Some of the new features include:

• More sales and marketing campaign management functions, such as the ability to assess which Search Engine Optimization (SEO) campaigns are having the highest impact and the best return on investment for your business.
• The ability to integrate a company web site into the ConnectWise Marketing Manager, which lets you track more basic e-mail marketing campaigns.
• A view for customers: Basically a portal that lets a technology solution provider provide its customers with access to quotes and recommendations that it has made for the company.
• Other reporting tools, such as those for contacts, through an integration with Microsoft SQL Reporting Services
• There also is a tighter integration with some of the core social networking tools that are starting to be used by the technology channel

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Right now, I’m watching two of the platform vendors in particular: Autotask and ConnectWise.

To me, it’s really interesting that two of the most important partner service alliance networks in the industry today – the HTG Peer Groups, small groups representing 260 technology solution providers focused on improving operational excellence,  and 1nService, a network of technology integrators that represents roughly $1.5 billion in revenue — have placed big bets on this technology. Here are just a couple of recent examples:

1. Back toward the end of 2009, 1nService announced it will work with Autotask to create a new centralized engagement desk and system to manage opportunities that are flowing back and forth between the member companies. The two organizations describe the relationship as the “foundation for 1nService’s collaborative community.”

The platform is being integrated with a new knowledge search engine, built on technology created by Neuron Global, called 411nService, that lets 1nService members identify members within the network who might be able to handle certain services needs. When I spoke with 1nService CEO Paul Cronin about the search engine a few weeks back, he said it was scheduled to go live in April. Here’s what he had to say:

“Because we are rapidly expanding our presence throughout the globe, and adding new members 1nService continues to build on the process, tools and people to facilitate commerce quickly and with trust.”

Fact is, as 1nService gets bigger it’s impossible to know EVERYONE, so tools like this can save a lot of wasted time.

The other thing that makes this even more interesting is Autotask’s acquisition this week of VARStreet, which powers various electronic catalog tools on behalf of IT solution providers, including Emtec, Pomeroy IT and Zebra Technologies. Its e-commerce module should be embedded into Autotask’s platform by late April, according to a press release issued about the acquisition. You’ll be able to build an e-storefront for $299 per month.

2. The ConnectWise relationship with HTG Groups is equally compelling. Most recently, the two announced that they are building a bridge between the HTG content management system and the ConnectWise PSA platform. Although this particular effort is mainly an administrative one — meant to better synchronize member information between HTG Peer Groups and ConnectWise — it is noteworthy because ConnectWise has become a platform widely used used by HTG Peer Group members. ConnectWise was originally developed by a VAR seeking to bring better operational excellence to its business, and many of its evolving new features, applications and templates are being contributed by members of the solution provider community.

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LabTech develops what is described as a remote monitoring, management and automation tool. The software integrates directly into the ConnectWise professional services automation (PSA) platform, which is used by VARs, resellers, MSPs and other IT service providers to schedule and manage their services business. The amount of the investment was not disclosed.

ConnectWise earlier invested in CharTec, which bills itself as a “hardware as a service” provider. The company has developed a model to help IT services companies offer hardware and software to their customers with no upfront cost. Again, the companies didn’t disclose the amount invested.

I spoke with the Bellini brothers (Arnie and David) in January about the motivation behind the fund, and they say it is pretty simple: “We have become a lightning rod for ideas from the IT channel FOR the IT channel, and we want to incubate the innovation that is bubbling up,” says Arnie Bellini, CEO of ConnectWise.

ConnectWise co-founder David Bellini, who is managing the fund, says investments are being chosen on a case-by-case basis although he is particularly interested in ideas relating to cloud computing solutions and extending the influence of managed services. “Anything that lets the IT nation take advantage of these shifts or that can create new and profitable practices inside their company,” says David Bellini.

Incidentally, if you want to pitch an idea, you can e-mail information here.

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