How do I choose between a distributor, a VAR and going direct in a new country?
Go direct when the market is big enough to justify a local hire and your buyer expects to talk to you. Use VARs when the sale needs local language, local support and relationships you do not have. Use a distributor only when you need to manage a network of resellers rather than a handful, because a distributor is a partner management layer, not a sales channel. In India specifically the distribution layer is how you reach tier 2 and tier 3 cities at all, which is why Zoho leans on it and why the enterprise players work through Redington and Ingram Micro. Decide it by asking who the customer already buys software from today.
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The clearest single explanation of the five partner types and what each is worth, including real margin bands (20 to 30% for VARs, 5 to 10% for referral) and how to compensate your own AEs on partner deals.
A side by side of three real programs as Indian partners experience them, with tiers, certification requirements and margins, plus ground level views from partners in Delhi, Bengaluru and Pune.
Maps the Indian Azure ecosystem by name: distributors like Redington and Ingram Micro, cloud native firms like Minfy and Quantiphi, ISVs like Freshworks, Zoho and Icertis, with the co-sell paths for each.
Three entry levels: Action Pack (discounted M365/D365 plus $700 Azure credits), Solutions Partner designations across six areas, then Azure Expert MSP.
Partner Success Core costs $895 a year for roughly $62K in software and cloud credits; Expanded is $3,995 for about $391K plus unlimited deployment hours.
Azure Accelerate co-sell support kicks in on opportunities above $5K ACR.
India has three local Azure regions (Mumbai, Pune, Chennai), which is what makes data-residency deals possible.
Six distinct programs on one page (consulting, GSI, distributor, VAR, affiliate, marketplace) is the fastest way to see how a mature partner portfolio is segmented rather than lumped together.
Two companies past 20 million in revenue, both run with India engineering and US selling. He is direct about the founder having to be the great seller first, which most India to US advice dances around.
