If you are a UK Microsoft Partner, you already know the frustration of vendor funding. Every year, millions of pounds in Co-op and Marketing Development Funds (MDF) are allocated to MSPs and tech resellers to help accelerate growth across Modern Work, Azure, Security and Microsoft Copilot.
Yet, a staggering amount of that money goes completely untouched. In fact, industry reports show that up to 60% of available vendor funds expire unused every single year.
Why? Because most MSPs simply do not have the internal marketing bandwidth or administrative capacity to deal with the complex application processes, strict campaign execution rules, and painful Proof of Execution (POE) compliance requirements mandated by Microsoft.
Leaving this funding on the table means leaving pre-approved growth capital sitting in Microsoft’s accounts instead of using it to fill your sales pipeline. Here is how modern MSPs are removing those friction points, unlocking 100% of their allocated budget and converting vendor funds into qualified pipeline.
The 3 Reasons MSPs Lose Out on Vendor Funds
1. The Execution Bandwidth Trap
Building a Microsoft-compliant marketing campaign isn’t a 10-minute task. It requires strategy, copywriting, landing page creation, targeted data sourcing and active outbound follow-up. For a busy MSP whose internal teams are already stretched thin running day-to-day operations and servicing existing clients, marketing execution always takes a back seat. When daily fires hit, campaign deadlines slip and funding windows close.
2. Burdensome Proof of Execution (POE)
Microsoft has strict guidelines for claiming back approved Co-op and MDF money. If your campaign metrics, landing page URLs, email metrics, invoice formatting or activity reporting miss the mark by even a fraction, claims are rejected or delayed indefinitely. Many MSPs simply give up after getting burned by rejected POE submissions.
3. Isolated, Single-Touch Campaigns
When MSPs do manage to launch a campaign to use up budget, it is often a rushed, one-off activity like sending a single batch email or hosting a low-attendance webinar. Without sustained, multi-touch follow-up, the campaign fails to generate qualified meetings, leading owners to believe that vendor-funded marketing doesn’t yield real ROI.
“Yet, a staggering amount of that money goes completely untouched. In fact, industry reports show that up to 60% of available vendor funds expire unused every single year.”