| Over the recent years, Microsoft Small Business Server (SBS) has gained appreciation as a widely-respected server networking suite. As a result, many small business computer consultants, systems integrators, and value-added resellers have gone ahead and jumped on-board the Microsoft Small Business Server train.
Now if you are thinking of joining them, before you go ahead and bet your company on this product, consider these following three business tips. They will help you maximize your Small Business Server consulting profits. Firstly, and rather sadly, most small businesses in your area have probably never heard of Microsoft Small Business Server. And it's a shame because there may be hundreds, if not thousands, of small businesses in your area that would be excellent candidates for this product. However, don't make the common mistake of assuming that the typical non-technical small business owner has any idea about what exactly Microsoft Small Business Server is.
In this case, if you want to maximize your consulting profits and also avoid commodity price wars, you're much better off leading off with a pitch for something that's more universally recognized. This can include smaller jobs such as getting rid of computer viruses, stopping SPAM, or preventing computer security breaches. Never overlook simpler jobs that can get you appreciation from your customers. Remember, a little bit goes a long way. Secondly, take the advice of selling your small business prospects to your company first. Mind you, the real money is not in fact of reselling the Microsoft Small Business Server software. No, the real actually money comes from selling the consulting relationship with the small business. In other words, your company essentially becomes your clients' outsourced IT department. Remember, no small business owner is will ever wake up in the middle of the night, craving Microsoft Small Business Server. On the other hand, small business owners do constantly lose sleep over what will happen to their companies and their businesses if their computer systems fail. The survival instinct is everything for a small business owner. Become the solution to that and you'll get plenty of opportunities to sell Small Business Server eventually, once you've established a solid consultant relationship. Finally, think about the fact that Microsoft doesn't value computer consultants as much as they say sometimes. The product team had the mandate to make the Small Business Server product very easy to use. So simple in fact, that a non-technical small business end user could buy Small Business Server at the warehouse club and have its suite running in their office that same day. But shortly after the first-version shipped, Microsoft realized and acknowledged that the most cost-effective way to reach small businesses with Small Business Server was through their reseller channel. The fact is that even today you can often find 5-user versions of Microsoft Small Business Server in retail stores. The point of this is that Microsoft isn't putting all its "eggs" in one basket, so there's no reason that you should. This brings us back to points one and two: Small business owners aren't really shopping for a "Small Business Server". So instead of "selling" the Small Business Server product, you're much better off selling your company to clients and only then can you sell any product. In this article, we have seen three business tips that every computer consultant, systems integrator and value added reseller needs to be aware when selling Microsoft Small Business Server.
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