General Consultant Discussion

It is time to say goodbye. I received and invoice for membership to this group late last week. $150/year; not a whole lot of money and well worth the price if you plan on staying active in the MAS business. I was set to pay it and then I heard Pascal speak on the conference call. I am done. I am going to join Kathleen and focus my efforts elsewhere. The patients are running the asylum. If there is anything that I can do to help anyone in this group, I will be glad to do so, For me however, it is time to do something different. Something that I can actually plan for and on as it relates to the future. Something that actulay likely has a future. Thanks for all of the thought-provoking and challenging postings. Wayne, you have earned my respect. Peter, you have as well. I wish both of you nothing but the best. Take care.

After my own heart...

I think you're making a very smart decision, Greg. Best of luck in the new endeavors!

Greg, what are you planning on doing? Also, I see Santa Rosa Beach Florida as a location. We always go to Navarre and have thought about buying a condo there. Great place.

Best of luck @GregTalburt. If you need Sage CRM or MAS, don't hesitate to reach out to the group.

Good luck Greg!

Good luck Greg. I think we'd all love to hear an update in six months or so as many of us are also wondering what the next step is for most VARS.

Wayne, I will. I am sure every one of 90Minds members knows it, but...there is life after Sage and profits to be made from things that do not involve Sage as well. The biggest obstacle that I had to overcome in this entire process was to accept that change was necessary and even a good thing. It is so hard for anyone to walk away from what they have done for over 25 years. I am already well into what I am doing next and it looks very attractive so far. The next step for most VARS is taking a long and hard look at what the market with Sage really looks like and what other options are out there for existing Sage VARS. Some VARS will survive and profit as Sage VARS; my opinion is that a lot will not however. Sage may get thier act together and be great to work with as a partner again; they may not however and changes in management and margins over the past few years just do not bode well from where I have been sitting. Last advice: do not wait until you are forced to get out of the Sage channel to start developing other options for your business and your personal finances. I have seen this happen to many VARS over the years that worked with other companies or other Sage products. Why work just as hard each year as you did the last one, but for less money? John, I own a home in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida. I would be careful buying a condo there at this point in time as I have a feeling that prices still have further to go down in the area and even if they do not go dowb further, the upside potential seems to be very limited at this point in time. It is also foreclosure and short sale city and from what I can see, there is a lot more of that kind of inventory yet to get to the market. I decided not to sell my home as I plan to retire back to the area, we have great long-term tenants and it actually throws off net cash for me while also giving me a nice tax loss; this is only because I have a lot of equity in the property however. I am one of the only people that I know whose property in the area does cash flow. It is a great area. It has some financial risks that are not as obvious to outsiders however...like very expensive hurricane insurance, rot caused by salt water in the air that causes things to wear out much quicker than they would at anyplace other than the beach, etc... If you do buy, do not trust anything the local realtors tell you; most of them are out for one thing and one thing only--a commission check. And many of them will say whatever the feel they have to to get you to part with your money. Dishonesty is rampant in that area when it comes to anything to do with real estate. Be very aware of that and verify rather than trust. As for quality of life in the area however; it simply is great.

Greg I think that each VAR probably has a slightly different business model. I for one am anxious to get started with a workable SaaS solution. Whether it's Sage or another product - I don't much care so long as it holds great value for the customer. However I'm not going into anything unless I have a unique value to add. I believe there is not business model in collecting commissions from a publisher or relying on them to ""bless you"" as an authorized consultant.

Greg, Thanks for the info. Good luck in your future endeavors!

Greg - If you have some remaining MAS clients, I""m sure some of the partners on here would be willing to work out something to ease your transition out of the industry.

Good point, Peter. I know there are several partners in Texas, Greg, but if you have any customers in the upper Midwest, we should talk.

Peter, I sold my client base to another reseller last June and get a check from them each month. It might be something you might want to consider while you still have the option. The game will be won by the larger VARs if it is won by any VAR. FYI, this is the second time I have done that; The first tme I did it, I sold my client base in Tennessee and Kentucky for six-figures cash. This time it was sold for a revenue split. The longer you hesitate, the less the client base is worth to anyone. Wayne, You are correct about the need for a personal value-add. Just make sure that you cannot lose access to the product you are adding value to or that the manufacturer of the product does not have plans to offer the same services that you plan to. They own the product; they will win and you will lose when their interests or desires conflict with yours. At the end of the day, unless you own the product, the group that does holds essentially all of the cards. The key? Divirsification and making sure that you select your vendors/suppliers/partners very carefully. My decision to focus on more than one thing and to spend the majority of my time providing a service that the manufacturer/owner of the product does not or cannot provide is one of the reasons I feel as secure about my future as I do. SAAS revolves around a product that somebody else owns; who the group is that owns the product will have alot to do with how it works out for you. I am sure you will do well, but be careful. If you do not trust them, stay away from them.