Jay Miley. Credit CRN Australia
Jay Miley discusses challenges faced by SMB resellers and ways to overcome them.CRN features an article by Jay Miley, Vice President and Managing Director of computer and technology products distributor Ingram Micro, which details the challenges faced by SMB resellers and ways in which they can be resolved.
Miley begins by claiming that the main challenge faced by SMB resellers is that while business deals can take as long as those made by larger enterprises, the returns are usually smaller – “put simply, cost of sales can kill profitability, if you’re not really careful”.
To overcome this, Miley states, “SMB resellers have to balance their sales and customer support efforts against the returns”. He also highlights the importance of using technology, such as e-commerce and automated processes “to ensure efficiency, scalability and repeatability” in deals for their customers, delivering “low-touch without reducing customer service” whilst saving on costs. Having the right partners is also claimed by Miley to be important.
Another challenge faced by SMB resellers is the high number of competitors, including both fellow SMB resellers and enterprise resellers, although Miley adds that SMB resellers may have an advantage as “they’re already geared to serve a high-volume, lower-margin market profitably”, an advantage that he says can be extended by adopting the use of smart technology and strategic partnerships, as well as by leveraging “strong existing customer relationships and a deep knowledge of their customers’ businesses and the industries they operate in”.
New technology such as the cloud, managed services and mobile technologies can also play in SMB resellers’ favour, Miley continues, as it gives them the capabilities and economies of scale that only enterprise businesses would have had before and allows them to extend their range of services. Miley adds that cloud computing can also help to reduce “lumpy revenue” as it allows “better cashflow surety”.
However, Miley adds that the influx of new technology also means that SMB resellers need to keep up with what is available, which can be particularly difficult for those without specialist in-house staff, and emphasises the importance of balancing the correct levels and types of in-house staff with the specialist expertise available from their partners.