Announcing SMB Advantage – Now available

Big Easy and Cloud Easy come together to creating SMB Advantage

SMB Advantage gives your customers choices on Microsoft products and online solutions to fit their organization’s unique IT productivity and investment requirements.

• Customers who make a qualifying purchase earn money back in the form of a partner subsidy, which they can use towards additional Microsoft software, Online Services subscription or associated services. As a result, Microsoft’s valued partners benefit from downstream transactions from the customer.

• Customers who purchase Lync, System Center, SQL, Office 365, in addition to many other popular products and online services, can earn higher payout percentages, resulting in larger subsidy payments – giving you a better opportunity to sell these growth and incubation solutions.

• Additionally, subsidies are amplified for Open Value and Open Value Subscription agreements, helping you to drive annuity revenue.

• SMB Advantage also includes a focus on Windows Server, with increased earnings available when combined with Office 365 sales.

Here’s how the SMB Advantage works

Customers can take advantage of this offer by following these simple steps:

1. Review list of qualifying products and Online Services at www.microsoftincentives.com/SMBAdvantage

2. Purchase qualifying products or Online Services subscritptions between Sept 3, 2013 and Nov 30, 2013

3. Submit customer claim within 30 days of eligible purchase.

Offer Highlights:

How does SMB Advantage fit into my sales planning?

SMB Advantage provides richer incentives for your small and mid-sized US customers on Open L agreements, and an accelerator on annuity licenses. SMB Advantage includes subsidy payout on Microsoft Office Open L (Office) and Online Services for your small and mid-sized U.S. customers to transition to the cloud.

What products are included in SMB Advantage?

SMB Advantage includes popular Microsoft products such as Windows Client, Office, SharePoint, Dynamics CRM, SQL Server, Windows Server and Exchange Server. It also includes Online Services such as Microsoft Office 365 Open/SBP SKUs in addition to Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online, Windows Intune, Microsoft Lync Online, Microsoft SharePoint Online and Microsoft Exchange Online. The complete list of qualifying products and services will be made available in the offer Terms and Conditions on https://www.microsoftincentives.com/SMBAdvantage.

How should I position SMB Advantage to my customers?

SMB Advantage lets customers earn partner subsidies, which they can use to purchase additional Microsoft software licenses, subscriptions and associated services. For instance, your customer can use the partner subsidies for your deployment services for new solutions, like Windows Server® Customers have a limited time (Sept 3 to Nov 30, 2013 inclusive) to take advantage of this offer. On https://aka.ms/smbadvantage, you’ll find customer-ready materials that include a to-customer flyer and banner ads that help you explain and promote the offer.

How can I use SMB Advantage in conjunction with other in-market customer offers?

Please refer to the Schedule C Other Promotions section of the SMB Advantage Terms and Conditions here https://www.microsoftincentives.com/SMBAdvantage/terms.aspx.

Will there be a calculator as in the past and will it include Online Services?

Yes, the SMB Advantage calculator will be made available on https://www.microsoftincentives.com/SMBAdvantage at offer launch (on Sept 3, 2013). Please note that Microsoft provides the online calculator solely for informational purposes. The actual partner subsidy dollars earned through the purchase of Microsoft software under SMB Advantage may vary from the estimate produced by the calculator. Customers and partners should refer to the terms and conditions of SMB Advantage at https://www.microsoftincentives.com/SMBAdvantage/terms.aspx for a full understanding of the partner subsidy dollar amount. It is possible for a user to generate incorrect partner subsidy dollar estimates through this tool depending on the accuracy of the data entered.

Can VARs who have registered in the FY14-H1 VAR Rebate Program combine SMB Advantage with their corresponding VAR Rebate?

Yes, the VAR rebate payout is based on the revenue of US first year billings (non-recurring), so SMB Advantage purchases contribute.

What happens if a customer unsubscribes or cancels the Online Services subscription?

Per the cancellation policy for Office 365, Office 365 Open/SBP, Windows Intune and Dynamics CRM Online, customers can cancel their subscription within 30 days of purchase without incurring a cancellation fee. Cancellation of the service will not change customers’ obligation to pay any charges due on their billing account. For this reason, processing of customer claim submissions for Online Services will be delayed for 33 days after the date of purchase. The service-level agreement (SLA) for check fulfillment for Online Services is 6-8 weeks from date of subsidy redemption. (The payout for Office 365 P1 will be calculated as a percentage of an annual subscription, even though the service contract is month-to-month.)

What is the SLA for check fulfillment for on-premise product and Online Services subscription purchases?

6-8 weeks from date of subsidy redemption. If the customer redeems for multiple Online Services, the customer will receive one check for Online Services.

For Additional Questions – Please contact smbadvantage@microsoft.com

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