Jola Cloud Solutions' Blog

Investment in UC/CC

In the past, it was the PBX or hosted PBX providers that were providing UC add-ons to their basic service sometimes at a significant premium.  Now it is the collaboration vendors that, with the addition of PSTN calling, are now displacing the PBX and/or hosted PBX.  It is now relatively easy to port a UK PSTN number to a Teams user and use that single client (desktop and mobile) to be able to interact using the rich Teams experience or make and receive traditional voice calls as required.

Change 

It is clear that COVID has changed the workplace forever and beneficiaries have been the UC and collaboration solutions such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom and WebEx.  In many workplaces, the option didn’t exist to regularly work remotely and as a result, companies didn’t necessarily provide the UC and collaboration tools required.  COVID changed all that and remote working became mandatory for most of us.  At first, we used the tools for multi-person video calls, but quickly started sharing screens and in many cases moved to mass participation web conferences.

What's new?

At the moment the UC collaboration experience is all based on two dimensions video and screen sharing.  However, we already see our SIMs being used in Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) applications in specialist industries with purpose-built tools and devices.  However, companies such as Microsoft, Apple and Google are investing heavily in AR and VR for both consumers and businesses.  This combined with the widespread availability of 5G makes me think it won’t be too far away before the UC and Collaboration tools that we use every day start to open up AR and VR for widespread B2B use.

With the sunsetting of 3G, the PSTN Switch off and the rollout of 5G, demand for mobile data solutions has never been higher. Resellers and MSPs are in the perfect position to take advantage of this and they are looking for reliable suppliers who can help them grow high-margin, recurring mobile data revenues, whilst simultaneously increasing the overall value of their company.

Wholesale suppliers will need to give channel partners the tools to win deals, usually competing with the direct sales arms of the mobile networks. They must be an aggregator with access to all the networks and ideally, they will also be an independent MVNO. Most importantly everything must be automated, with real-time APIs offering zero-touch provisioning and management through a single self-service portal.

The most successful of these will be highly innovative, with a constant stream of relevant mobile data and IoT products that the networks would otherwise take years to develop and launch. When you partner with the right channel supplier, mobile data is easy to sell, support and bill.

The prospect for the channel is significant. ICT resellers already enjoy strong relationships with businesses and the public sector having sold them a range of IT and telecoms infrastructure. Within this customer base, opportunities for mobile data solutions exist in asset tracking, digital signage, mobile WiFi, monitoring and utilities.

Mobile data is an easy product to sell and provision and needs very little support. Jola signed just over 200 new partners in 2023 and now has nearly 1500. One of our partners recently won a huge deal for thousands of RoamNet data SIMs for use in phones and tablets. Using our unique QR technology eliminated the need for physical SIM cards, making the rollout quick and easy. QR codes are also a significant step towards minimising e-waste and removing several operational headaches. SIMs roam over hundreds of mobile networks and are managed via a single platform – Mobile Manager.

Jola SIMs also operate ANPR cameras, CCTV cameras, vending machines, digital signs and tracking devices around the world.

Our partners don’t have to add any more people in billing or accounts departments to support these deals. SIMs provision immediately on Mobile Manager, so you don’t have to wait to start generating recurring margins. As soon as customers put that SIM into their device, you’re billing for it.

Jola, the first company to establish an eSIM data MVNO dedicated to the channel in 2019, has gone one step further by including voice and SMS with their brand new global MVNO – RoamNet Voice.  Using a single UK number, customers of Jola’s 1400+ partners can access multiple networks in the UK and Ireland, for voice, data and SMS. This innovative roaming product can be steered or un-steered and is available via eSIM, triple-cut plastic SIM and, uniquely, a simple QR code.

Their first QR implementation saw thousands of demonstration handsets go live in minutes simply by using the phone’s camera to scan a single QR code. There is no alternative quite like RoamNet Voice on the market, and certainly nothing else available to resellers and MSPs. 

Jola partners now have a genuinely differentiated product to win against the Mobile Networks with great recurring margins and the real-time management and control of Mobile Manager.

“One of the great benefits of being a channel-only, independently run company within the Wireless Logic group is that we can quickly productise solutions for the channel using existing networks. RoamNet Voice combines a true roaming SIM with a UK mobile phone number and the flexibility of our fully managed voice network. RoamNet is the most cost-effective multi-network solution we offer and competes with similar offerings from the MNOs.” Adrian Sunderland CEO, Jola.

Most resellers still do not have a mobile data proposition and they will need one to fulfil PSTN replacement opportunities and connectivity requirements for their customers. Jola’s CEO Adrian Sunderland will highlight the opportunity at the Channel Live Exhibition at the NEC on the panel discussion’ Future Proofing Connectivity’.

Using case studies, Adrian will explain the mobile data opportunity and how high ARPUs and good margins can be achieved.  He will help the audience to uncover opportunities sitting within their own customer bases and explain how mobile data can only be successfully scaled with a supplier who can deliver unique and differentiated solutions managed in a fully automated, real-time portal.

Every reseller has at least one significant mobile data opportunity in their customer base. The objective of this panel debate is to let the audience know how they can win these deals with the help of their suppliers. Panellists will outline the opportunities and deals being won and how they contribute positively to their enterprise value. They will highlight barriers to success and how to overcome them with the right partners.

Fixed IP SIMs have been available on a wholesale model via Jola for many years. They are typically used for CCTV cameras, alarm systems, sensors, Point-of-Sale systems, mobile broadband and fixed line broadband back-up which need stable fixed IP addresses. Many of these applications typically use a lot of data which has driven up the cost of solutions for end users in locations where EE is the preferred network. Jola has solved this problem by adding Fixed IP EE SIMs with unlimited data to their real-time management portal, Mobile Manager. 

“Our solution is unique to us as the Fixed IP address applies to the SIM card and not the router.  This means that any device with a SIM slot can now have a fixed public IP address.  We offer unlimited data so users do not have to worry about data overage charges and MSPs can monitor data usage in Mobile Manager. Our competitive pricing allows MSPs to save end users money, give them more control over their solution, and make good recurring margins. Our Fixed IP SIMs transit the Cloudflare international IP Network giving partners peace of mind with full DDoS protection.” Cherie Howlett, CMO, Jola.

Subscription Services

Subscription services allow organisations to benefit from new technologies and services without having to spend large amounts of CAPEX.  It also allows them to scale up or down, which is invaluable for organisations facing seasonal demands. 

Impact on the Channel

Subscription services generally work exceptionally well for channel companies because we’re all used to supplying services such as fixed line and mobile on a monthly recurring basis, often with some term discount to reward loyalty.  The only channel business model that could get disrupted is traditional hardware and perpetual software sales funded by leasing. 

Nowadays, many companies that would have had a PBX in their office and a bunch of servers, switches and firewalls in their comms room or data centre will likely have replaced everything with the private or public cloud equivalents. 

Innovations

In the mobile data world, we’re seeing a shift towards CPE as a service. This enabled, for example, many customers to deploy 5G routers in their networks where it would have previously been prohibitive due to the relatively higher upfront costs compared with 4G routers. 

This is a win-win.  The reseller gets a more valuable stickier solution sell than they might have otherwise enjoyed.  The end-user gets the performance and productivity benefits offered by the latest 5G technologies. 

Key Trends

The key trends that are driving subscription services are the ever-accelerating march towards digital transformation and the cloud.  This has created a virtuous circle that means constant growth in customer adoption drives innovation which delivers improved services which drives more adoption. 

The other side of this equation is that organisations are more reliant on their digital infrastructure and all professional services that provide peace of mind have never been in more demand such as 24x7 network monitoring and support and 24x7 security operations centre services. 

Of course, these professional services are an ideal candidate to be delivered as a service.  We have MSPs delivering managed network and managed security services on a per-user or per-device per-month subscription basis. 

Opportunities

The best place to look for opportunities is always in your existing customer base.  Seek out those customers that may have struggled to sign off on a project in the past due to CAPEX constraints but that could do using a purely OPEX model.  Look for customers that have experienced rapid growth organically or have grown through acquisition, they will be facing technology and communications problems that you can help with. 

Jola is delighted to be a founding member of The Big Goal, an initiative dedicated to addressing youth homelessness through the transformative power of football.

The Street Soccer Foundation is tackling youth homelessness with the support of clubs across The Premier League and English Football League (EFL) by equipping individuals with the skills and support they need for a brighter future.

The Big Goal Initiative is known for its holistic approach to youth development, aligning with Jola's commitment to fostering positive change and well-being. By supporting this initiative, Jola aims to make a lasting impact on the lives of young people.

Cherie Howlett, CMO Jola, commented “Football is a passion for many at Jola and after England won the Women’s Euros in 2022 it has become even more of a talking point in the office. We got involved with this charity because it is a great cause. By supporting the Big Goal Initiative, Jola is supporting vulnerable young people in our community, who may one day work in the industry. This initiative focuses on imparting valuable skills, and changing lives for the better, which I think we can all get on-board with.”

During 2024 3G will be switched off by most, if not all, UK mobile operators. This transition will leave end-users stranded with devices that no longer work such as vehicle trackers, payment terminals, and industrial handheld devices. This situation presents a significant opportunity for the Channel to offer new devices paired with SIMs supporting 4G and 5G.

While most of the population will have access to 5G, fostering the adoption of higher bandwidth applications, SME businesses can expect optimal performance and value for money through (FTTP). In cases where FTTP is unavailable, 5G is likely to hugely outperform (SoGEA) based broadband in terms of performance and efficiency. The cost of 5G hardware is expected to decrease with advances in performance, making it an attractive investment.

The opportunity

The ongoing PSTN switch-off represents a substantial business opportunity. Many major operators and resellers may underestimate the amount of businesses using PSTN lines in locations where high-speed broadband is unnecessary. Resellers offering PSTN replacement solutions leveraging 4G find they are easy to sell. Many resellers will already be talking to their customers about the PSTN switch-off and guiding them towards appropriate solutions in plenty of time, potentially saving their customers money whilst making more margin.

Internet security is no longer a nice to have. In the mobile data space, the Fixed Public IP SIMs present the easiest attack surface for hackers.  There have been many examples of CCTV cameras, IoT devices, VoIP handsets and mobile data routers being hacked, used as part of botnets and used to facilitate DDoS attacks and telephony fraud.  At Jola, we’ve been running all our Fixed IP traffic through Cloudflare for two years and we now prevent hundreds of hacking attempts against our customers monthly.  

One of our most important values is ‘customer first’. This is because our customers all have their own customers and when things go wrong, or their end user needs information, speed is vital.

For the first time, we are publishing some of our KPIs and whilst we think these numbers are world-class, we know we can always improve.

*Professional contact centres use this methodology to measure success. You may see organisations publish average response times and this is often either down to weak management or a deliberate attempt to hide poor performance.

To explain by example. Imagine a 9-5 contact centre receiving 100 calls an hour on average. From 9-12 and 2-5 the average response time is 10 seconds but over the lunch period, inadequate cover means the average is 300 seconds. The daily average wait time is less than a minute and a half but this masks the true overall customer experience. Furthermore, if managers believe in this flawed system, customer-affecting issues are harder to identify, diagnose and fix.

The B2B buying process has undergone significant change in the last 10 years. Surveys have shown that when SMEs are buying ICT they 1. Research the web 2. Approach existing suppliers 3. Ask peers for recommendations. Unsolicited approaches by phone, email or IM are disliked, ineffective and may actually hamper your chances, especially when used in isolation. Your salespeople are your most expensive resource. Stop wasting their time and expertise by forcing them to make hundreds of cold calls, most of which end in failure or rejection.

For quality run-rate leads you need a 5-touch inbound marketing strategy that combines direct mail, social media, PR, SEO and events. For larger prospects, you need an ABM (Account Based Marketing) programme that integrates the sales and marketing departments. It’s easier to sell to existing customers, so build an effective cross-selling programme using product specialists where justified.

The biggest waste of your time is the deal you don’t win

The best test of a new supplier is conversion rate and margin. Good Account Managers help you identify and qualify opportunities. They give you the questions to ask to uncover problems and needs and they help you close deals. A channel-only vendor growing rapidly with a lot of partners is a good sign because it means their partners are closing lots of large contracts. Most vendors say they have a channel programme but there is little substance behind the fluff. Ask for evidence and references. Pull their accounts!

Don’t let new products damage the relationship with your customers

Make sure your vendor has properly developed products that can be easily productised and billed. They should be provisioned, managed and supported through a mature, well-established, API-enabled, real-time, self-service portal. Ask for evidence that the products are reliable and easy to support. Make sure you don’t lose control of the process and the relationship with your end users. Your salespeople will be reluctant to sell anything that might damage the rapport they have with their customers and/or puts core product lines at risk.