VoIP Solutions Offer The Channel A Rich Opportunity In Small Business

The big reason for this is because VoIP is a technology that requires evangelism on the part of the seller; it isn't just something any company will go buy. By that I mean a customer prospect needs to be made aware of all the benefits and downsides of the technology and why it makes sense.

In case you missed the story, CRN ran a piece two weeks ago about Vonage, one of a new class of VoIP suppliers, covering its plan to build a channel to help it reach small businesses.

To date, Vonage has largely been a player in the consumer VoIP market. But I believe the best opportunity for this technology"in both the short and long term"lies in small businesses.

We all know small companies are very price-conscious and need to keep costs as low as possible. In addition, small businesses rarely have any technical expertise in-house, so solution providers often act as their IT departments.

Now let's face it, VoIP is not a flawless technology. We're testing it here at CMP and every time I call a co-worker who has volunteered to be a guinea pig, it's like talking to someone using a cell phone. You never know if you will finish the phone conversation without being cut off.

The good news, I guess, is that all of us have been trained, thanks again to the cell phone, to accept a lower class of telephone service than we were used to with good old landlines.

When you consider that VoIP can cut a small business's phone costs dramatically, a decision to switch over may free up cash that your customer could use to upgrade its internal network (another factor, incidentally, that could help you sell the solution). If a small business doesn't have broadband access, for instance, the money it saves on its phone bill could easily be applied to acquiring additional capacity, opening up even more sales opportunities for the channel.

And don't forget that the solution provider could be entitled to at least some of the recurring monthly revenue stream associated with some VoIP services, something that is hard to find with most other solutions you sell.

Longer term, we will see VoIP solutions blur into cellular and cable networks. But you won't be part of that trend if you are not part of the first VoIP wave.

Technology is already coming that enables a user talking on a cell phone via a cellular carrier's service to automatically switch over to an internal network (which may cost less money) as he or she walks into their office building. That will obviously take some coordination between internal wired and wireless networks and external cellular networks, but it will happen.

It's still early enough in the VoIP life cycle that there are good margins; VoIP is also going to offer growth opportunities for quite some time before it becomes just another commodity solution. The other nice thing about VoIP is that right now, there just are not that many solution providers out there building a business in this segment, so your potential customer set is large while your competitive set is small.

That won't last forever. There is certainly an opportunity in being early because this space is going to get more crowded as more customers become aware of VoIP and begin asking for it.

The fact is, you can be too early with a technology or a solution and not make any money or you can be too late and make just a little money. The real payoff is being in the right place at the right time so that you can make the most possible. I believe VoIP is very close to reaching that sweet spot.

Make something happen. I can be reached at (516) 562-7812 or via e-mail at [email protected].