(Add to Favorites | View All Articles | Resource Directory)
|
|
|
Small Business Server Business Tips
Top 3 Ways to Maximize Your Small Business Server Consulting Profits Over the past 7 years, Microsoft Small Business Server (SBS) has gained traction as a widely-respected Small Business Server networking suite. As a result, many small business computer consultants, systems integrators, and value-added resellers have jumped on-board the Microsoft Small Business Server bandwagon. However, before you go ahead and bet YOUR company on Microsoft Small Business Server, consider the following three Small Business Server Business Tips... so you can maximize your Small Business Server consulting profits. (1) Most small businesses in your area have never heard of Microsoft Small Business Server. Although there may be hundreds, if not thousands, of small businesses in your area that would be excellent candidates for Microsoft Small Business Server, don't make the ultra-common mistake of assuming that the typical non-technical small business owner even knows what Microsoft Small Business Server is. If you want to maximize your consulting profits and avoid commodity price wars, you're much better off leading off with a pitch for something that's more universally recognized... such as getting rid of computer viruses, stopping SPAM, or preventing computer security breaches. (2) Sell your small business prospects on YOUR company first. The real money in Small Business Server is NOT in reselling the Microsoft Small Business Server software. The real money comes from selling the RELATIONSHIP with the small business. So your company essentially becomes your clients' outsourced IT department. Remember, no small business owner is going to wake up in the middle of the night, in a cold sweat, craving Small Business Server. However, small business owners DO constantly lose sleep over what will happen to their companies if their computer systems fail them. Become the solution to the more primal, survival instinct and you'll get plenty of opportunities to sell Small Business Server, once you've established a solid client/consultant relationship. (3) Microsoft doesn't value computer consultants as much as they sometimes say. Little known fact: the first version of Microsoft Small Business Server, planned in 1996 and released in 1997, was code-named "SAM"... because Microsoft's goal was for Small Business Server to completely bypass their reseller channel and be sold at "Sam's Club" warehouse clubs. So the product team had the mandate to make the Small Business Server product SO simple that a non-technical small business end user could buy Small Business Server at the warehouse club and have the Small Business Server suite running in their office that same day. Shortly after the first-version shipped, Microsoft realized that the most cost-effective way to reach small businesses with Small Business Server was through their reseller channel. And since then, Small Business Server resources have flowed toward the channel. However, even today, you can often find 5-user versions of Microsoft Small Business Server in retail stores. So the point: Microsoft isn't putting all its Small Business Server "eggs" in one basket, so why should you?!? Which brings us back to points one and two: Small business owners aren't actively shopping for a "Small Business Server". So instead of "selling" Small Business Server per se, you're much better off selling a small business on YOUR company, BEFORE you sell Microsoft Small Business Server. The Bottom Line In this article, we looked at three Small Business Server business tips that every computer consultant, systems integrator and value added reseller needs to be aware when selling Microsoft Small Business Server. Copyright MMI-MMV, SmallBusinessServerTips.com, All Worldwide Rights Reserved. Joshua Feinberg is a 15-year veteran computer consultant, an internationally recognized expert on small business computer consulting. He has appeared in dozens of business and IT trade publications including CRN, VARBusiness, Microsoft Direct Access, TechRepublic, American Express OPEN Platinum Ventures, Entrepreneur, Inc, SCORE, Small Business Computing, and USA Today. He is also author of Building Profitable Solutions with Microsoft Small Business Server. To learn more about Joshua's proven strategies for squeezing more consulting profits out of Microsoft Small Business Server, sign-up for his free one-hour training seminar at http://www.SmallBusinessServerTips.com
MORE RESOURCES: News provided by Yahoo! News and Google News Tories pat small biz heads in open source IT procurement pledge - Register Loan tap tight for small biz, especially startups - New York Daily News Go big-time with small biz - The Newark Advocate Small biz ready to hire with increased risk appetite: study - Toronto Sun US Admin Offls: Export Initiative to Help Small Biz Efforts - Market News International Small Biz Spotlight: Slide to Play (Pt. 3) - Technorati (blog) Kagen Holds Roundtable To Hear From Small Biz Owners - Sheboygan News (blog) Small biz loans down in Crawford County - Bucyrus Telegraph Forum |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How to be Annoyed and Make Money When do annoyances in a relationship become too much to bear?Have you ever worked for a client that drives you up the wall and back down the other side but you keep working with them because you need the money? I am sure most of us have been in that position and were so happy when that relationship finally broke up. It felt like you were finally free and able to do what you do best somewhere else, or you fell into panic because you had no income anymore. 1-2-3 Steps To A Successful Joint Venture A successful joint venture marketing effort is the goal of many small businesses, and is a great way to increase market visibility and profits.Joint venture marketing is rising in popularity everyday, but it does take some skill, good planning and foresight to execute. Increase Profits With a Small Investment of Time and No Money The less a business pays for goods and services the more profit that business generates. How does a small business with limited purchasing power get access to lower cost goods and services? The answer is simple. Using Excel Payroll Sheet to Make Payroll System Easier For the employees, payday is the brightest day; they finally get the compensation they so well deserve for the services they rendered. For the employer, this could be nerve-wracking, not because they don't want to pay their employees, but because some employers have a hard time calculating the payroll. Define business goals - crucial to success Scenario OneDuring a recent presentation, a business owner was given the following challenge. If 10 of his 100 employees were asked to name the top 3 organizational goals for the current year as they perceived them to be, would he receive the same 3 goals from everyone or would he receive 5, 10 or even 25 different goals? The business owner shook his head and thoughtfully responded, "No, I am sure that I would receive more than 3 goals. Starting a Tractor Washing Business In the heavy equipment cleaning business you can make good money and provide an important service for your clientele. You can save them man-hours, chemical costs and free up time for more important needs such as preventative maintenance and repairs. New Habits, Rebounding Economy Help To Sell Giftware and Collectibles Just a few years ago, when one thought of a home-based sales business, Tupperware, Avon and a host of multi-level marketing schemes might have come to mind. Today, however, changing market conditions and evolving consumer habits have converged to make home-based selling businesses a realistic opportunity with real profit potential. Does Your Business Need a Toll-Free 800 Number? Should your business have a toll free number for customers to make sales, service and billing inquirers? The industry began in the early 1970's and today most customers expect you to have it. Providing a toll free line can bring in a number of benefits to your business. The Advisory Board: A Business Owners Most Valuable Resource As a company grows, the owner's role begins to change. More and more of the owner's time is spent "in the shop or in the field" handling day-to-day operations rather than focusing on high-level planning and strategic issues. A Small Business Must Have a Solid Foundation We all know that a building has to have a strong foundation if it is to survive, so, too, a business.There are many planks that support a business but there are four corner-posts that bear the most weight?The four corner-posts are Marketing, Selling, Production and Financial Control. Small Business Essentials: Start Here Thinking of starting a business on line? If so there are two things you absolutely must commit to before ever opening shop on the web. Any one who refuses to realistically consider these two factors should not be in business. Street Wars Between Mobile Car Washers and Mobile Auto Detailers There is much competition in the mobile auto detailing business. There are two different lines of reasoning emerging as to how the business should be run. How to Remove Stress from Owning a Business... Forever! I meet and talk to hundreds and hundreds of business owners every year and do you know what I've discovered? Virtually all of them are regularly suffering from stress.It dawned on me while running a seminar one day. A Look at Small Business Incorporating in Florida The choice to incorporate a small business in Florida has several advantages. Corporations are separate legal entities and, as such, the corporation rather than individual owners pay both the taxes and the liabilities. Solving the Late Paying Customer Blues Nothing can drive a business down faster than customers who don't pay their bills as agreed. When you sell to customers on credit you are making an agreement with them. Find a Small Business Guru What is a guru?A guru is a teacher. A mentor. More Business Card Marketing If you are worried about how many different business cards you should carry, let me speak from experience, you need only ONE!The best way to confuse a potential customer is to present them with more than one business card. You may be doing a number of things and have cards for each one (even have several businesses where you do work) but you need to focus on what it is that you do best. How to Define Business Objectives Why does a good business relationship rely on having some common business objectives?As you attend networking events, you will gradually find ways that make it easy for you to mingle and be heard. Your message will need to be clear, focused and consistent each time. Starting your own business is a lot like planting an orchard Think of all of your business ideas as tiny seeds that have the potential to germinate and grow into huge fruit bearing orchards! However, the proper steps must be taken; you can't scatter the seeds haphazardly on pavement and expect they will germinate. Growing a business is no different; it needs a fertile environment conducive to growth in order to germinate and thrive. The Perfect Mission Statement One way to determine your companies mission statement is based on a general overview of the company. Some important questions are asked like: Why does the company exist and what kind of business is it in? Is there a particular market or niche that it will concentrate upon? How will the company be distinctive in its business methods? Once these questions are answered, the focus moves to the accomplishment of these broadly expressed objectives.
|
| home | site map | articles |
| © 2006 |