Arrow Develops Mobile App For Oracle VARs

Arrow Electronics' ECS group plans to release its first mobile application on Wednesday for Oracle VARs, an app that provides them with instant access to the latest partner information, including incentive deadlines, product news and other data that solution providers may need in the field, said Jeff Lampe, the director of marketing for Arrow's Oracle business group.

The application is available for iPhone, Droid and Blackberry users, according to Arrow.

"The impetus behind the app is the feedback we've been getting from partners, especially in the Oracle space," Lampe said. "While we will continue to leverage traditional communications like our Oracle Central landing page, HTML e-mail and partner alert messages, the partners wanted another easy, systematic way to tap into critical channel information for their Oracle practice."

Many Oracle VAR executives told Arrow they rely on their smartphone as their primary method of accessing information, Lampe said.

Of most immediate relevance to VARs will be the latest information relating to the transition from the Sun Partner Advantage program to the Oracle Partner Network, a big channel program move occurring on Oct. 15.

"There's weekly, sometimes daily updates on the process and the latest information VARs need to be aware of," Lampe said. "There's also last-minute, quarter-end incentives, mobile optimized versions of all our e-mail blasts and videos with Oracle executives."

Arrow also plans to offer mobile sign-up capability for training sessions and dates for Oracle-focused road shows, Lampe said.

Anita O'Malley, senior brand marketing manager at Agilysys Technology Solutions Group, Cleveland, Ohio, said a mobile app is a very valuable tool for VARs to have. "We're extremely mobile here. We're located all over the country and we're all traveling. Who in this business is sitting at your desk? Really. We appreciate that mobility," O'Malley said.

In the future, the distributor plans to enhance the app to offer more customized and integrated functionality such as the ability to track orders and warranty expirations, Lampe said.

"If the app is as widely used as we expect it will be, that is exactly the type of functionality we will explore for [version] 2.0 or 3.0," he said. "As we get more validation and more feedback that partners want to consume information via a mobile format, those are some of the things you'll see."

For the launch, Arrow also plans to give away an Apple iPad in a drawing to one solution provider who texts the word "Arrow" to 70101 and downloads the app to their smartphone.

Solution providers can also e-mail or tweet some of the content out to their own customers through the application, Lampe said.

"We're looking for new, unique ways to enhance communications with Oracle partners and provide them with the most pertinent information they need," Lampe said. "We've made it very easy to forward via different mechanisms. Partners can also respond to an article or leave a comment."

Arrow plans to showcase the app for partners at next week's Net@Work conference for Oracle partners in Pasadena, Calif.