Weekly Wrap: Cisco Live 2018

The Holidays are upon us. I hope you have at least started on the gift acquisition project. Remember, shop small…

Last week we were in Cancun for Cisco Live Latin America. It was an amazing experience. Every day we had various scheduled and unscheduled partner meetings. It was good to put a face to the countless people I have been working with over the past few years. Many, heard I was there and made it over to give me a high five and hug. I tell you, it was a special experience and I will not soon forget.

The event started Tuesday night, and ended Friday. Sadly we missed Juanes as we had to get home.

We had tons of new friends come by and marvel at the product we brought to show. We brought a fair amount of product to show including the new RV160 and RV260 models. I had four of the five models there on hand and we actually gave a few away to some lucky new friends. Yes, they we are very happy. All thought we were joking.

All of the RV160 and RV260 models got alot of attention from everyone, including our Channel, Distribution, and Service Provider friends. We were lucky to have Felipe Gonzalez who is the Commercial Director for Mexico come to the booth and do two live social media posts launching the new RV160 and RV260 models. I tell you, I was kind of pumped, me being the Product Manager for these new models.

Many got super close to these new models, but it really wasn’t until I handed these purpose-built VPN models and got them in their hands that they realized that we had done something very special.

The comments received ranged from, “wow!, ah SFP! to these feel great!” Most said that the gear felt sturdy and brought that feeling of value and quality. They should, but I am biased.

Once we told them that these have a new dual-core processor, a new user interface, FindIT Support, and can be deployed without pre-staging or pre-configuring, I had them. Back it up with FindIT and the best in-class warranty and support, and it is a package tough to beat.

One of the best moments for me personally was when I was walking back to the booth and saw a gentleman leaning down looking at my new models at the front of the booth. I noticed he was taking pictures. As I walked closer, I could see he was taking multiple shots, zooming in, getting close-ups. He was pre-occupied enough that I was able to get right behind him and introduce myself. It was a cool moment for sure. The RV345P we brought was a crowd-pleaser. The idea of WAN failover and load balancing really made sense for this crowd. I get it, over half of our models have Dual WAN ports. The RV Series has been in the market serving the small business for over ten years. For more information, click here.

Other highlights, as always was our vast portfolio of switching, including the new SG250, 350 and 550 models. The unmanaged 110 series is always popular. With a portfolio so big, there is literally a model for any use-case or deployment requirement. Our SG250-26 model onsite got many up-close looks.

Our wireless access points (WAP Series) stood out. Like the others, they got handled by many eager hands as they were closely inspected. The 4×4 WAP581 Wireless-AC Wave 2 model was a big hit, as was the WAP125 and WAP150. The idea of a controller-less wireless network for a small business resonated with all, including our partners.

We demo-ed Cisco FindIT Networking Management at the show. We ran Nasser’s FindIT Video which looped during the hours. Boy it attracted attention. The idea of monitoring and managing (and remediating!) a network is becoming increasingly important for the Small Business. We all know a small business network is no less important than any other size of organization.

The FindIT Embedded Probe is a new idea that is starting with our 250 and 350 Switching models. This on-site presence also resonated strongly as the simplest form of deploying the FindIT Probe comes this month. Next up will be the RV Series and WAP’s later this year. Stay tuned here for information.

Many cool moments happened over the week. We had quite a few folks come by to get selfies or shots of themselves on our awesome backdrop in our booth (Thanks Walter!).

Veronica, pictured here, came by one afternoon, told us she loves our products and that she knows them well. I tell you, I was floored. As someone who talks about our products to anyone who will listen, I love hearing that someone else feels the same way.

We handed out our portfolio one-pager (Thank you Nag!) to a few hundred friends, and even my business card is now floating around Mexico, Costa Rica, MCO, Caribbean, and the rest of Latin America. Go ahead, send me a note!

This journey started as a quest shortly after Cisco Live LA 2017. I thought that there could not be a better time nor place since I knew my new models would be launching fall 2018. I pressed a little, asked alot of favors, and probably made quite a few people sick of seeing my emails in their inboxes.

But it was worth it. 100% worth it. I can tell you why, the action item list I have now. But no, seriously, the amount of positive feedback, the promise of new business with partners new or existing, and the relationships built, new and old.

I would like to thank our team: Especially Carla (you are the best!), Marco, Carlos, Odette, Matias, Pedro, Saul and Walter. A very special gracias to Jorge. Conejito was a very important team member this year. Your enthusiasm and effort during the week made it all the better and effective.

Anyway to you all, Brian and I could not have had the impact without you and your efforts. See you all next year!

Thanks,

Marc

From our team to yours during the holidays, thank you. Make it a special time with family and friends.