Susanne Dansey’s Blog

Before I begin with this post, I am briefly covering some of the features I like in Vista and Office. The features and benefits of these two products are not limited to my list but are used to help illustrate a point (or two) that I am trying to make.

With the arrival of Vista and Office on the horizon, are we really getting excited at the prospect of a rapid increase of sales? Probably not, for those who have played with it, you can see the benefits they both offer. But are these benefits enough to convince your customers to part with more cash?

For me, part of my goal is to get customers making the most of their previous investments. One of the statistics flying around is that people only use 10-20% of the functions and features in their existing hardware and I see this as a great opportunity. Statistic #2 is that 20% of the cost of investing in new technology is the actual purchase price. The other 80% is spent on training, supporting, or, which is likely in most cases, the cost of missing out on other features in the software that could help improve business practices.

Even if the statistics above aren’t spot on, I’m sure I’m not talking out of place as I’m sure they are pretty accurate. So with all this in mind, how are we going to find time to convince customers to part with their money and move from what is a pretty stable platform?

Now don’t get me wrong, I like Vista - it’s pretty; I like the search facility and the security features available in the Enterprise versions or via licensing is great. But a lot of my customers don’t fall into that category; most of mine have hairline budgets and trusted me to sell them solid solutions a few years earlier which works just fine thank you very much.

Office 2007 is great for me too, I like the little helpful adjustments the guys have made to make my job easier. I like the preview function in Outlook, I like the way Word and PowerPoint make my basic presentation look professional. I get how Publisher makes it easier to record and monitor marketing projects, and I like, no in fact I love, OneNote. But the thing is, I always have liked these products, and over time I’ve found my own way of doing things; I’ve downloaded a PDF writer off my own back for my quotes, OneNote did the job anyway, and Office 2007 on the whole is great eye-candy.

So when these products go to RTM we’ll see channel and end-user marketing come at us from all angles - but will it work? I hope so, but at the same time I see the take up for Vista in the small business arena only as OEM on a new PC purchase or even as a new media centre (see previous post) in a big way.

And this is where the vendors (not just Microsoft) approach their two partner ‘cities’ differently. The SBS Community as I see it, on the whole, don’t shift the numbers to be able to butter vendor bread. So who does? The guys who have really got it right in this area are the retailers, those guys who have the outbound reach on the streets, online, and on the phones.

I have seen the same discussion come up a few times in recent months about the threat of the retail sector to the SBS Community. The way I see it? I wouldn’t worry. If you feel threatened by the retail sector because you think they are going to stomp all over your work as they move into the service area then you need to take action. And, when I say take action, I mean you should pack up your business and go work for someone else (maybe even retail?).

When I say don’t worry, I don’t mean sit back and watch your customers wonder why the local high street retailer is ‘caring’ more about them then you are, but think about where your strengths are and realise that this has always been your competitive advantage. Retail has always been around, and guess what, so have we! There are people who approach me quoting the latest price from PC World trying to force me to bow to the price, and I won’t. What I do is send them straight back to the shop and advise them to buy there instead. I don’t want to be bogged down supporting boxes that I made no margin on for years to come. I pride myself in offering a high quality service based on the skills you and I can offer:

• I have the experience of the technology and of supporting similar customers
• I can ‘mirror’ the client, most will use the same technology I do
• I can offer superior customer after-care - I make myself contactable and see the problem through until it is solved
• I use the community to get things done quicker and pass these benefits to the customer
• The core messages and ideas I deliver are consistent and based on the points above
• Customer perception is high because other businesses (partners and clients) recommend our services
• I stick with what I know, deliver what I trust, and work with who I like (partners and clients)
• I intend to build a long-term relationship with the client, I want to grow with them as they do too

But what about those customers who haven’t met a small business partner yet? Why do they pick a retail partner?

• They have great outreach via their stores, online presence, advertising, etc., which helps generate good company awareness and generate the sales they need to compete and survive
• The are perceived to offer affordable business IT solutions (they do offer good prices but they are in a position where the customer assumes it even before they question it)
• They can offer a walk in ‘experience’ that many of us can’t - i.e. they get to play with the kit
• They have a multi-channel focus - these partners can be the local stationery store to an online store
• They may have an established and memorable name - most customers can still name at least three or four retail partners
• They have good links with brands such as MS, HP, Symantec, Belkin etc…
• They offer convenience and are available over the phone which is great during the week and you can pop in at the weekend

I realise there are disadvantages to both camps as well but I don’t need to tell you those. 

It’s more than likely that the retail partners are going to be plugging Vista and Office and anything else that is pushed from other vendors because they get the numbers. I’m sure we’ll get our fair share of sales too but nothing close to the figures these guys could potentially push. In addition, the IT market recognises that the real cheesecake lays in support services. Those partners (retail or other) not thinking one step ahead a problem in this game could get caught out on this move.

So what do we do? Sit here and moan? NO! What we do is do what we do best; that’s handle a manageable number of client networks, invest the time needed to understand them better, and then show them how you, as their IT department, have a competitive edge over other businesses that will in turn give them the boost they need to earn more money.

The likes of Bestbuy who have nabbed the Geeksquad is a clear indication that retail needs techies and there may be some in our community that will profit from partnerships like this.

But if this isn’t for you and your customers are looking over the fence to retail partners then you have two choices:

1. re-evaluate your relationship with your customers and decide if you can do the job they are asking of you
2. decide whether you need to let go and focus on those that you want to work with.
3. there is a point three but it’s a bit too blunt and I’m sure you can make up your own interpretation…

There is plenty of room in this market for both types of partners, and even a third which you may have forgotten; the vendor themselves!

How you play the IT market is your business. Just make sure that when you’re waving to the other partners on their boats that you are doing this with them behind you and not in front.

Know your business, know your customers, know your competition, and know your market. If you aren’t sure on any of these then you know exactly where you should be looking to start covering up the holes in your leaky ship.

*Okay, so I fudged the title to get the word retail in… but you get my point…