"How do I promote my business effectively without breaking my budget?" It's a common question -- and for many solution providers, teaming up with a manufacturer is often the answer. Sometimes, however, finding a manufacturer whose goals align with yours can be tricky. And once you do, you need to decide what sort of marketing vehicle will best meet both your needs.

Luckily, if you're an Ingram Micro customer, assistance with these and other challenges is only a phone call away.

Marketing Services On Tap
According to John Maruska, group manager, Ingram Micro reseller marketing, many solution providers aren't aware that Ingram Micro offers marketing services at all. In fact, the distributor operates an in-house, full-service marketing agency with more than 20 years of experience and a rich understanding of what it means to do business in the technology channel.

By working with the agency's team of experts, solution providers bypass the learning curve that comes with nonchannel agencies and get a running start on communicating their value to end users.Here?s an overview of what's available:

Field marketing support. Sometimes a solution provider has manufacturer funds in hand, but hesitates to spend them on marketing activities that may not be effective, or simply doesn't have time to spend them before they expire. That's where Ingram Micro's field marketing organization comes into play, according to Maruska.

"Our field representatives can advise solution providers on where and how to apply manufacturer funds to get the most value for the money," he says. "Plus, as a marketing agency, we have partnerships with third parties that can help them deliver effective programs based on those decisions."

Agency Express. Whether you need to fire off a quick one-time communication or build and deliver an entire marketing campaign, Agency Express has solutions to fit. Through this online resource, Ingram Micro customers can choose from a selection of customizable, professionally designed ads, mailers and HTML templates; purchase database and outcall services; and generate new leads.

"Agency Express has been the gateway to finding all kinds of manufacturer offerings," says Tricia Wilson of solution provider Forward Edge. "We can access high-quality logos, great content and more from every industry manufacturer. The mailings look great and the process takes just a few minutes."

Market development funds. Agency Express is also the gateway to Ingram Micro's CAP -- Market Development Funds program, a resource that offers coop marketing funds from such manufacturers as Cisco Systems,Hewlett-Packard and Symantec. Funds can be requested online and are available for a variety of marketing activities, including end-user events and print and e-mail advertising.

Outcall Services. Through Outcall Services, Ingram Micro customers get access to a team of professionals that can deliver services from basic event recruitment and attendance confirmation to high-level, unscripted executive-to-executive conversations and in-depth market research.

Demand generation services and events. Targeted end-user marketing lists, custom-designed co-marketing programs, inbound lead capture and performance and reporting metrics are only a few of the options available to help solution providers reach new customers, create sales opportunities, and build new markets and revenue streams.

In addition, Ingram Micro's field marketing, corporate events and technical support teams can work together to create and execute Knowledge is Power (KIP) seminars. These events, which provide education and help generate demand among a solution provider's current and prospective end-user customers, can also be presented in conjunction with a sponsoring manufacturer.

How to Get Started
To learn more, e-mail resellermarketing @ingrammicro.com or visit www.ingram micro.com/marketingservices. To get started using Agency Express, or to request market development funds, visit www.ingrammicro.com/agencyexpress.