This is part of a series where we look at improvements to negotiated deals in Microsoft Marketplace and how App Advisor helps you choose the right deal type for your business.
Customers don’t always want to buy directly from a software company. Many already have channel partners they trust to help source, implement, and support their technology.
Multiparty private offers (MPO) help you bring those relationships into your Microsoft Marketplace sales motion. With MPO, you can collaborate with eligible channel partners on specific customer opportunities while keeping the transaction in Marketplace.
Let’s look at where MPO fits, how it works, and how App Advisor can help you move from identifying an opportunity to creating the deal.
Why would I use MPO?
MPOs are designed for customer opportunities where a channel partner is part of the deal—increasing deal sizes 2.5 times larger than private offers that don’t include a partner.
Consider MPO when you want to:
- Collaborate with a channel partner that helps identify, shape, or close an opportunity.
- Meet customer buying preferences by selling through an eligible channel partner they already work with.
- Bring your app or agent into a broader partner-led solution that includes complementary services or implementation.
- Support eligible software purchases that can count toward a customer’s Azure consumption commitment.
MPO gives each party a defined role in the transaction: you provide the software, the channel partner participates in the customer deal, and the customer purchases through Microsoft Marketplace.
Where can I use MPO?
Recently, MPOs have expanded into more than 30 markets (most recently Australia, Japan, and South Africa) creating more opportunities to use partner-led selling with customers around the world.
Eligibility differs for customers and channel partners by country. Before structuring an opportunity, check the current Microsoft-supported country list to confirm that your customer and channel partner are eligible.
What if I don’t have a channel partner?
Sometimes the partner relationship starts with the customer. If a customer wants to buy through a channel partner they already use, confirm that partner is eligible for MPO and get their Marketplace seller ID.
If you’re looking to establish new channel relationships, App Advisor provides resources to help you identify eligible channel partners and understand what they need to participate in an MPO.
Once you have a potential partner, align on the opportunity and your respective roles before creating the offer. App Advisor also provides MPO campaign resources you can use to help educate your partner on the sales motion and support customer conversations.
How does an MPO work?
Once you have a customer opportunity and an eligible channel partner, the basic process is as follows:
- You create the MPO and send it to your channel partner.
- Your channel partner finalizes deal details like pricing and extends the offer to the customer.
- The customer buys through Microsoft Marketplace.
- Microsoft invoices the customer according to their billing terms.
- Microsoft pays you and your channel partner.
- Sales count toward your Marketplace billed sales (MBS): Marketplace Rewards, Certified Software Designation, and Azure IP co-sell eligibility.
What does an MPO look like in practice?
Imagine a customer is working with a channel partner on a broader technology initiative and wants your software included in the solution.
The customer prefers to buy through that existing partner relationship.
You create an MPO for the opportunity and send it to your channel partner who brings the offer to the customer who purchases your software through Marketplace.
This way, you gain another path to close the software transaction. The channel partner maintains its role in the customer relationship. And the customer can buy through a familiar purchasing motion.
What do I need before I start creating an MPO?
Before creating an MPO, make sure you have the basics in place.
You’ll need:
- A publicly transactable Marketplace offer that supports MPO.
- An eligible channel partner and its Marketplace seller ID.
- An eligible customer and its billing account ID.
- The products, pricing, dates, terms, and contacts for the deal.
Your channel partner also needs to meet Microsoft Marketplace prerequisites, including enrollment in the Microsoft AI Cloud Partner Program, a Marketplace account in Partner Center, an eligible tax profile, and the appropriate Marketplace role.
Collecting this information early can help you avoid delays once you’re ready to create the offer. You’ll find more details in the specific negotiate deal step in App Advisor.
Should I use MPO or REO to sell on Marketplace?
MPO and resale enabled offers (REO) both support channel-led selling, but they solve different needs.
Use MPO when you want to collaborate with a channel partner on a specific customer deal. You initiate each MPO and work with the partner to complete that transaction.
Use REO when you want to authorize a channel partner to repeatedly resell your Marketplace offer. Once authorized, the partner can independently create private offers without requiring your involvement in every sale.
In short:
- MPO = collaborate on a specific deal
- REO = authorize a partner for repeat selling
There is also a difference in the payment flow. With MPO, Microsoft pays both you and the channel partner. With REO, Microsoft pays the channel partner, and the channel partner pays you outside Marketplace according to your external agreement.
Use App Advisor to move your partner-led deal forward
You don’t need to understand every Marketplace negotiated deal type before deciding how to structure your next opportunity.
App Advisor brings the guidance together in one place. In the Grow stage, you can compare customer private offers, MPO, REO, and Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) private offers based on how you want to sell.
When MPO fits your opportunity, App Advisor can help you understand:
- When to use MPO.
- What you need from your customer and channel partner.
- How the transaction works.
- How to prepare and create the offer.
- What resources you can share with your channel partner and customer.
The goal is to move from understanding the sales motion to taking the next action without having to piece together the process across multiple resources.
Ready to add more tools to your partner-led sales motion?
Use App Advisor to determine whether MPO fits your opportunity, prepare the information you need, and start creating your deal.