“Many companies measure success by how they compete with others, but with AWS programs, it's more about competing with yourself. If you're bringing in cash, using it wisely, and fully leveraging AWS, it drives your own business growth.” -
TJ Schmidt, Director of Cloud Partnerships for
Rapid7
In today's episode, of Unlock Cloud Go-To-Market, hosts
Erin Figer and
Patrick Riley are joined by TJ Schmidt, the Director of Cloud Partnerships at Rapid7, to discuss the world of cloud partnerships, marketplace strategies, and operational excellence.
TJ shares his journey from AWS to Rapid7, explaining the transformative impact of Co-selling and the crucial role of consistent Marketplace presence. Learn how Rapid7 has aligned with AWS priorities, seeing tremendous growth in deal sizes, win rates, and sales cycles, thanks to their strategic partnership with Tackle. TJ outlines the importance of setting realistic goals, managing global opportunities, and leveraging resources effectively.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
- The importance of operational efficiency, particularly in handling the increasing number of Co-sell opportunities with AWS
- How Rapid7 experienced significant growth in their Marketplace transactions, seeing deal sizes grow by 3x, win rates increase to 40%, and sales cycles shorten by 21 days
- The importance of aligning Rapid7's goals with AWS's priorities
Resources:
Timestamps:
(
05:46) How setting expectations and long-term strategy leads to success
(
13:09) AWS an investment partner
(
19:35) Embracing Marketplace growth to align with AWS
(
24:10) Simplified process, global expansion, Go-to-Market support
(
34:09) Navigating new directions and seeking meaningful partnership growth
(
41:30) Focusing on Marketplace and bringing partners on journey
(
51:04) How coaches help track metrics and boost sales success
What is Unlock Cloud Go-to-Market?
How do I implement my go-to-market strategy with my Cloud Partners? How do I get buy-in from my executives, sales team, and others in my organization? How can I get the right attention from the Cloud Providers?
Questions like these, and many more, arise when you’re trying to build relationships with the Cloud Providers and accelerate your revenue journey through the cloud. Welcome to ‘Unlock Cloud Go-to-Market,’ the series where hosts Erin Figer and Patrick Riley share the essential stages of the Cloud GTM maturity model to start, optimize, and grow your company’s revenue through the cloud. They’ve helped countless ISVs tackle the ins and outs of their Cloud GTM motion, and in each episode, they're sharing those success stories from the people who have put them into place. Because ultimately, this way of thinking is the future. And the future is now.