As most of us can attest, Cisco SMARTnet tends to be the last piece of a project that is discussed, if at all. Typically, we hear responses such as “We don’t have the budget for it this year” or “I paid for it last year and never needed it, why should I pay for it again?”
As the IT landscape continues to evolve, the need for recurring revenue is as important as ever. But, it’s not just to fill in the box on your checklist. Having the correct Service Level Agreement (SLA) on your mission-critical items will ensure you’re properly covered, and could save you money. Incorrect SLAs can cost your company upward of $100,000 an hour in downtime. Ouch!
Hiring someone for your company to manage all of your contracts can also be costly and time consuming. Additionally, the effort required to make sure the data is accurate…to providing recommendations to your clients on what SLA they should get…to what product to migrate or refresh to…or even something as simple as letting your client know well in advanced of a renewal so they make sure they have the budget for it — I’m exhausted thinking about it!
Comstor has developed a service practice around all of this to make the lives of our customers easier and less stressful. We provide you with actionable items your sales reps can present confidently to your clients.
Don’t let yourself or your customer be the one trying to get support at 2 a.m. because a security appliance has failed, and support denies the assistance because you don’t have a sufficient SLA.
What are the benefits to you?
- An Increase in Revenue Opportunity. Right-sizing will allow you to recommend EOL, LDOS items and present a conversation for upsell with purpose, based on actionable information.
- Opportunity to Become a Trusted Advisor. Knowledge is power. Most clients don’t know how outdated their equipment is or how much the wrong SLA could cost in the long term. By becoming an expert in this area, you will immediately stand out from the crowd as a trusted reseller.
- Increase CSPP (Cisco Services Partner Program) dollars. Many VARs leave a lot of money on the table from their backend rebates. Premium service levels are the big misses we see every day. Having the right mix of services sold can increase rebate dollars another 4%.
Chad is a Business Development Manager with Comstor. He can be reached at 303.801.8096 or chad.gerald@comstor.com.
