Sharing the benefits of SharePoint 2010

While SharePoint supports Tags it has no support for the idea of concepts.  Increasingly people want to search for specific files based around the concepts and ideas related to them.  Being able to search and navigate concepts provides a much more natural way to explore and find information on an intranet.

What makes SharePoint problematic for resellers is the fact that it is simply one product, and one that is being sold by countless other resellers. By offering third party add-ons, resellers are able to differentiate themselves while at the same time improving the functionality of SharePoint 2010 itself.
For example, there are plug-ins that take advantage of technology such as TopicMaps to improve the search functionality of SharePoint and make the search process much more efficient for businesses. The concept underpinning technology like Topic Maps is that searching can become a much more natural process by sorting intranet web site data according to a subject-centered, classification-based approach that makes it possible for users to find and navigate between both content and the key concepts that define the business or services offered. In practice this means that users can search for concepts and ideas on a site built using SharePoint, and the search results can be filtered and organised to be presented in a much more logical manner.

Resellers that decide to improve their SharePoint offering through the use of plug-ins such as these are able to offer bespoke solutions to their customers tailored according to the customers’ needs.  This provides a great way to add value to a product that doesn’t offer much scope for resellers who want to do more than simply shift boxes. Resellers will be able to show their customers how they can build on and improve something that is an integral part of many businesses.   

On its own, SharePoint doesn’t provide a massive opportunity for resellers. It is simply something that they have to offer in order to not be left behind. However, the fact that so many resellers will be offering the same product means that the opportunities for differentiation are much greater. By using SharePoint plug-ins, the benefits to resellers are twofold. They will be improving their customers’ experience of SharePoint, while at the same time offering something new and different. For software resellers, SharePoint 2010 offers a golden opportunity, and they just have to know how to grab it.