In the world of enterprise business solutions, there are local companies that have built a very successful business on international trade.
One such company is PereSoft Software, a provider of cash management solutions for Accpac ERP business applications.
Having built its business over the last two decades, this unassuming Cape Town-based operation now offers its products to over 500 dedicated solution providers throughout South Africa, South East Asia, Australia, Europe, Canada and the USA.
Its flagship and most successful third-party product is its PereSoft Cashbook for Windows, which is depended on daily by over 4 000 companies and 15 000 users worldwide.
Mike Mills, manager: product support and marketing, PereSoft Software, says distributing its products internationally was one of the company`s first major challenges.
"A partner development programme from a vendor is critical in this instance. It can make a difference between success and failure. Thankfully for PereSoft, Accpac has had an active partner development programme for more than 20 years and we were able to utilise that to market our products."
Jeremy Waterman, managing director, Softline ACCPAC, says this kind of hybrid model works well.
"You benefit from a fully imported business model as well as a fully supported local one. It means you get to piggy-back on the success of an already established channel, which has a very real impact on your business success."
Waterman says that in the enterprise business solutions space, the challenge is to ensure you find a vendor who actively supports and drives development.
"The rules of fair play are well established at Accpac. We respect the territory of the developer and foster the growth of this channel as opposed to competing or suppressing it."
Mills says the single most defining moment in the history of the company was the advent of the Internet. As opposed to incurring increasingly high costs shipping products, he says the company has adopted a master CD programme, which customers can install immediately and activate via PereSoft`s Web site.
"This approach eliminates shipping costs and cuts down the turn around time of implementing the software at new sites significantly."
As its name implies, the World Wide Web also enables PereSoft to provide global support to its customers. Mills says it is imperative that the company provides swift and effective customer support. He says the company has harnessed the power of the Internet to its fullest extent by creating Support Forums through which it offers online support. The forum has useful search facilities, which converts the information contained into a shared knowledge base. He says the company has also created a Solution Centre, which includes technical advice covering the most common issues experienced.
"The forums have allowed us to overcome the challenge of providing technical support regardless of physical location or time zone," comments Mills.
Having a global customer base has its challenges. Mills says it is important for customers to know the status of their annual maintenance renewals. He says PereSoft has addressed this by allowing customers to access all information related to their software ownership and maintenance contracts online.
"This works exceptionally well because customers are able to download the latest versions of software, which they are entitled to through their annual maintenance contracts. If these have expired, then they are able to generate a renewal quote in the relevant currency online. In addition, the quote can be accepted and an order generated immediately. In our competitive landscape, this kind of speed and efficiency is a major selling point and advantage."
Developing relationships, according to Mills, was another concern. He says it was a challenge keeping in touch with solution providers and meeting with them face to face. The solution was simple and came in the form of an annual partner conference. Hosted in the various regions, these events create a platform where companies like PereSoft Software are able to showcase, network, educate, share best practices and discuss top-level business decisions and strategies.
This month, Mills attended the Australian Insight conference in Sydney followed immediately by the Asian conference in Bangkok.
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