SECTOR REVIEW Distributors drive key ma
Technological advances and evolving delivery mechanisms such as the cloud are positioning distributors at the vanguard of market creation.
C
omputerlinks has seen strong growth over the past 12 months in solutions
and services that help customers move to virtualised environments. In particular, the company has witnessed an increase in business in areas such as security, systems management and optimisation. “As far as both this year and future growth is concerned, solutions that allow end users to purchase IT via operational expenditure budgets or more flexible payment terms are becoming increasingly popular,” said David Ellis, Director of New Technology and Services. “This has driven market demand for our ALVEA cloud and managed services in areas like IT security, data management and storage, hosting, disaster recovery and business continuity.”
The main market trends and emerging markets that are influencing Computerlinks’ go-to-market strategy are the move to virtualised environments, the need for businesses to purchase IT from operational rather than capital budgets, and the convergence of physical and IP-based network security driven by increasing security threats to businesses across both physical and digital boundaries. “Another important trend that is influencing what and how we are delivering services to
the channel is an increased awareness on business continuity, which in many cases is being driven by corporate governance,” added Ellis. “It’s now a necessity for organisations to have plans in place to deal with the potential loss of key elements of their IT infrastructure in the event of natural disaster, human error or malicious action.”
Channel engagement Computerlinks is working with existing partners that have the base skills to help them move into these complementary market areas. In many cases they may have come from a networking, TCIP/IP or security background but have found that they can easily broaden their service and product portfolio without having to make a big upfront investment. “Our aim is to take the cost and risk away by aggregating solutions and developing services that allow our channel partners and resellers to enter new markets quickly and safely,” added Ellis. “We are talking to a number of new partners that recognise the high growth opportunities and want to capitalise on them. An example being traditional CCTV resellers who want to provide IP-based solutions.”
Cloud computing represents an opportunity and threat for distribution. The role of the
traditional distributor that is good at logistics and shipping boxes is reduced, but those with market making and aggregation skills will make gains. Nimans has been at the forefront of comms distribution for 30 years. It is well known for its logistical capabilities and has a strong tradition. However, the company has come a long way from its early origins, adopting technologies such as hosted telephony, SaaS, SIP, the cloud, UC and videoconferencing as part of its single solution ethos. A dedicated network services division serves to show how Nimans has transformed its business model. “In the past we’ve been seen as a traditional PBX distributor but that’s far from the case today. We’ve developed a proposition which includes offering wholesale mobile minutes from O2,” said Group Sales and Business Development Director, Richard Carter. “Nimans continues to help drive the adoption of new technology, acting as a valued reseller partner and a barometer for the latest trends and services as well as traditional communication platforms.”
Carter noted that Nimans is dealing with multi suppliers at different levels to bring together one solution. “The traditional PBX market has slowed down in recent years,” he observed. “To
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counter this, the advent of SIP trunks is giving resellers the opportunity to consolidate a solution, not just voice telephony but integrating into or developing a whole new solution incorporating data. This then brings greater control through the billing side. In the past customers would buy lines and minutes on ISDN or analogue but today they have now got broadband, SIP trunks and maybe some telephony resilience. Equally important are mobile services and the cloud. All of these services that were often out of a reseller’s reach are now available under one umbrella.”
Peripherals are another key area for Nimans, especially concerning system add-
ons such as door entry or public address systems. “Today there are more and more products that can be attached to a phone system,” added Carter. “With the advent of IP we have moved into videoconferencing and CCTV. Systems are just the starting point in terms of revenue streams.”
Micro-P’s growth areas over the last 12 months are linked to the ongoing development of its product portfolio, with PBX, peripherals and value added services such as zero per cent leasing, professional on site engineering, training and education services. “This is in addition to a significant investment in both pre and post sales technical support, attracting not only traditional PBX resellers to Micro- P but also our data VAR
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