Small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) are the lifeblood of the U.S. economy. From 1995 to 2021, small businesses created more than 17 million net new jobs, which was 62.7 percent of net jobs created, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy. As a trusted security advisor to SMB clients, you understand their unique cybersecurity needs. This is why Fortinet is enhancing its support of SMBs via its Fortinet Engage partner program.
Since 2018, Fortinet has powered the digital transformations of more than 40,000 customers. With Fortinet, lean IT teams can deploy robust cybersecurity solutions including FortiGate and the Fortinet Security Fabric. Customers rely on Fortinet to achieve consistent security regardless of where their data resides, how their users connect or how their business shifts across network, endpoint and cloud security.
Fortinet SMB Partner Program Enhancements
Fortinet’s growth trajectory has averaged 35 percent quarterly since 2018 with strong traction in key verticals like manufacturing, professional services and banking and finance. Central to this success is Fortinet’s dedicated partner program for SMBs that supports nearly 6,000 partners who sell into the U.S. SMB market. Current partner program enhancements include:
- Fortinet expects a 25 percent increase in its badged sales and channel reps supporting SMBs by the end of 2024.
- Fortinet also expects a 50 percent increase in dedicated system engineers. This team has executed hundreds of proofs-of-concept (POCs) and fielded more than 10,000 customer calls in the past few years.
Partner Resources That Accelerate Sales Success
Phil Wilhelm, Fortinet vice president of SMB & Mid-Market Sales emphasizes Fortinet’s commitment to facilitating SMB partner success saying, “Fortinet is 100% focused on helping growth-oriented companies address the growing complexities of cybersecurity. We are ‘all in’. Period.” This commitment is reflected in Fortinet's SMB partner program, which offers a wide range of resources to help accelerate revenue generation, including:
- Increased investments in key partners via our MDF program to drive new customer acquisition, upsell and cross-sell opportunities.
- A step-by-step “Level Up” certification program designed to educate key growth partners on how to successfully onboard and sell to SMBs.
- Profitability incentives including sales rewards, promotions, margin enhancements and deal registration assistance to help drive customer acquisition and assist with lifecycle management.
- An e-commerce platform driving leads to strategic digital partners.
- A lead generation platform that is purpose-built to drive funnel leads to partners and provide a proven conversion rate within the SMB space.
Join a partner program designed with your profitability, growth and differentiation in mind. Explore the partner benefits of Fortinet Engage here.