Reflecting on our partner program, we acknowledge that the majority of our partners began their relationships with us through the association of eFax Corporate^®, either by reselling or referring it. And since our history with eFax Corporate goes back a few decades, we aren’t too surprised when prospective partners refer to our company as our core product. Nowadays though, the Consensus Cloud Solutions Partner Program has a lot more to offer than just eFax, catering to a wider range of organizations across all verticals, including but not limited to managed service providers (MSPs), ISV wholesalers, marketplace partners, EHR vendors, and white label resellers.

eFax Corporate, and cloud-based faxing as a whole, continues to grow as a prominent and lucrative venture for numerous resellers and referral agents. More partners are actively capitalizing on this technological progression, introducing their clientele to digital cloud fax technology as a replacement solution to costly, outdated services like Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) lines and on-premise fax infrastructures. According to a new study by Precision Reports, the global cloud fax market size is estimated to be worth USD [1.26 billion] by 2028, with a CAGR of 10.3% during the forecast period of 2022-2028.

It’s safe to say that the COVID-19 pandemic played an influential role in fueling the fire, causing companies to evaluate their capacity to function remotely…. in both a productive and scalable manner. The reality is that prior to COVID-19, many small to medium-sized businesses, and even some enterprises, weren’t designed or adequately equipped to lead effective remote and hybrid work environments. And that widespread gap significantly impacted the demand for advanced data tools, specific to the realm of cloud services.

So as we strive toward a more digitally connected ecosystem, the truth remains: most forward-thinking businesses are seeking innovative solutions to further streamline their internal workflows. 

And for Consensus partners,  pushing that technological progression may start with eFax, but runs much deeper.

So, how can Consensus partners escalate their potential for success?

An increasing number of Consensus partners have already boosted their bottom line by incorporating our other transformative solutions, referring and reselling them as standalone tools or add-on enhancements to eFax Corporate. However, it’s our responsibility to make sure all our partners are aware of the additional approaches to expanding their Consensus business. And fortunately, the use cases for our solutions are diverse in nature, applicable to our partners’ wide network of end clients.

Whether an MSP has clients trying to upgrade from paper-based signing to compliant electronic signatures (jSign^®), or has a medical provider customer interested in adding AI-powered intelligent data extraction (Consensus Clarity) to their eFax Corporate service …the potential for partner growth is as vast as ever.  And while these two products serve distinct purposes, they share the same fundamental characteristics as those of eFax—being highly efficient, scalable, and secure solutions.

Ideally for our partners, both AI-powered healthcare technology and eSignature solution types are exceedingly prevalent in today’s market, making them more easily marketable in the public and private sectors.

AI-Powered Data Extraction with Clarity

Alongside the rising phenomenon of artificial intelligence is a universal need for AI-powered solutions that solve imperative business challenges. Of the different industries affected, the healthcare AI market seems particularly top of mind, having been valued at USD 14.4 billion in 2023 with a forecasted CAGR of 39.2% between 2024-2032 according to a report by Global Market Insights. Ongoing advancements in AI development, such as machine learning, heavily contribute to these projections and are expected to help decrease overall healthcare costs by $13 billion in 2025.

Consensus Clarity serves as a prime example that leverages both machine learning and natural language processing (NLP) to address critical pain points in healthcare. Clarity simplifies clinical document workflows by transforming unstructured documents (digital scans, faxes, handwriting) into structured, actionable data, ultimately enhancing patient treatment across the continuum of care.

eSigning with jSign

jSign, and the adoption of eSignature solutions in general, continue to trend as an essential component to the ongoing digitization of business processes. Similarly to cloud fax, the eSignature space underwent a massive boost, post-pandemic. As stated by P&S Intelligence, the global eSignature market generated revenue of USD [2.5 billion] in 2023, and is expected to experience a CAGR of 26.7% from 2024-2030, reaching USD [13.4 billion] by 2030.  

And with this growth comes a slew of eSignature solutions entering the market. That being said, it’s vital that resellers conduct their due diligence when deciding which eSignature solution to invest in. 

An early pioneer of the movement, jSign is one of the only HITRUST certified and HIPAA compliant eSignature solutions to date. This is especially fitting for partners with end clients operating in extremely regulated industries (i.e., legal, healthcare), aiming to improve their organizations’ document management while meeting the most stringent data privacy regulations.

Besides being easy-to-use and affordable, jSign offers in-depth signature tracking and enhanced protection with its comprehensive, timestamped audit trail. Each document includes a certificate of completion detailing the signers’ IP, browser, device, and location. Additionally, jSign’s automatic form fill feature allows customers to securely request and capture signatures, change data during the process, send signed documents, all while tracking the entire workflow. At the end of the day, jSign delivers enhanced time savings, security, and efficiency while providing features that are usually added as an extra charge from other vendors.

How well do these solutions integrate with other systems?

We realize integration is a vital factor for any new solution our partners present to their end clients. And our solutions’ integration capabilities stand out in a few different ways. 

First and foremost, Clarity seamlessly integrates with eFax Corporate, facilitating the smooth transmission of medical record faxes for processing, unlocking valuable information that can be instantly sent to the right place or person. Clarity also integrates with any EHR that can accept Direct Secure Messages, allowing those systems to consume inbound digital faxes, parse the data, and populate the correct fields in the corresponding patient records.

As for jSign, its cloud storage integration (Google Drive, DropBox, OneDrive) accommodates any customers’ existing business technology stack, resulting in easier accessibility and improved shareability. Furthermore, several clients have taken advantage of jSign’s API integration to implement a reliable eSignature process into their organization’s document workflows. 

Let’s run through three vertical use cases.

When considering healthcare, jSign APIs can be integrated into both payer and provider workstreams, delivering a more optimal care experience for patients and healthcare staff by quickly processing forms like:

• New patient forms
• Claims processing
• Prior authorizations
• Admissions
• Consent forms
• Referrals

As for law firms, it’s key to note that jSign complies with current government regulations and its APIs can be integrated into systems processing essential documents such as:

• Court submissions
• Agreements
• NDAs
• Legal forms
• Onboarding new clients
• Settlements

For companies in the financial services sector, jSign’s top of the line security, including blockchain stamping, audit trails, and two-factor authentication, verify the authenticity of signatures for crucial documents like:

• Account forms
• Change of beneficiary forms
• Delegations of authority
• Compliance processes
• Redemption requests
• Agreements

Aside from highlighting the advantages of our solutions, we encourage our partners to lean into Consensus’ 25 + year reputation during conversations with potential customers. Common feedback we hear from our partners is an increased number of opened doors, upon emphasizing their connection to a global industry leader with an extensive resume. Providing that sense of reliability speaks volumes as prospective clients always value any additional affirmation. 

What do partners need to do if they want to resell or refer another Consensus solution?

Partners interested in adding more Consensus solutions to their offering should meet with their partner managers to discuss the appropriate next steps. From there, we will develop a specific go to market plan, supplying the proper product training and resources to get the ball rolling. Through a combination of sales, marketing, and product support, we will guide those partner sales’ teams as they strengthen their product knowledge, ability to identify opportunities, and overall confidence in pitching Clarity and/or jSign. 

We also advise our partners to maintain a flexible approach, potentially transitioning from referring to traditional reselling or whitelabeling of Consensus solutions. Operating in a more adaptable mode will only increase a partner’s number of opportunities as they target untapped territories. Throughout recent years, we’ve witnessed excellent examples of referral agents that have ascended into larger resellers, and in the most ideal situations, relying on both streams of partner income.

How else can partners make the most of their partnership?

As covered in our most recent partner webinar, the second element to maximizing a Consensus partnership is ensuring partners utilize the associated benefits of our partner program. Webinar attendees were also given a refresher on the assets available to them through our partner portal (which all partners received invites to upon signing with Consensus). Let’s recap what our presenters touched on.

• All portal members obtain access to the latest product and sales collateral, consisting of data sheets, whitepapers, videos, case studies, powerpoints, one-pagers, and more.
• The portal informs our partners of upcoming live events and webinars, company announcements, and program updates including limited time spiffs to reward those going above and beyond in their sales pursuits.
• The presenters also reminded folks of our quarterly training sessions on partner selling, along with our periodic, product deep dives.
• Anytime a partner desires additional training, we’re happy to coordinate one-off virtual sessions for specific questions about product positioning, differentiators, industry updates, and even relevant talking points (i.e., buzzwords) to better prepare our partners’ sales team as they initiate discussions with prospects.

And while we don’t expect our partners to become Consensus subject matter experts overnight, joining our educational sessions will definitely expand their knowledge base, resulting in more productive outreach. 

On the topic of joint campaigns, partners are welcome to request hands-on marketing and creative support related to such initiatives. Our marketing team can assist with campaign components ranging from high-level strategy and ideation to tactical actions such as drafting email content, co-branding collateral assets, executing landing pages, planning social promotion, and compiling performance metrics. Depending on the campaign vision, and the amount of participating stakeholders, we can involve ourselves as much or as little as our partners prefer. 

While our partners are often heads down, focusing on priorities outside of Consensus, we still urge regular check-ins with their partner managers to ensure they’re making the best use of the program. After all, the success of any business relationship remains contingent on strong collaboration, with consistent transparency from each end. 

Furthermore, we suggest our partners take the time to thoroughly assess their relationship with Consensus. And while we recognize each partner faces their own sets of objectives and challenges, the questions below should apply to most.

• When was the last time I met with Consensus for assistance on a customer email campaign?
• Can the Consensus team map out recommendations for attracting prospects within or outside of our company’s primary verticals?
• Do we have a new company or product update worth teaming up on either through a LinkedIn announcement or co-branded one-pager or landing page?
• Is the rest of my team accessing the partner portal for their content needs?
• Are my teammates up to date on the latest industry trends and pain points?

What’s next?

If it hasn’t been done yet, we recommend all partners connect with their Consensus partner manager to align on a recurring meeting cadence. This will be a useful way to prioritize immediate and long-term partnership goals, while inevitably forming a tighter foundation between both sides. Committing to that cadence, and planning pertinent agenda items ahead of each meeting, will help stakeholders brainstorm and propose more fresh ideas around joint webinars, in person events, and multi-layered campaigns.

Our partners have, and will continue to, make up a significant portion of our overall success as an organization. And internally, we are persistently working to enhance both the partner program as a whole, and our level of collaboration with our partners. Moving forward, we are confident our resellers and referral partners will maximize the available resources to effectively market our solutions, and ultimately raise their likelihood of greater recurring revenue.

For the latest partner centric news, follow our LinkedIn partner page and click here to access the webinar recording.