Last month’s Comms Dealer Channel Forecast insight session put a spotlight on high growth segments in the mobile arena, including specific opportunities around the retirement of 2G and 3G networks, the upcoming PSTN switch off, in-demand tailored solutions for vertical markets, and perhaps most importantly the latent potential residing in existing customer bases.
Jola and Onecom Partners are a testament to the mobile market’s ongoing revenue potential, generating 20 and 50 per cent growth in this space respectively over the past year. Both are also ramping up efforts to bring resellers on this journey, united in their conviction that the time for channel partners to act is now. This is because big opportunities are there for the taking, according to Roan Pratt, Sales Director, Onecom Partners. “It’s as simple as talking to existing customers and asking about their SIM usage,” he stated. “Resellers will be amazed at the opportunities they can unlock from their own business.”
Jola CEO Adrian Sunderland highlighted how these opportunities continue to be catalysed, pointing to mobile operators sunsetting their 2G and 3G networks to free up capacity for new 5G services. “There are millions of devices that only work on 2G or 3G so this is a compelling narrative that resellers can seize on,” he commented. “For example, look within your base for customers with a fleet of vehicles as they may need a solution for their trackers. Across retail and hospitality, older payment terminals will need swapping out.”
Sunderland also highlighted the PSTN switch off as a major opportunity. “The answer from the fixed line world is to put a broadband line in and run the PSTN service over IP,” he said. “However, there are millions of lines with no broadband and they just want the PSTN line. Now is the time to talk to customers about next generation connectivity.”
When it comes to winning deals in the UK mid-market (businesses with 10 to 500 employees) resellers have an advantage over carriers, according to Sunderland. “This is down to trust,” he added. “Businesses buy from businesses that look like them, and if you’ve been reliably supplying other services and meet their every need, then you will be their first port of call when they feel the effects of a compelling event. Most of our partners have got their first mobile win from a customer calling to ask if they can solve a problem. What a great place to start.”
Opening doors
This is where the network of channel suppliers comes into play, with Jola and Onecom Partners both seeking to lower the bar to entry for resellers. Pratt noted: “Organisations don’t need to be experts to start winning in this space – that is why we are here. We’re investing time so that when end users ask questions about intelligent mobile data, resellers can respond confidently knowing they have experts to lean on. We see these opportunities through from start to finish, getting involved at point of concept, right through to the delivery and even the in-life management.”
Leveraging expertise also enables resellers to take a more targeted approach, added Sunderland. “We can look at somebody’s customer base and identify client problems and opportunities,” he stated. “This removes cold calls and leads to a more consultative approach by identifying business outcomes.”
This approach also brings the biggest wins for resellers and provides differentiation, observed Sunderland, who added: “We signed up our 15,000th reseller last month so have a good cohort from which to assess the strategies that work. Common among the winners is their ability to tell a great story about how they solved a business problem for a customer in the past, and what the outcome was. This gives potential clients confidence through the telling of a story that resonates
“The new go-to-market reality is that customers no longer come to you seeking a set number of SIMS or routers, they come looking for a solution to a problem. Showing that you can solve the problem – for that business in that sector – is the pinnacle of marketing. Having been in this space for over 11 years we can arm resellers with stories from every sector and geography that you could imagine.”
A single win can often turn on the tap for many opportunities, says Pratt. “Our role is to help resellers get a few wins under their belt and build momentum,” he added. “Confidence grows with and in short time a reseller can position as an expert in a lucrative technology.”
Beat the mobile drum
Sunderland explained how resellers that present themselves as having a specific practice, such as an IoT skillset, are more likely to attract opportunities compared to resellers who hide their light under a bushel. “Many mobile resellers present a legacy version of themselves having websites that lead with calls, lines or IT consultancy,” he said. “I cannot believe how many partners are working on cutting-edge, and replicable projects, yet not telling the world about that.”
Jola’s biggest deal in the last 12 months came from a small four man reseller each win and a reseller will own more of the onboarding process every time they uncover an opportunity. Each win is also another story to tell, that won a contract due to its SEO-enhanced website. “A global enterprise was searching for a mobile data solution in the UK and their first step was a Google search,” he explained. “Our client came up showcasing a website full of case studies that demonstrate successful delivery. This was our biggest deal last year and the biggest deal the reseller has ever won.”
To further strengthen the strategic hand of resellers and boost their capacity to deliver high value outcomes, both Pratt and Sunderland highlighted the importance of technical, commercial and strategic differentiation. Pratt noted: “The world of sales has changed. It’s now all about solution selling and value-add.”