Salesforce ISVs Are Getting A Name Change
Salesforce Dreamforce 2016 was a whirlwind of a week filled with exciting announcements, sessions, networking events and parties. However, there was one announcement made at Dreamforce that really stood out to us and ISV partners everywhere: Salesforce is renaming ISV partners as App Innovation Partners (AIPs).
Why Is Salesforce Rebranding Their ISV Program?
From here on out, independent software vendors will be referred to as App Innovation Partners. This type of announcement is usually something that gets buried in a press release somewhere. But Salesforce made a point of bringing attention to the renaming of its partners.
This rebranding of ISVs to AIPs is important because it will redefine how and what development partners contribute to Salesforce, as well as redefine how Salesforce views their partner ecosystem.
“It’s intended to change the narrative about what these third parties can do when they engage with Salesforce and leverage our platform to build incredible apps, to build components, to build templates, to build companies,” said Tyler Prince, executive president of worldwide alliances and channels on Day 1 of Dreamforce 2016.
Prince went on to say that words like “independent” and “software” no longer fit in the Salesforce partner mantra and that the acronym “ISV” is 50 years old and was invented around the IBM ecosystem.
“On the other hand, App Innovation Partners describes precisely the value such partners provide,” said Todd Surdey, SVP ISV Sales at Salesforce, “the innovation ties directly into customer success.”
If you didn’t have the chance to attend Dreamforce last week, you can catch up on the announcement with this video: Salesforce & Partners, Blazing Trails to Customer Transformation.
The Salesforce Family Is Growing
The number of partners attending Dreamforce has increased from 15 in 2003 to over 400+ in 2016. “The importance of that [partner] ecosystem has increased proportionately,” Adam Seligman EVP and FM, Salesforce App Cloud, stressed in the Partner Keynote.
Seligman continued, “After 10 years, we are now 3000 apps in, with four million apps downloaded and installed by customers. What an amazing number! Customers love the apps you are building. There are 45,000 5 star review. In enterprise software, that’s unheard of.”
As a Salesforce AIP [ISV], this was really encouraging to hear. We currently have 7 apps on the Salesforce AppExchange with a combined 20+ 5 star reviews and it feels good to be a part of something so exciting. Keith Block, Salesforce’s Vice Chairman and COO, said at Dreamforce, “I am very passionate about this audience. Whether SI, AIP [ISV] or reseller – you are so integral to our strategy.”
Salesforce is doubling down on its family mantra and making it clear that this is how they intend to treat partners and customers. At Commercient, we’re thrilled to be part of the Salesforce family and can’t wait to see what the future holds.
Additionally, we’re excited to keep creating custom apps for customers. If there was one thing stressed at this year’s Dreamforce event, it’s that people (customers) want apps tailored for them and at Commercient we believe going that extra mile is what really makes a difference.
As part of the Salesforce family, one of our main goals is to provide a rich and memorable customer experience. One of the ways we hope to achieve this is to take advantage of the Lightning opportunity, building apps faster and better, that was highlighted in the Partner Keynote.
A four-part test program was unveiled for testing apps in Lightning where you can have them validated and contribute to expanding the number of Lightning Apps in the Salesforce AppExchange. This is especially exciting for us as we have plans to release 10+ new data syncing apps for Salesforce in the very near future.
“Trailblazers are all about innovation—leading the way to new ways of doing things.” -Keith Block, Vice Chairman, President and COO, Salesforce. How will you blaze your next trail?
