Rearden Commerce Helps TMC Partners Succeed With New Partner Marketplace, Opportunity To Sell 'Long Tail' Services
New Partner Marketplace Helps Growing Number of Rearden Commerce Alliance Program Members Tap Qualified Sales Leads, Benefit from Access to Valuable Information
FOSTER CITY, Calif., Jan. 10 -- Rearden Commerce, creator of the first on-demand personal assistant and the first on-demand platform for services, today announced its new Partner Marketplace. The Rearden Commerce Partner Marketplace is a powerful new tool to increase collaboration between Rearden Commerce and its Alliance Program members, comprised of more than 50 of the top travel management companies (TMCs) across the United States.
The Rearden Commerce Partner Marketplace provides participating TMC partners the leads, sales and marketing tools, and support required to win new joint customers and deliver superior service. Partner Marketplace benefits include:
-- Immediate, Ongoing Access to Qualified Leads -- As a result of the
multiple trade events and campaigns it executes each year, Rearden
Commerce generates a significant volume of sales leads. Through the
Partner Marketplace, the company now makes these valuable leads
available to participating TMC partners based on their geography.
-- Outstanding Sales and Marketing Tools -- TMC partners have access to a
rich repository of sales and marketing tools that help them close new
business faster. These materials include a knowledge base for RFPs,
competitive matrices, sales presentations and collateral, demo
guidelines, activation guides, email templates, product release notes,
recorded training sessions and more.
-- Sales Support from Rearden Commerce -- The Partner Marketplace provides
partners a secure interface for registering new opportunities and
requesting sales support. Participating TMCs can manage leads and
opportunities, register deals, request demo assistance, get rapid
answers to questions from customers and prospects, and request creation
of new customer domains
"Our fast-growing roster of TMC partners is an important part of our success and we're committed to supporting this group through the launch of innovative new tools such as the Partner Marketplace," said Tony D'Astolfo, Vice President of Worldwide Sales, Rearden Commerce. "No other provider in our space offers this level of support to their channel partners."
"Our relationship with Rearden Commerce has enabled us to transform our business by expanding the services we offer clients well beyond travel, to include such services as dining, entertainment and conferencing," said Michael Cain, President of Boulder, CO -based Cain Travel. "I'm excited about the Partner Marketplace on two levels. First, it delivers all the Rearden Commerce documentation we need, as well as information on upcoming webinars and other reseller support programs. That in itself is unique. Then, when combined with the leads we get through the Partner Marketplace, the tool helps make for a true partnership between our two companies. We've already added one new customer as a result of a lead generated through the Partner Marketplace."
Rearden Commerce TMC Partners Benefit from New Revenue Opportunities
Rearden Commerce's TMC partners have recognized the value of the Rearden Commerce solution in providing their customers with an addictive, industry-leading Web 2.0 service that drives user adoption. The unprecedented breadth of the Rearden Commerce solution helps corporate customers not only reduce expenses for air, hotel and car rental, but also helps them manage their spending for a broader range of employee services including dining, airport parking, car service, corporate entertainment, Web and audio conferencing, and desktop shipping -- significant T&E expenses that have historically gone unmanaged.
In addition, Rearden Commerce TMCs have the opportunity to earn merchant transaction fees for the services employees typically consume while traveling, including dining, car service, airport parking and conferencing services. According to Rearden Commerce calculations and estimates from analyst firm PhoCusWright, business spending on such unmanaged T&E services is expected to exceed $170 billion in 2007, in the U.S. alone.
"Interestingly, a number of our TMCs are now selling services like Web and audio conferencing, which directly impact the volume of travel a customer may do. This is a pretty revolutionary concept," commented D'Astolfo. "But given the emphasis many companies are placing today on improving their 'green' policies, the ability for a TMC to suggest alternatives to air travel is an important value-add for their clients."
"If TMCs just handle business the traditional way and don't look at other avenues to provide more value to clients, our industry is in danger of becoming obsolete," said Becky Potts, President of Salt Lake City-based Morris Murdock Travel. "At Morris Murdock, we take a proactive approach with our clients and want to provide technology and services before our clients even begin asking for them. What we liked about Rearden Commerce was the range of services they offer that let us stay at the forefront of providing our customers a superior experience. For instance, we can now offer dining services to our clients that help them save money. And before now, who ever would have thought their TMC could help a customer secure an outstanding rate for their audio and Web conferencing? This is where the industry is headed and having these capabilities puts Morris Murdock head and shoulders above our competition."
About the Rearden Commerce Alliance Program
The Rearden Commerce Alliance Program enables selected regional TMCs to deliver the Rearden Commerce solution to companies of any size. In choosing its Alliance Program members, Rearden Commerce identifies and certifies TMCs that have well-established client relationships, a reputation for outstanding customer service, diversified offerings, successful client deployments and a proven track record for delivering value to the business traveler. For more information on Rearden Commerce's Alliance Program, please call 877-778-2763 or go to www.reardencommerce.com/.
Rearden Commerce(TM)
Rearden Commerce provides the ultimate personal productivity tool: an innovative on-demand personal assistant that simplifies life, helping people quickly find the services and goods they need based on what they like, where they are, and what they are doing. The Rearden Personal Assistant is based on the Rearden Commerce Platform, which connects users instantly with the world's largest ecosystem of more than 137,000 trusted merchants and third-party applications providers.
The Rearden Personal Assistant also helps thousands of companies save money by consistently guiding employees to preferred suppliers offering negotiated discounts and helping them make smarter purchase decisions. With Rearden Commerce, the power of the intelligent Web is finally realized. Rearden Commerce is headquartered in Foster City, CA. For more information, visit www.reardencommerce.com/.
CONTACT:
Marian Hughes
1-708-246-0083
mhughes@tieronepr.com
Kim Amsbaugh
1-650-815-1724
kamsbaugh@tieronepr.com
