The rise of vertical ISV & SI partnerships: Why going deep beats going wide on Salesforce
I have been watching an exciting shift in the Salesforce ecosystem lately: partners are going DEEP.
Instead of trying to be everything to everyone, more consultancies are carving out niches in specific industries and becoming true specialists in those verticals. And it is paying off.
According to 10K’s latest Salesforce Talent Ecosystem Report, there are now more than 3,700 consultancies listed on the AppExchange, which is a 25% increase year on year. But the fastest growth is happening among smaller, highly focused firms. The number of partners with just one to five certified experts has grown by 41%, the highest increase since 2020.
The rise of vertical specialization
As an Independent Software Vendor (ISV) on the Salesforce AppExchange, we work to certify and enable Salesforce implementation partners to implement StoreConnect for clients. We are seeing our partners go beyond focusing on solutions and instead build complete offerings for particular industries and bringing commerce to that offering, directed to each vertical’s view of what commerce requirements they need.
Whether it is education, nonprofit, public sector, manufacturing, real estate or even the nursery and garden industry, partners are creating tailored, end-to-end Salesforce experiences that meet the exact needs of those markets.
One great example is our partner Aster Software, who developed IQ Growers ERP, a powerful industry solution built for nurseries and garden centres. They have combined Salesforce, StoreConnect and other tools to deliver a complete ERP, ecommerce and operations solution that speaks directly to the needs of growers and retailers in that space. That level of vertical focus is where the real growth is happening.
Filling the missing piece
Customers today want complete, connected solutions on Salesforce. They don’t want to juggle different platforms for ecommerce, payments, or subscriptions. They want everything to work seamlessly and they want trusted AI to help them do it.
That missing piece has often been commerce, payments and reliable AI support, especially for industries that depend on recurring revenue, donations, complex pricing models, or large-scale customer interactions. This is where StoreConnect and Agentforce work together.
StoreConnect fills the commerce gap with a Salesforce-native platform that unifies ecommerce, payments, subscriptions, and donations in one system that lives entirely inside Salesforce. And with Agentforce, partners can add smart, conversational, trusted AI that uses Salesforce data, respects business rules and does not hallucinate.
Together, they give customers an integrated commerce and AI experience that is fast, accurate, scalable and built directly on the Salesforce platform.
Making specialization simple
We have designed StoreConnect to be straightforward for partners to adopt and easy to scale. Our certification program gives partners hands-on experience, enabling them to upskill quickly and add ecommerce expertise to their Salesforce practice without long ramp-up times or complicated integrations.
CLICK HERE FOR FREE CERTIFICATION!
Growing together
It is a great time to be a Salesforce partner. The ones who specialize, those who go deep into their chosen vertical are building stronger client relationships, delivering more value and growing faster than ever.
If you are already a StoreConnect partner, let us explore how we can help you expand your niche and reach new markets.
If you are not yet working with us, let’s have a conversation.
Specialization is shaping the future of the Salesforce ecosystem and at StoreConnect, we would love to help you lead in yours.