by Heather Deggans, Vice President, Global Partner Go-To-Market, Programs, Operations
The customer journey is changing, and partners have more opportunities to influence technology decisions across it. But taking advantage of those opportunities requires more than individual campaigns or one-time investments.
Recent Omdia research maps 28 critical presales touchpoints, with additional customer success opportunities after the sale. Yet 62% of partners surveyed invest 10% or less of their marketing budgets in demand generation.
For FY27, we see three areas that can reinforce one another: build the expertise customers increasingly expect, invest in sustained demand generation around the challenges they need to solve, and apply those capabilities to opportunities such as Microsoft Copilot and Frontier Transformation.
1. Build the expertise customers increasingly expect
As AI becomes part of more business decisions and processes, customers are looking for partners that can connect technology to specific industries, workflows, and business challenges.
That makes skilling a business investment. Marketing teams need enough technical and industry fluency to communicate value clearly. Sales and presales teams need to connect customer priorities to solutions. Technical teams need the depth to design and deliver them, while customer success teams need the expertise to drive adoption and identify opportunities to extend value.
Start with the customer opportunities you want to pursue, then identify where your teams need greater depth. The Microsoft Partner Skilling Hub provides partner-focused learning across Microsoft Cloud solution areas, roles, and technical certifications.
For partners that have earned co-op, eligible Partner AI Adoption activities may also provide an opportunity to build AI capability within your own organization. Applying AI and agents to your internal workflows can give your teams practical experience that strengthens customer conversations. Review the current Microsoft Commercial Partner Incentives Guide for applicable eligibility and requirements.
2. Invest in sustained demand generation around customer challenges
Expertise creates more value when customers can discover it throughout their buying journey.
Omdia's research shows that buyers use sources ranging from AI tools and search engines to social media, events, peer groups, partners, review sites, and digital marketplaces. A single webinar, email, or paid activation is unlikely to carry that entire journey. That makes isolated tactics less effective than a connected program that builds relevance and trust over time.
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