MSPs
The term MSP (Managed IT Services Provider) has been around for years, typically it is an IT Support company that remotely manages a company’s IT infrastructure, with services such as managed IT.
Pay monthly services
Managed IT services tend to have a fixed monthly cost and are flexible to accommodate changes in requirements as companies grow. Traditionally MSPs partner with vendors such as Microsoft and other VADs (Value added Distributors) to ensure the latest IT solutions.
IT support desk
IT support desk is a popular managed IT service which allows customers to unlimited helpdesk support in business hours although specialist services are also available out of hours for sensitive applications. Pricing is often associated with the number of users of the service.
Monitoring
Monitoring is another common service which gives SMEs peace of mind that their hardware is being kept up to date with the latest upgrades and alerts are raised should services go down.
Managed services
There has been a rise in cloud-managed service offerings in recent years with MSPs launching online servers, hosted desktop and disaster recovery solutions in the cloud. With no physical hardware to support, cloud-hosted solutions are cost effective to set up and manage.
The availability of faster, more reliable internet connectivity has led to a rise in demand for Software as a Service (SaaS). Microsoft 365 is available on a low cost monthly subscription. SMEs benefit from Outlook, office applications as well as integrated CRM as well as collaboration tools such as SharePoint.
Similarly SMEs without their own internal IT have opted for Hardware as a Service (HaaS) such as managed firewalls to ensure firewalls are kept up to date on a pay monthly basis.
Demand from SMEs
SMEs are benefiting from enterprise-grade solutions and expertise for a small monthly fee and as they grow and move offices they are also turning to their MSP for advise on internet connectivity and telephony on a pay-monthly basis.
Hosted telephony
Like any other managed service hosted telephony offers low upfront investment and pay monthly services which are flexible to accommodate changes in requirements. Hosted telephony appeals to MSPs as an additional recurring revenue stream for which they are seeing increased demand and have the skills in-house to support.
To find out more about adding hosted telephony to your managed services portfolio, contact Jola.
