End-Point Security
Symantec emerges as the most preferred
Scoring high on different parameters, Symantec topped the end-point security segment followed by Quick Heal, McAfee and Kaspersky. eScan and Trend Micro failed to make the final cut as they both polled less than 10 percent of the category votes.
Symantec
Symantec is the company having the widest channel coverage among all end-point security vendors. It enjoys a good connect in smaller cities with channels which sell to SMBs; this is unlike the other MNC peers, which have little interest in these markets.
Symantec’s core strengths are its customer and channel marketing, relevant channel programs, aggressive SPC for large deals, and strong policy for channel engagement and management. Throughout 2009, the company ran a series of programs and promotions to help its partners do business in the slowdown. Its Aspire rebate program and Real Deal incentive program to incentivize the sales staff of partners were well-received by partners. Symantec enjoys the strongest customer-pull among end-point security vendors, and also ranked higher in its customer marketing initiatives.
Respondents said that Symantec’s channel policies and management systems, including deal registration, SPC, back-end rebates and customer account management, are among the best in the industry.
This, respondents say, helps a great deal in focusing on the customer business instead of getting mired in issues related to back-end rebates or price clearance. Also, its local sales and pre-sales team is strong, which helps in closing deals faster.
In 2009, when end-customer demand was low, Symantec’s focus on renewals helped its partners. Symantec has a dedicated team, and has also appointed a company that helps partners with license renewals, which for many large partners is as much as 30-40 percent of their overall end-point revenues.
Quick Heal
Quick Heal is giving tough competition to MNC players not just in the consumer antivirus category but even in end-point security. This is largely due to its focus on SMBs in class B and C cities, and also on certain verticals such as education, government and defense. Even many McAfee and Symantec partners agree that Quick Heal has improved the performance of its end-point offering in the last couple of years. It is pushing its products among SMB customers who are price-conscious, don’t have an internal IT team, and hence rely heavily on reseller advice. What also works in favor of the company is the strong field support it has in many smaller cities, which manage customer deployments and also offer personalized support. Margins offered by Quick Heal are the best among all end-point vendors.
According to partners, the average size of deals for Quick Heal range from 200-300 nodes, with many deals exceeding even 1,000 licenses. However they agree that in medium and large-sized organizations, which have their own IT team, the preference is given to MNC brands.
While the company lacks automated systems, it is channel responsive and the management of the company brings a personal touch to partner relations.
McAfee
The company polled nearly 90 percent of its votes from class A cities, suggesting it lacks penetration in smaller cities. McAfee’s end-point offering is rated the best in terms of technology, features and performance. However, on other parameters, the company’s fared below expectations, which put it at third place behind Quick Heal. McAfee wasn’t at all aggressive with its pricing, and as a result, some McAfee partners reported losing out to Symantec on some deals.
Although it enjoys strong customer-pull, McAfee does very little in terms of customer marketing and channel training. The company’s weak point, according to its partners, is its channel policy and management. McAfee lacks back-end systems for deal registration and customer management, and has only a basic partner portal. Compared to the transparent and system-based deal registration mechanism offered by Symantec, McAfee’s process is manual.
The company has little focus on renewals. Respondents complained that the company’s local teams aren’t proactive in helping partners to find new opportunities and close deals.
Kaspersky
A large number of respondents who voted for the brand came from class B and C cities and sold to small businesses. However, a few authorized McAfee and Symantec partners in class A cities have also started carrying Kaspersky in their portfolio because its low price allows them to make good profits. They said that customers perceive Kaspersky to be good on performance as it is an MNC brand.
Pricing is Kaspersky’s strength and also its weakness. While its pricing makes it an attractive buy in the price-conscious SMB segment, large enterprises often question if with such low prices the company can afford to offer reliable service and support. This gets aggravated by the fact that Kaspersky lacks a direct presence in India, and also lacks any pre-sales and customer marketing.
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