Knowing the Needs of SMEs: Expectations from Service Providers

Small-medium businesses (SMBs) are always looking for ways to harness emerging technologies that can optimize their business operations, enhance their customer experience or increase employee productivity. However, they have several limitations and concerns when it comes to adopting new technologies or introducing new solutions. Some of the barriers include lack of in-house expertise required to integrate a new system with the current business operations, lack of support from service partners at assisting them in various departments.

As a managed service provider or a value-added reseller, you can leverage your knowledge and experience with emerging technologies to address these limitations that SMBs have and convert this gap into a significant revenue-generating opportunity. To offer robust, integrated solutions, local service providers must know all the requirements of the small and medium enterprises and the limitations they can face at a later stage. It is not about how advanced the solution is, or whether it follows the latest technology trends; it is about how these solutions can help the SMEs to improve their business operations.

The pace of changing algorithms in technology is not slowing down, and this is improving the techniques of various business operations. As managed service providers you can effectively target small and medium-sized companies, not only because they are at the stage where they are ready to implement new systems into their operations but also because they might not have the in-house expertise required for successful integration. Managed service providers and value-added resellers thus are offering teleworking solutions to SMEs, which allows the employees of such enterprises to work remotely from any location. These robust and integrated solutions help managed service providers, and value-added resellers innovate and build more new solutions, that will help SMEs to implement new ways of operations such as accessing multiple tools on multiple devices, working from any location, reducing employee absenteeism, bringing in additional cost benefits, etc.

Channel partners like VARs and MSPs build the most flexible and cost-effective systems, and one of the examples is the hosted PBX solution. It is a feature where the location of the service provider hosts PBX solutions in a particular area. The VoIP telephone is being operated at a different location from where the hardware and the PBX are hosted. Managed service providers build solutions around an HPBX phone, which is helpful in remotely working from any location, as well as remotely access any information without additional costs. But before creating a whole new system, channel partners have to decode the business requirements of the SMEs.

With a solution provided by channel partners that give instant access to all customer information, customers can get straight to the point without having to go through the initial process of explaining the situation every time. The customers don't have to worry about calling an employee at emergency, as they solve their problems at any time during the day. The system that is built on the cloud, these local service providers are helping their business to stay connected to their customers all the time.

Channel partners should make extra efforts in finding more ways to help such businesses in building effective solutions like the HPBX, at lower costs. For that, such partners should have access to the required information by such enterprises, as well as know their needs and available resources before they suggest innovation for their operations.

As an MSP, you are probably already aware that cloud solutions have changed the way businesses are now operating. Like many of your peers, this must have affected your revenue stream as well.

But there is an untapped market which Callture can help you uncover. 

Researches show that small-medium businesses are more open to talk to or do business with MSPs and VARS that can help them improve their customer experience or reduce the time to respond.

An easy way to do this is to help your small-medium client integrate their backend systems/CRM etc. with their telecommunications system.

To know more about techniques and ways for channel partners to integrate robust solutions, download our eBook. Understand different ways in which a cloud PBX can be integrated with existing systems to drive better business outcomes.