SAP partners have the greatest chance to succeed when they actively participate in and make the most of the initiatives and offerings provided the SAP PartnerEdge program. With the launch of the new Competency Framework, marketing your business with competency and specialization designations is no exception.
The framework, which includes three competency tiers (Essential, Advanced, and Expert), covers seven competencies:
- Enterprise Resource Planning
- ERP for Small and Midsize Enterprises
- Supply Chain Management
- Human Capital Management
- Customer Relationship Management
- Spend Management
- SAP Business Technology Platform
It also includes 21 specializations that demonstrate partner expertise and skill at the product or process level and are building blocks toward attaining competencies.
As of September 2022, a partners’ competencies and specializations will appear in the best-fit partner search results in
SAP Partner Finder – with search prioritization for those with these designations as well. SAP is also raising awareness of the new designations through its press and analyst contacts and running customer awareness campaigns.
To really get the most out of your designations, however, partners should capitalize on the myriad ways they can leverage their competencies when marketing their business. Here are six ideas that will help you amplify the message that your practice has the skills, maturity, and expertise your market is looking for.
- Update Your Information in SAP Partner Finder
SAP will automatically list your competencies and specializations in your profile card on SAP Partner Finder. However, you can differentiate your business by enhancing your company description. Include the services you offer, the regions and industries your business serves, and the SAP products you offer. Your company description can also include a brief video.
Updating your profile is one of the easiest things you can do to leverage competencies and specializations when marketing your business. SAP Partner Finder has more than 12,000 visitors and 1,100 contact form submissions monthly. Ensure that businesses searching for partners with the skills and maturity like yours will have a positive impression of your brand and all the information they need to short-list your practice as a potential advisor.
- Issue a Press Release
SAP provides a press release template to make it easy for you to announce your competency designations. The template ensures you are correctly communicating and branding your designations as well as minimizing the time it takes to prepare your release. To increase the release’s reach, consider using a wire service and posting it to your website. By submitting your release for SAP review, SAP can also help amplify your announcement by promoting it on the partner news room on sap.com and by sharing it on the @SAPPartners4U Twitter handle.
- Announce Competencies and Specializations on Social Media
Along with sharing the news of your competencies and specializations with your followers on social media, you can also keep your social channels fresh and instantly display your designations to new visitors by adding your competency badges to your social profiles.
- Add Designations to Your Website
Competency badges will increase your website’s impact, especially if you showcase them on your homepage, contact page, and other frequently visited areas of the site.
Maximize impact by devoting website space to explaining how the competency designation confirms your expertise with SAP products and solutions for specific use cases or industries. With the designations, you can do more than say you have skills and experience. You can offer SAP-backed proof to your prospects.
- Include Badges on Digital Marketing and Sales Materials
When you generate digital marketing assets, presentations, ad campaigns, and RFPs, make sure to include your competency badge. Receiving designations is also a good time to refresh these assets.
- Mention Competencies and Specializations in Success Stories
When you share customer success stories or testimonials, include information about your competencies and specializations. Connecting the dots to demonstrate that your expertise in SAP products and your market has directly impacted your customers’ success will help you create powerful messaging.
A Great Asset for Marketing Your Business
The Competency Framework aims to help you gain more visibility with businesses searching for SAP partners with the particular skills they need. Leveraging your competency and specialization designations when marketing your business will quickly communicate that your business has the experience and know-how to ensure a smooth implementation and long-term customer success.
That’s messaging you’ll want to share everywhere.
