https://www.channelfutures.com/wp-content/themes/channelfutures_child/assets/images/logo/footer-new-logo.png
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Technology Solutions Brokerages
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • 2023 MSP 501 Application
    • 2022 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2022 NextGen 101 Rankings
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • Channel Futures TV
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Advertise
    • 2023 Editorial Calendar
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2022 MSP 501
    • Channel Influencers
    • Circle of Excellence
    • DE&I 101
    • Technology Advisor 101 (TA 101)
    • Channel Leaders Lists
  • Events
    • Back
    • 2023 Call for Speakers
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • MSP Summit
    • Channel Partners Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • About Us
  • DE&I
Channel Futures
  • NEWSLETTER
  • Home
  • Technologies
    • Back
    • SDN/SD-WAN
    • Cloud
    • RMM/PSA
    • Security
    • Telephony/UC/Collaboration
    • Cable
    • Mobility & Wireless
    • Fiber/Ethernet
    • Data Centers
    • Backup & Disaster Recovery
    • IoT
    • Desktop
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Analytics
  • Strategy
    • Back
    • Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Channel Research
    • Business Models
    • Distribution
    • Technology Solutions Brokerages
    • Sales & Marketing
    • Best Practices
    • Vertical Markets
    • Regulation & Compliance
  • MSP 501
    • Back
    • 2023 MSP 501 Application
    • 2022 MSP 501 Rankings
    • 2022 NextGen 101 Rankings
  • Intelligence
    • Back
    • Galleries
    • Podcasts
    • From the Industry
    • Reports/Digital Issues
    • Webinars
    • White Papers
  • Channel Futures TV
  • EMEA
  • Channel Chatter
    • Back
    • People on the Move
    • New/Changing Channel Programs
    • New Products & Services
    • Industry Honors
  • Resources
    • Back
    • Advisory Boards
    • Industry Organizations
    • Our Sponsors
    • Advertise
    • 2023 Editorial Calendar
  • Awards
    • Back
    • 2022 MSP 501
    • Channel Influencers
    • Circle of Excellence
    • DE&I 101
    • Technology Advisor 101 (TA 101)
    • Channel Leaders Lists
  • Events
    • Back
    • 2023 Call for Speakers
    • CP Conference & Expo
    • MSP Summit
    • Channel Partners Europe
    • Channel Partners Event Coverage
    • Webinars
    • Industry Events
  • About Us
  • DE&I
    • Newsletter
  • REGISTER
  • MSPs
  • VARs / SIs
  • Agents
  • Cloud Service Providers
  • Channel Partners Events
 Channel Futures

Cloud


Still Looking to Get into the Cloud Game? Here’s Your Plan

  • Written by Charles Cooper 1
  • September 25, 2017
Even if you've been sitting on the sidelines until now, there's still major opportunity for channel players interested in shifting their focus to selling cloud solutions. Here’s how.

Cloud computing has helped growing numbers of enterprises transform their IT practices—and we’re still in the opening innings of an historic shift. Consider the following:

IDC expects cloud computing spending to increase at more than six times the rate of IT spending through the end of the decade.

The cloud computing market is projected to reach $162 billion by 2020. That would mark a compound annual growth rate of 19 percent since 2015.

That’s a big opportunity for the channel. Even if you’ve been watching from afar until now, it’s not too late to get off the sidelines. But it’s a transition that impacts every aspect of a reseller’s operations, from billing to sales and marketing.

“It’s a completely different business model,” said John Scola, SAP Vice president of cloud channels and strategy. “The value proposition that the partners offer their customers is the same—they’re trying to solve their customer’s business problems. But how they go about doing it and the economics around cloud are very different than when someone used to sell on-premise.”

How different? Let’s take a closer look.

Get Ready to Change…Everything

A successful transition starts at the top, whether that be the CEO, the founder or the general manager. The leadership must drive the new vision and stay involved in its execution. Too much is at risk and there are too many moving parts to leave the task of becoming a cloud reseller to a trusted lieutenant.

Organizations now view cloud as an opportunity to actually increase revenue or increase operational efficiency. So establish agreed-upon key performance indicators to set expectations with customers. It could be about lowering customer acquisition costs. Or it could be about keeping renewals or retention as high as possible. Also, set the right expectations and articulate how long it will take to get there.

Change management is a given. Don’t assume you can engineer this transition with 100 percent of the same organization. Your KPIs are changing. Your vision is changing. It’s only realistic that your organization will have to go through some changes as well. Some employees may or may not make it in the cloud, so you may need to be able to backfill. Even if the current staff learns to sell and support cloud services, it’s still likely that new DNA with particular cloud expertise will be needed.

Dealing with recurring subscription services means cloud resellers will have to be able to handle billing on a monthly or quarterly basis, as opposed to receiving single lump sum payments. The calculations can get complicated, especially when cloud vendors provide volume-tiered based discounts based on the number of users.

“It’s very different from someone writing a big check up front for a big project or a one-time amount,” said Ryan Walsh, SVP of Partner Solutions of cloud distributor Pax8. “Now you need to collect this money on a recurring basis, the power of the model is that it’s recurring revenue. But the challenge of the model is how to bill on a recurring nature and make sure you get that money from a customer when it’s due so you’re not left holding the bag.”

One of the great attractions of the cloud is its flexible scalability. But customers are not interested in buying and then stocking virtual inventory on the shelf. They want to buy a certain quantity at the time that they need it; whenever they add more or take more away, they want you to add more or take more away.

Line of business (LOB) customers will have considerably more influence in IT purchase decisions. That’s going to require a different method of market outreach when it comes to selling them on the cloud. It’s hardly uncommon to find LOB buyers who regularly work their way through the sales cycle without ever calling in a reseller until the last moment.

Own a niche, whether a geographic niche or a business vertical or a technology that you’re really good at. Whatever it is, make sure that you’ll be on a short list when customers are looking for you when the need arises. If you can’t say that you’re one of the top three choices when customers think about a particular area, then you don’t own it. So either acquire the expertise or change your focus.

Above all, be ready to shift the customer dialogue. The cloud is about selling solutions, not just technology. The challenge for resellers is to redirect the customer conversation away from the traditional focus on products and instead focus on the outcomes.

“The dialogue with your customer has to focus on understanding what the technology solution is going to solve,” said Walsh. “If you’re not having that conversation about outcomes, then you’re not going to be as effective—not only in satisfying the customer’s needs but also in identifying their future needs.”

What’s Your Value Prop?

There’s clear incentive for resellers to move to the cloud, a niche that’s protected (at least for now) from the forces of commoditization that have battered other parts of the technology food chain. For instance, a recent IDC report noted how cloud resellers can command 70 percent profit margins selling IP-packaged offerings. By contrast, reselling services alone only generates margins in the range of five percent to 20 percent.

But this assumes that resellers can articulate a clear value proposition, one that differentiates themselves from their competitors.

You would think this would be standard operating procedure – that a partner would have that unique value proposition and that everyone would crisply be able to deliver it. But, as Scola notes, there’s still a lot of work to do on that front.

“Vendors are obviously responsible for enabling the partners on the technology, understanding the value proposition of the technology, how to best pitch it, how to best implement and sell it. The vendor also plays a significant role in providing air cover, such as brand awareness. But the partner is still very much responsible and they should be doing their own marketing and coming up with their own value proposition,” he said.

“There’s always a requirement that the partner gets engaged from a services standpoint and provides that extra service or value-added aspect. It’s there where I think there’s plenty of room for them to differentiate, w

Tags: Agents Cloud Service Providers MSPs VARs/SIs Cloud From the Industry

Most Recent


  • Do AWS, Azure, Google, Oracle, Others, Have Too Much Market Power?
    The FTC, concerned about cloud vendors’ sway over customers, is seeking public comment.
  • Unemployed, layoffs
    Veeam Layoffs Impact 200 Workers, Company Remains 'Strong, Profitable'
    Veeam continues to hire for roles in R&D.
  • artificial intelligence focus
    Channel AI Breakthroughs: AT&T, Nvidia, GoTo, Twilio
    AT&T is the first telecommunications provider to explore the use of a full suite of Nvidia AI offerings.
  • Cloaked hacker
    VEC Attack Tries to Steal $36 Million, Ferrari, Dole Hit with Ransomware Attacks
    Ferrari says it has no plans to pay the ransom demand.

Leave a comment Cancel reply

-or-

Log in with your Channel Futures account

Alternatively, post a comment by completing the form below:

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Content

  • Woman with questions
    Should We Just Call Master Agents Distributors?
  • Stressed young people
    More Partner Pain Points: MSPs On Lack of End-to-End Security, 'New Normal'
  • Partner programs
    Commvault Adds New MSP Partner Program with Specific Pricing
  • Benefit, Plus Sign
    TBI, Avant Add New Cloud, Security Suppliers to Lineups

Upcoming Events

View all

Channel Partners Conference & Expo

May 1, 2023 - May 4, 2023

Channel Partners Europe

June 13, 2023 - June 14, 2023

Channel Futures Leadership Summit

October 30, 2023 - November 2, 2023

Galleries

View all

8 Channel People Making Waves This Week at Lumen, Accenture, Amazon, Canalys, More

March 24, 2023

National Women’s History Month: Channel Women Have Stories to Tell

March 24, 2023

VEC Attack Tries to Steal $36 Million, Ferrari, Dole Hit with Ransomware Attacks

March 23, 2023

Industry Perspectives

View all

Selling Your MSP: Strategic vs. Financial Buyers

March 22, 2023

10 Strategic Smart Enterprise Drivers for 2023

March 16, 2023

Does Your Company Have a Virtual Water Cooler?

March 13, 2023

Webinars

View all

Equipping the Hybrid Workforce: What It Takes to Execute

March 28, 2023

Give Customers the Power: How MSPs Can Leverage Cloud Choice

April 4, 2023

DE&I Dialogue: How the Right DE&I Initiatives Can Propel Your Business

April 5, 2023

White Papers

View all

6 UCaaS Reseller Challenges and How Real World Businesses Solved Them

February 1, 2023

Frost Radar: North American UCaaS Market, 2022

February 1, 2023

The Complete Guide to White-Label UCaaS for Reseller Success

February 1, 2023

Channel Futures TV

View all

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 121: Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Aryaka ‘Driving Value to the Channel Community’ with Throttle

March 24, 2023

Real-Life M&A: Advice for a Successful Channel Deal

March 13, 2023

Coffee with Craig and James Episode 120: Ronnell Richards

March 3, 2023

Twitter

ChannelFutures

Channel people making waves include: @jmcbain, @NetworkMoe, @ajassy, @JulieSweet, @Elvia_Valdes_M, @GovITDave… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

March 24, 2023
ChannelFutures

We delve into AI impacting the channel, this week featuring @nvidia, @GoTo, @twilio and more.… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

March 24, 2023
ChannelFutures

[email protected]_Inc's Peer Insights are a treasure trove for partners looking to sell #SDWAN. dlvr.it/SlRDmk https://t.co/oElLXzOIbb

March 24, 2023
ChannelFutures

#CPExpo preview: @GlobalIndirect of @AryakaChannel with a preview of the next phase of the company's channel progra… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

March 24, 2023
ChannelFutures

U.S. competition regulators want to know if @AWSCloud, @Azure, @GoogleCloud, @OracleCloud hold too much market powe… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

March 24, 2023
ChannelFutures

📣 Join us on April 13th to hear from the 2023 Channel Influencers and get their insights on the state of the channe… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

March 24, 2023
ChannelFutures

#CPExpo preview: Learn about why @USWired accepted an #acquisition deal and what partners should look for in an M&A… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…

March 24, 2023
ChannelFutures

.@Veeam lays off 200 workers to increase efficiency. #backupandrecovery dlvr.it/SlQWZW https://t.co/QTJx1NX69q

March 24, 2023

MSP 501

The industry's largest and most comprehensive partner awards program.

Newsletters and Updates

Sign up for The Channel Report, Channel Futures Update, MSP 501 Newsletter and more.

Live Channel Events

Get the latest information on the next industry-leading Channel Partners event.

Galleries

Educational slide shows and images from live events.

Media Kit And Advertising

Want to reach our audience? Access our media kit.

DISCOVER MORE FROM INFORMA TECH

  • Channel Partners Events
  • Telecoms.com
  • MSP 501
  • Black Hat
  • IoT World Today
  • Omdia

WORKING WITH US

  • Contact
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter

FOLLOW Channel Futures ON SOCIAL

  • Privacy
  • CCPA: “Do Not Sell My Data”
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
Copyright © 2023 Informa PLC. Informa PLC is registered in England and Wales with company number 8860726 whose registered and Head office is 5 Howick Place, London, SW1P 1WG.
This website uses cookies, including third party ones, to allow for analysis of how people use our website in order to improve your experience and our services. By continuing to use our website, you agree to the use of such cookies. Click here for more information on our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy.
X