THEY WORK HARD FOR YOUR BUSINESS!

This idea for this article came to me the other day after hearing the very common story from a salesperson who had been cut out of a deal. Whether or not it was underhanded and unfair we may never know and at this point is somewhat irrelevant.

Apparently the customer, after lending his ear to one of the three who were originally included in providing his service, was convinced to use only one of those three.  Since this individual could provide everything the customer wanted, he was able to somehow convince the client to cut the other two service providers out of the deal.

Sure I sympathized with the sales rep but even more so with the customer who had just assigned someone of below marginal character to manage an entire project /department of his business.  While I love the idea of being able to compartmentalize services and industries that are so spread out, there is a downside to it.  Here is an example: Someone who specializes in purple widgets but also offers pink, green, red and blue, is still going to provide the best purple widgets and will provide average to below average pink, green, red and blue.  When it comes to providing a service versus an actual product, this is an even more common theme.

Part of what makes managed service providers an optimal choice is their ability to provide service for their clients by choosing from a large pool of service providers.  These providers and the actual procurement process is then managed by the provider, for the client.  The choices of service providers are based on criteria that best match the client’s needs and desires. Even more important to note is that the managed service providers are not tied to any vendors by exclusivity contracts or the like, thus each decision made by the MSP’s are based on what is best for the client’s business. This becomes one of the many “built-in” features of managed service providers that help to ensure the customers get the best people at the best price. Beware of the managed  service provider who offers to provide services outside of their core offering or specialty as it throws up two red flags:  1. the service they offer to provide outside of their core offering is likely to be provided at a minimal service level only, causing you frustration and hassle down the road. or 2. It could suggest an exclusivity arrangement with another provider leaving you, the customer, short changed.

The problem with choosing one provider for everything is much like the domino effect.  One provider and one error have the ability to take down an entire telecommunications lifecycle, or worse, an entire Information Lifecycle. Or let’s say you are having an issue with your internet and your service provider is unreachable.  Since this person basically provides every service related to your information systems you have no one else to call or worse you have to call someone else and pay them to fix it. Having a managed service provider to handle these issues as they arise, will ensure quick and successful recovery, and much less hassle for you trying to track down the vendor who is providing the actual service. Additionally, choosing one service provider to handle everything maximizes the potential for greater loss, and minimizes that same potential for successful rescue.

There are many areas of your business where managed service providers might be a wise choice.  Telecommunications and related services, IT Management, Brand Management and Internet Marketing, and Call Center Solutions are just a few.  Today, the providers are broadening the scope of services to allow the application of this model within many different service industries.  Check with a local provider of managed services or call 1-877-MSP-4BIZ to inquire about managed services for your business.