Do you bother joining partnership programs? Does it help?

[vwdan]

I'm starting a contracting career path and my current certifications have allowed me to join a Partner program - it's free, it's my main specialism and I 'need' the certs anyway so it seemed a no brainer. But, before I go ahead and explore too many other potential options (Possibly requiring me to fund other certification programs) I just wondered if others had found it to be a beneficial and worthwhile process. Do clients take you more seriously? Does it help being able to put the pretty logos on your paperwork/website/e-mail? Or am I better sticking to just my core specialism, and not risk diluting the impact and looking like a logo hunter.

[eek]

I'm starting a contracting career path and my current certifications have allowed me to join a Partner program - it's free, it's my main specialism and I 'need' the certs anyway so it seemed a no brainer. But, before I go ahead and explore too many other potential options (Possibly requiring me to fund other certification programs) I just wondered if others had found it to be a beneficial and worthwhile process. Do clients take you more seriously? Does it help being able to put the pretty logos on your paperwork/website/e-mail? Or am I better sticking to just my core specialism, and not risk diluting the impact and looking like a logo hunter.

I don't think being a microsoft partner does anything for my contracting business.

It may do something for plan b but that is because that is being sold to people who don't understand that these partner schemes are really fairly worthless two way marketing schemes

[craig1]

They sometimes give you nice freebies...