MaintenanceNet helps Array Networks to manage service contracts 13 November, 2006 By Chris Talbot

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The Web portal will make it easier for Array Networks and its channel partners to track and keep up-to-date on product registrations and service contracts, which the company was previously handling manually through spreadsheets, but it is also tied into the Ingram Micro Reseller Services Portal (also managed by MaintenanceNet) so that Ingram Micro salespeople can push Array Networks business through its own portal to its base of resellers, said Shayne Skaff, executive vice president of business development at MaintenanceNet.

"It's more of an ease of implementation, if you will," Skaff said. While Array will get more organized in managing its registrations and service contracts, it will also mean that Ingram will be able to manage and renew Array service contracts, he added.

Array Networks' entire distributors and resellers will be able to take advantage of the portal to not only track expiring service contracts, but to also identify products that were sold without service agreements for sales opportunities. End-customers will also have access rights to ensure their products are adequately protected by service agreements. "Basically, we are going to be managing all of Array Networks' maintenance coverages for all of their products," Skaff said.

MaintenanceNet built a data core for all of Array's maintenance coverages, and it will be pushing out visibility of all assets not sold with maintenance coverage, he said. A campaign manager tool will also enable Array to push out service renewal campaigns to its channel partners and direct end-customers.

"Pushing this out to a system such as this to Ingram will be very fluid with what's going on with Ingram Micro today," Skaff said.

Up until now, Array Networks has been managing everything through spreadsheets and other applications.

"MaintenanceNet is going to manage that end-to-end process from initial registration to down the line helping them to renew the maintenance on the same product," he said.

According to Skaff, organizations that deal in service contracts typically have renewal rates of 50 per cent or less, but once such a company starts working with MaintenanceNet, they generally see a 30 per cent increase in their renewal rates.

"We're going to expect them to now have visibility to the renewal of maintenance contracts. Today, they don't have any visibility to the renewable opportunity, so we actually expect them to see a positive renewal rate," Skaff said.