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  • 1.  Sage MOTM 2026 Sponsorship and Messaging Alignment

    Posted 11-03-2025 12:42

    Following recent correspondence with Sage regarding our 2026 Meeting of the Minds (MOTM) sponsorship agreement, Sage has requested that we clarify public messaging to ensure the event is positioned as exclusively focused on Sage 100.

    Their concern stemmed from our recent blog post announcing 90 Minds' community expansion to include Sage Intacct consultants and our intention to host sessions relevant to that audience. Sage has indicated that positioning MOTM as an Intacct event could conflict with their own Intacct signature event and marketing strategy.

    Our Response

    I've confirmed with Sage that:

    • MOTM 2026 remains a Sage 100–centered event and continues to serve as the single annual gathering for Sage 100 partners, ISVs, and developers.

    • Our membership community, which operates year-round, has naturally grown to include consultants and firms that also support clients across the broader Sage portfolio - including Intacct.

    • These community conversations are peer-led and focus on strengthening Sage partner collaboration and client retention within the Sage ecosystem, not promoting competitive platforms.

    We will update the blog to reflect this alignment, using the revised title "Strengthening Collaboration Across the Sage Ecosystem", positioning Sage 100 as the foundation while acknowledging member growth and inclusion of Intacct-certified partners. Sage will review the draft before re-publication.

    Key Points Communicated to Sage

    • Our exclusive sponsorship agreement with Sage was established under the understanding that 90 Minds and its events would remain within the Sage-only ecosystem.

    • We ended our partnership with Acumatica and others based on that exclusivity commitment.

    • From a business standpoint, we have already welcomed new ISV members, confirmed consultant-led sessions, and made financial and contractual commitments aligned with this inclusive approach.

    • Should Sage restrict engagement across its own portfolio, 90 Minds would be forced to re-evaluate its exclusivity and consider reopening membership to other ERP publishers to maintain growth and sustainability.

    Strategic Benefits to Sage (as shared in our response)

    1. Partner Retention & Brand Loyalty – Keeps Sage 100 firms within the Sage family as clients evolve, reducing migration to competitors like Acumatica or NetSuite.

    2. Portfolio Cohesion – Reinforces Sage as a unified brand with a clear growth path from Sage 100 to Sage Intacct.

    3. Peer Advocacy – Empowers trusted partners to share migration and cross-platform insights organically.

    4. Cross-Product Collaboration – Creates stronger connectivity between Sage 100 and Intacct teams and their respective partner networks.

    5. Enhanced Visibility – MOTM provides exposure to firm leaders who influence multiple Sage product lines.

    Next Steps

    • Submit revised blog to Sage for review and approval before reposting.

    • Continue developing MOTM 2026 content with Sage 100 as the centerpiece, incorporating limited, consultant-led discussions on ecosystem collaboration.

    • Reaffirm with Sage leadership (and Partner Marketing) that our approach aligns with both their strategic goals and 90 Minds' business model.

    • Prepare contingency scenarios should exclusivity terms need to be renegotiated.

    Summary

    We remain committed to keeping 90 Minds and MOTM centered on the Sage 100 community while honoring the reality of our members' evolving practices. Our approach protects our brand integrity, honors existing financial commitments, and maintains open dialogue with Sage to ensure a collaborative and sustainable path forward.

    I welcome your comments and feedback. This is such a U turn on the part of Sage.  They have pushed Intacct for years on us - which tells me someone was not at the table in our MANY conversations that should have been. 

    Taking bets - any guesses?



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    Anne Sawyer
    Executive Director
    90 Minds Inc.
    Sunset Beach CA
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  • 2.  RE: Sage MOTM 2026 Sponsorship and Messaging Alignment

    Posted 11-03-2025 13:14

    Although I believe we should respect Sage's request to focus on Sage 100, we cannot give them editorial rights over our posts, nor dictate that we limit ourselves to their legacy product.



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    Gary Feldman
    Principal
    I-Business Network
    Marietta GA
    16786270646
    http://www-i-bn.net
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  • 3.  RE: Sage MOTM 2026 Sponsorship and Messaging Alignment

    Posted 11-03-2025 13:37
    I agree -but as this moved into the realm of legal and ongoing relationship development I felt it was necessary to concede on this part.   I understand that sometimes I make decisions that not everyone will agree with but I also have to navigate where I'm at in the conversation at times. This seemed like a little concession to get them over whatever ruffled their feathers. 

    That being said nothing else was asked to be changed and I will utilize other areas to continue the messaging. I don't even think they've looked at the Meeting of the Minds website yet.  

    I told her this is a one-time only consideration in an effort to get this  resolved basically. And I'm only going to be changing the blog. I cannot change anything on LinkedIn or anything that's gone out publicly at this point and will not change any of the membership messaging etc.

    Anne Sawyer, Executive Director
    anne.sawyer@90minds.com
    90 Minds, Inc.