Nehring Technology, based in Stephenville,

November 6, 2012

3 Min Read
Nehring Technology: Pricing and Selling MDM for Success

By LabTech Guest Blog LabTech Guest Blog 1

Nehring Technology Total IT Support

Nehring Technology, based in Stephenville, Texas, has been providing business technology solutions since 2006 and became a managed service provider in 2010. The company’s mission is focused on enhancing and improving business technology through proactive maintenance and support. This is part one of a six-part series investigating how MSPs can successfully integrate mobile device management into their service offerings.

Justin Nehring

Last time, Nehring Technology was about to embark on selling mobile device management (MDM) services to their clients, something they had previously done only on a very limited scale. Justin Nehring (pictured), president of Nehring Technology, discussed how challenging it was to sell MDM to clients for a number of reasons. Many clients feel there isn’t much need for MDM. Others don’t see the value in MDM or simply don’t understand what MDM can do for their company.

 

Education is Key

At the start of their MDM sales efforts, Nehring found that most clients had only a slight understanding of MDM, and most interest revolved around the remote lock/wipe feature. Nehring knew they had an uphill battle; all clients would need to receive education about the numerous features and benefits of LabTech MDM before they could even begin the selling process. And thus began an education initiative that included personalized, one-on-one discussions with clients about how MDM could help their specific business model.

Customizing MDM

MDM needs vary from business to business, so Nehring’s challenge was making sure they customized MDM discussions and education based on the needs of each individual client. For instance, one client in the healthcare sector wanted to utilize tablets for taking notes during patient visits, but still use laptops or PCs for more in-depth work. Nehring is currently working with the client to determine their exact needs.

Pricing MDM

Pricing MDM can be tricky. For Nehring Technology, the pricing structure of MDM depends on the client contract level and the number of devices that are utilized. For example, they include MDM services for one mobile device per PC under all premium contracts as a value add; and then charge $3-5 per month for additional mobile devices. According to Nehring, MDM will be as pervasive as antivirus in an MSP offering – people are going to expect it. Thus, for them, MDM is a differentiator.

A pricing option is also available for clients who use a tablet as their primary device. While currently rare, they have run into instances where service was needed for a standalone device. In these cases, $25 per device, per month is charged. The reason they charge a higher amount for a standalone device is simple. “You can’t troubleshoot remotely. It’s going to be onsite work,” said Nehring.

MDM Services Pre-LabTech MDM

Before LabTech Software introduced its MDM solution as part of its remote monitoring and management (RMM) platform, Nehring Technology spent a lot of time and resources servicing mobile devices. For instance, to configure bring your own device (BYOD) and company-owned mobile devices for a local non-profit organization with 18 employees, it would require a site visit, plus 10 to 15 minutes per device, which added up to about half a day of work at best. This process took much longer when the human element was factored in. Other challenges included getting employees to part with their mobile devices for the install (for even just a few minutes), incoming calls as they were programming the configurations, and trying to find the person to even get the phone. This is especially problematic when people work offsite.  However, with LabTech MDM, Nehring anticipates simplifying this process.

Next time: How Nehring Technology simplifies the MDM implementation process for clients and technicians. What challenges did they encounter and how were they overcome?

Guest Blogs such as this one from LabTech Software are part of MSPmentor’s dedicated InfoCenter sponsorship program. Check the MSPmentor MDM InfoCenter for complete MDM industry coverage.

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