TOTEM COMMUNICATIONS INTRODUCE CHANNEL PARTNER PROGRAM

Totem help partners reduce cost, enhance revenue and improve end customer experience through their comprehensive Partner Program

MANCHESTER, UK - 03 August 2004 - Totem Communications has announced the launch of their Partner Program.

Totem's Partner Program was launched day on 28th July at The Belfry to their existing network of channel partners. The program was well received with partners looking forward to reaping the benefits offered as they achieve increased status.

Totem's Partner Program provides partners with the support they require to lock-in satisfied clients to their business using Totem's industry leading products and services. This will provide all partners with the opportunity to reduce cost, enhance revenue and improve end customer experience.

More than just products and solutions are offered to partners - Totem provide them with confidence in knowing they have selected a stable and innovative company that takes partnership excellence seriously.

Totem's Partner Program incorporates three membership levels: Approved, Certified and Premier Partner status. It is a comprehensive marketing and enablement program offering a vast array of benefits which include:

• Selling Support - offerings created specifically to increase revenue and help a partner close sales. For example, dedicated account management, telephone account management, billing support, online ordering and incentives.
• Marketing Support - offerings designed to help a partner go-to-market more quickly and more effectively such as market development funding, lead allocation, case studies, presentations, product and service literature, PR support, co-branding and access to a dedicated partner extranet.
• Technical Support - offerings created to provide maximum pre-sales technical support to partners before, during and after the sale including access to technical pre-sales consultants, a porting helpdesk, telephone account management and access to an engineering team for fault management 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
• Training- offerings designed to help a partners recommend and advise their customers on the right solution with total confidence.

This comprehensive program develops the sales and technical skills needed by partners to recommend and provide complete communication solutions to their clients.

Partnership status is based on amongst other things the total volume of traffic generated per month. As a partner's commitment and traffic to Totem increases they will move up through the program with the aim of becoming a Premier Partner.

Mark Shrosbree, Sales Director for ITB attended the launch day and said, "Totem have always been very supportive but their partner program offers us additional support as standard. Under the program we will receive significant benefits which will make it easier for us to do business with Totem and promote their products and services. They've developed a powerful extranet site which is a vital enabler to help us maximise business opportunities and lock-in further clients and dealers to our business."

Barney Brown, Proposition Development Director for Totem concluded "In line with Totem's focussed channel strategy we wanted to develop a program which would differentiate us from the competition. Currently we have a selection of partners across all the new partner levels. Under the Partner Program we will support our existing resellers, helping them grow their business with Totem, resulting in driving more of them to become Certified and Premier Partners by the end of the financial year."