Committing to Selling Cloud Services

Interconnects, Managed Service Providers (MSPs), and Carriers that offer Cloud services compete for and win more business than simply offering legacy services. They are able to be successful in serving their customers and can capture more recurring revenue by adding Cloud services to their portfolios. 

That means more partners are using a SaaS platform to capture new recurring revenue to meet their business objectives. Partners using a SaaS platform are winning more business and bigger business while capturing higher gross profit margins.

When a partner comes to us, it's not the business case, but the decision to commit to selling Cloud services, that challenges them. Due to years of selling legacy premises-based services, the Cloud is usually outside of our partners' comfort zones. But it is a decision that will shape the future of their business and defines how they approach their market going forward. It is not a small step; it's a critical step.

Businesses need to take action soon or risk missing out on new revenue opportunities, or worse yet, becoming irrelevant to their customers. SMBs are increasingly comfortable with the adoption of Cloud services while the convergence of voice and data means there are more service providers capable of competing for the same business. 

There are at least 30,000 potential Interconnects, MSPs and Carriers in the US, and customers are happy to buy services from a single trusted provider. As more services become easily accessible via the Cloud, it will become increasingly difficult for Interconnects, MSPs and Carriers to compete by only offering legacy services. That makes adding Cloud capabilities vital for survival in an increasingly competitive market.  

The decision to enter the Cloud space isn’t black and white, however. Cloud can become part of their portfolio without completely replacing premises-based services. When Cloud is a part of a portfolio, the partner is prepared to manage the substitution of premises-based services for the Cloud.

Where we have seen our partners have the most success with Cloud services is when they make the decision to pursue the opportunity and fully commit to selling cloud services. We really believe that whatever you do, you should do it well, and the partners that have recognized this opportunity, made the decision to pursue it, then committed their efforts to selling Cloud have received the largest returns.

Over the coming months, we’ll be sharing our advice for Interconnects, MSPs, and Carriers as they make the decision to sell Cloud services and make it part of their service portfolio. We look forward to discussing what it takes to be successful in the Cloud.