're in, check out Cisco Channel Intelligence, a new periodical that contains news and information for registered resellers and distributors:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/partners/
pr47/partners_partner_newsletters.html

You will see instructions about how to subscribe to the newsletter so you will receive it automatically. Each edition includes the latest information about:

• Cisco channel partner programs
• Product promotions
• New product and solution announcements
• Training resources
• Certification and specialization opportunities
• New sales tools - and more

The information is delivered in HTML format, organized by channel partner technology expertise, localized by theater, and archived online.

Remember, technology purchase decisions can be overwhelming. Can you help customers sort through the options so they make intelligent choices? We encourage you to stay informed by checking in to these Web sites at least once a week. Your knowledge will lead to powerful revenue gains—and happier customers.

Editors: Lorraine Maurice
Product Marketing Manager
Data Services
lorraine.maurice@bellsouth.com
(404) 829-7227

Ellen M. Chandra
Service Acceleration
Marketing Program Manager
echandra@cisco.com
(408) 525-6302

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