Vendo Partner Program: How Your Agency Can Be Affordable and Competitive Again

Chances are that your agency has been losing leads for custom eCommerce development to in-house teams or cheaper competitors in Asia. If that's your current predicament, the Vendo Partner Program can help you regain an edge, launch eCommerce projects faster, gain new loyal customers for the years to come. And earn a referral fee as well. Here's how it could work.

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Why eCommerce Agencies Are Losing Out

Shrinking Budgets and Price Sensitivity

Custom eCommerce development budgets have been shrinking as businesses face increasing pressure and seek cost savings. This economic climate has made customers more price-sensitive, prompting them to explore alternative providers and solutions. The days of comfortable budgets and long-term projects are being replaced by a demand for lean, cost-effective solutions, often built in-house.

Several factors are contributing to the ongoing downturn in IT spending:

1. High interest rates making borrowing more expensive
2. Drying up of fundraising sources, particularly affecting startups and scale-ups
3. Post-pandemic overhiring of internal IT teams, which has eaten away at available budgets
4. Strong competitive pressure from Asian agencies delivering quality software development services

This perfect storm will likely starve most Western agencies, leaving only the biggest consulting firms and the smallest, owner-led boutique shops unscathed.

High Wages and Lower Margins in Western Markets

Because of high wages and lower margins, US, Canadian, and UK software agencies are struggling to acquire new customers. Their MVP quotes have become less affordable compared to competitive agencies with workforces in India or Pakistan. This pricing disparity is creating a significant hurdle for Western agencies trying to win new business.

Competition with In-House Teams

Another significant challenge facing eCommerce software agencies is the increasing competition from in-house teams. This trend has its roots in the post-pandemic business landscape and is reshaping how companies approach their IT and development needs.

Post-Pandemic Overhiring and Its Consequences

During the pandemic, many businesses rapidly expanded their IT departments to meet the sudden surge in digital transformation needs. However, as the economic climate has shifted, these companies are now faced with bloated teams and tightening budgets. This has led to a complex situation where:

1. Companies are reluctant to lay off skilled workers they invested in hiring and training.
2. In-house teams are being asked to take on projects outside their original scope to justify their continued employment.
3. Businesses are looking to maximize the value of their existing workforce before seeking external help.

The Push for Internal Solutions

To avoid painful layoffs and retain their internal resources, many businesses are asking their employees to step out of their comfort zones and deliver solutions they were not initially hired to build. This approach has several implications:

1. Versatility Over Specialization: In-house teams are being encouraged to become "jacks of all trades," taking on eCommerce projects despite potentially lacking specialized experience.
2. Learning on the Job: Employees are often learning new skills and technologies on the fly, which can lead to longer development times and potential quality issues.
3. Budget Allocation Shifts: Instead of allocating budgets for external agencies, companies are redirecting funds to upskill their internal teams and provide them with necessary tools and resources.
4. Risk of Suboptimal Solutions: While in-house teams may be highly skilled in their areas of expertise, their lack of specialized eCommerce experience could result in solutions that don't fully meet the business's needs or industry best practices.
5. Longer Time-to-Market: The learning curve associated with new technologies and methodologies can significantly extend project timelines, potentially impacting the business's competitiveness in fast-moving markets.

Impact on External Agencies

This shift towards leveraging in-house teams presents a significant challenge for eCommerce software agencies:

1. Reduced Opportunities: With more projects being handled internally, there are fewer opportunities for external agencies to bid on.
2. Changed Client Expectations: Clients who have worked with their in-house teams may have different expectations regarding timelines, costs, and the level of specialization required.
3. Need for Differentiation: Agencies must now clearly articulate their value proposition, emphasizing their specialized eCommerce expertise and ability to deliver results faster and more effectively than non-specialized in-house teams.
4. Pressure on Pricing: To compete with the perceived cost-savings of using in-house resources, agencies may face pressure to lower their rates.

The Cheapest Quotes Win

In an environment where cash is king, the cheapest quotes often win. Despite working in the same time zone as their customers, having a similar cultural context, no language barrier, and bringing significant potential to add value, Western software agencies continue to lose out. The immediate cost savings offered by Asian competitors are often too tempting for budget-conscious clients to ignore.

On the other hand, the trend of in-house teams competing for projects traditionally outsourced to specialized agencies adds another layer of complexity to the challenges facing eCommerce software agencies. It underscores the need for agencies to offer unique value propositions, demonstrate clear expertise in eCommerce, and find ways to deliver high-quality solutions more efficiently than ever before.

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How Vendo Helps Agencies Become Competitive Again

The key to regaining your competitive edge is simple in concept but challenging in execution: you need to deliver faster and cheaper with your current team. This is where Vendo comes in.

You need to deliver faster and cheaper with your current team. Here's how.

To become more affordable and competitive, your agency needs a source-available, customizable eCommerce framework that allows you to:

1. Quote customers within reasonable price ranges for an MVP build
2. Launch an MVP quickly without an enormous up-front investment and months-long delivery timeline
3. Iterate quickly post-launch, delivering value that customer stakeholders can appreciate

Once you get a customer to work with you, they'll likely stay with you for the long haul. But you can't afford to lose that initial lead to an Asian agency in the first place. Vendo provides the tools and framework to help you win that crucial first engagement.

What is Vendo?

Vendo is a feature-rich, fully customizable, source-available, self-hosted eCommerce platform designed for demanding customers who simply can't use a SaaS solution like Shopify or BigCommerce.

Vendo is particularly well-suited for customers with complex use cases such as:

• B2B eCommerce
• Multi-vendor marketplaces
• Multi-store setups
• Multi-tenant architectures
• Multi-currency and multi-language requirements

For many businesses, particularly B2B/wholesale operations, VC-funded or fundraising startups, and enterprise eCommerce projects, a source-available and self-hosted solution like Vendo offers compelling advantages compared to SaaS platforms, which might be too limiting for their needs.

Vendo goes beyond the constraints of typical SaaS platforms, offering:

• Full customization capabilities
• Access to source code
• Self-hosting options for complete control
• Scalability to meet growing business needs
• Integration flexibility with existing systems

Vendo Partner Program

The Vendo Partner Program is designed to help your agency regain its competitive edge and attract more customers.

By leveraging Vendo's off-the-shelf features and customization flexibility, you can:

1. Offer competitive pricing for MVP development
2. Reduce time-to-market for custom eCommerce projects
3. Provide a scalable solution that grows with your clients' needs
4. Differentiate your agency with a multi-use-case, customizable platform

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What Vendo Offers to Your Agency:

• Live Demo Access and Walkthrough: Get hands-on experience with Vendo and understand its capabilities.
• Ongoing Training and Support: Stay up-to-date with the latest features and best practices.
• Shared Slack Channel for Day-to-Day Communication: Direct access to Vendo experts for quick problem-solving.
• 30% Lifetime Referral Fees on Referred Licensing Sales: Create a new revenue stream for your agency.
• 100% Professional Services & DevOps Revenue from Referred eCommerce Projects: Maintain full control and profit from your client relationships.

The Benefits of Partnering with Vendo

By joining the Vendo Partner Program, your agency can:

1. Compete on Price: Offer competitive rates for MVP development without sacrificing quality or profit margins.
2. Accelerate Development: Leverage Vendo's robust features to significantly reduce development time.
3. Enhance Client Relationships: Provide a scalable, customizable solution that grows with your clients' businesses.
4. Diversify Revenue Streams: Earn ongoing referral fees while maintaining full control of client projects.
5. Stay Ahead of the Curve: Offer a cutting-edge eCommerce solution that sets you apart from competitors.

In today's challenging market, the Vendo Partner Program equips your agency with the tools, support, and competitive edge needed to thrive.

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By combining your expertise with Vendo's powerful eCommerce platform, you can win more clients, deliver exceptional results, and build long-lasting, profitable relationships. Don't let your agency fall behind – partner with Vendo and secure your place at the forefront of eCommerce development.