We have been a #GoogleApps Reseller ["GAPS"] for over two years….and busy two years it has been. Our practice has grown substantially, and we have seen many exciting new applications, the introduction of @GoogleDrive, the emergence of an Reseller-ISV Conference – #gSocial last Fall in San Jose, the emergence of the #MSPExcellence CSP Program, and the #CloudAlliance. The purpose of the gSocial was to bring together ISVs and GAPS Resellers with the goal of helping Resellers improve their ability to sell applications through the Google Apps Market Place. The obvious benefits being that the more applications that are sold, it improves the financial results for the ISV by selling more software, it helps the reseller by causing the sale of GAPS to become a business solution when integrated with Market Place applications, and Google benefits all the way around. The premise of gSocial being that it was open to multiple ISVs and all resellers…all around benefitting to the GAPS Reseller Channel.
The Cloud Alliance represents a group of seven specific ISV that each sell a specific application which relates to a specific functional need within the Google Apps Market Place. The membership includes ISV’s that have identified themselves as “best of breed” . While some of them may, in fact, be best of breed, there are some applications within the group that aren’t the first choice of aBIZinaBOX, and we have looked at all of them. In fact, I am going to be very straight forward and add a table that highlights our choices [everyone may not agree, but by presenting them, it does create an opportunity to make what I view as a critical point.
| Functional | Cloud | aBIZinaBoX | |
| Use | Alliance | Choices | |
| Group Policy | bettercloud domainwatch | Promevo gPanel | |
| Automation | Run My Process | Run My Process | |
| SSO | Okta | Okta | |
| CRM | Insightly | Nimble CRM | |
| Project Mgt | SmartSheet | SmartSheet | |
| Expense | Expensify | Expensify | |
| Back Up | Spanning | Backupify |
We have spent a substantial amount of time reviewing our choices with respect to Market Place Applications as we have spent considerable effort in to building the aBIZinaBOX brand within the GAPS Reseller Community, and have “packaged” our applications into pre-built “solutions” for our clients and prospective clients since the market has taught us that BUSINESS PEOPLE CARE ABOUT SOLUTIONS NOT APPLICAITONS!! As such, aBIZinaBOX has chosen to sell solutions rather than applications. Hence the premise of gSocial is very appealing in that it aligns the interests of Resellers and ISVs since everyone is free to pick and choose what they sell to whom they wish to sell to. On the other hand, while I understand the motivation of the ISV’s that created the Cloud Alliance, I am NOT so sure that I see their existence, in the form that I understand it as helpful to me as a GAPS Reseller.While an application which has been created by a Cloud Alliance Member may be just as good or better than a non-Cloud Alliance member in their view, if it conflicts with the choice of GAPS Market Place application which I have selected, it doesn’t help me or my client when I have to explain to them why aBIZinaBOX has selected a non-Cloud Alliance application. We are posting this blog, in advance of the Google CSP Program session which introduces the Cloud Alliance to the CSP Program members deliberately to focus on this specific issue to seek clarification and discussion between the Cloud Alliance members, the non-Cloud Alliance members, the CSP Program participants, and Google.
My ultimate question being do all of the stakeholders in the GAPS ecosystem benefit from the existence of a what is essentially a closed membership group within the channel, or would it be more beneficial to support and expand a more all inclusive group with a model such as that which was exposed by the gSocial.
Correction – Please note that we have made as a correction to reflect that the product labeled as Cloud Sherpas should have been referred to as Bettercloud.com’s Domain Watch
