Jola Cloud Solutions' Blog

In the annual partner satisfaction survey, Jola scored a Net Promoter Score of 55, categorising the company as ‘great’, with 44% of Jola partners giving them 10/10 and 95% scoring them 7 or higher. In the comments, Jola partners praised Jola’s products, pricing, portals, people and service.

Adrian Sunderland, Jola’s CEO, commented, ‘I am happy with our NPS score and the feedback we received from partners. We have over 1400 resellers choosing Jola as their preferred mobile connectivity supplier. Our relentless product development continues with a list of unique products you can’t buy from anyone else designed to help partners differentiate and win bigger deals. We continue to grow and invest in people, products, platforms and processes. We have a fantastic team dedicated to supporting our growing partner base and it was great to see so many of them named in the survey.”

The channel has an essential role in educating businesses to adopt new technologies. It is our responsibility to highlight products being switched off, such as 3G and PSTN, to help companies prepare, with improved, more cost-effective solutions.

Traditional telephone lines will cease to exist leaving vulnerable people in care homes and hospices without a working phoneline unless we step in. Vehicle trackers, payment terminals and industrial handheld devices will stop working as 3G is switched off unless companies are presented with a future-proof solution.

5G is becoming more widely available and 5G hardware is reducing in price, making 5G a viable alternative to fixed line connectivity in some areas, offering customers a faster, more reliable solution.

Improving online security is becoming more of a priority with Denial-of-Service attacks on the increase. Jola has been running Fixed IP traffic over Cloudflare for many years protecting connected CCTV cameras and smart devices from attack.

Trusted advisors

End-user businesses don’t ask for information about a product, they ask for help solving a problem. The supplier who understands the challenges and proposes a simple, cost-effective solution, becomes the go-to advisor for similar challenges in the future.

Support

MSPs and resellers partner with aggregators and experts in their fields to allow them to deliver the widest range of solutions at the best possible prices. They look for partners with automated portals so they can retain control of their customer experience. They look for suppliers who can help them identify and win new opportunities. Jola partners benefit from their MRG™ programme, a proven process to target and close opportunities, maximising customer satisfaction.

Mobile data solutions are a huge growth area for the channel because they can replace traditional fixed lines as well as provide reliable connectivity for a plethora of new M2M applications, of which digital signage, ANPR/CCTV cameras and tracking are just a few examples. Book to bill is days rather than months and recurring margins are reasonable. Most MSPs and resellers partner with a single mobile data MVNO and aggregator, rather than try and deal with the MNOs directly. Specialist aggregators have developed differentiated channel products that end users cannot buy from the MNOs directly and are better priced. The best suppliers will have a suite of intuitive software tools and a portal to make the management of multiple suppliers easier, and less risky with maximum control and margin realisation. Recent innovations in global multi-network SIMs and QR codes offer the channel innovative solutions that their customers need which will save them money.

New Capabilities

Using a single UK number, Jola 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.

The first QR implementation saw thousands of 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 have a genuinely differentiated product to win against the Mobile Networks with great recurring margins and real-time management and control via Mobile Manager.

3G/5G

One of the biggest frustrations for resellers is customers who simply delay making a decision. The sunsetting of 3G and the PSTN switch-off are compelling events, forcing businesses and public authorities to act. 3G networks must be upgraded and this means major projects to swap physical SIM cards or use QR codes. Resellers and MSPs should be looking for these networks. 4G Advanced and 5G are providing reliable speeds often above fixed-line alternatives and now cover more than 95% of the population.

Building a mobile offering

Choosing the right supplier will tick all the boxes for resellers and MSPs to move quickly into selling mobile data products. Wholesale suppliers will need to give channel partners the tools to uncover and 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. 

Jola won Robustel’s Most Innovative Partner Award at the Robustel Global Partner Summit. Doug Morley, Jola’s Product Manager, was presented with the award on 24^th April at their event in Istanbul.

The award recognises the innovative solutions Jola has developed using Robustel hardware. They include Intelligent 4G and 5G routers, secure digital signage solutions and Device-as-a-Service.

“Working together we have solved common challenges faced by partners when rolling out solutions in multiple locations on tight deadlines. Security and pre-configuration are critical as is monitoring and managing devices and their data usage remotely.” Adrian Sunderland, CEO, Jola.

Imagine you have an order for thousands of SIMs for handsets destined for multiple locations around the world. You would usually need to send the right SIM card to the right device in the right location, and activate it, which can be an operational challenge under tight deadlines. Jola now has a new solution where partners are issued a single QR code in Mobile Manager instead. This is supplied to their customer for every device to scan, slashing operational costs and helping to reduce carbon footprints.

Mobile Manager was the first, white-label management portal designed to meet the specific needs of the channel. It allows resellers to order and manage SIMs from multiple suppliers, eliminate data overage charges and support their customers in real-time.

In eight years we have added products and functionality to the portal regularly so we can meet any requirement in any market for mobile data, globally. We have over 1400 partners using the portal regularly who tell us Mobile Manager meets their needs for:

• Choice – you can buy what you need on any network in a single portal
• Control – you can view and manage your data usage in real-time
• Automation - you retain complete control over your customer experience
• White-label – you can remove every trace of the Jola brand

What’s new?

We have rolled out 12 software updates in 12 months and the latest additions are RoamNet and RoamNet Voice. SIM cards with a UK phone number roaming over multiple UK mobile networks and hundreds globally using the Wireless Logic global network. Devices can be activated via a single QR code.

Adrian Sunderland, Jola’s CEO commented, “QR codes are a simple solution to a complex problem faced by many of our partners. Adding QR codes to Mobile Manager was the next logical step for us to help reduce operational costs and headaches for our partners. The feedback has been fantastic. Partners can feel confident their end-users will be connected exactly when they need to be, wherever they are.”

Jola celebrates its 10^th birthday in April 2024, after its best-ever financial performance.

We now have over 1400 partners selling unique mobile data solutions, earning healthy recurring margins, and increasing the value of their companies with happy customers. Our ability to innovate and automate, as well as help partners identify, qualify and win significant deals from the mobile networks is part of our success story. The other is the fantastic relationships with have with our suppliers, partners and exceptional team.

Adrian Sunderland, CEO of Jola commented, “Our mission is to serve the channel providing solutions for every mobile data requirement globally. We strive to make unique solutions you can’t buy from anyone else, make them easy to sell, provision, support and bill. We enjoy working with partners on new and innovative solutions to common problems using the latest technologies. When we look back at what we have achieved over the last ten years it is quite phenomenal, when we started with nothing but enthusiasm, a belief in each other and a passion for the channel. We look forward to achieving our next growth milestone.”

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.

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.

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. 

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.