Computer Consultants Secrets ™

Many VARs attached to Hewlett-Packard products have recently stated that CDW has started using vendor rebates and market development funds in order to sell products below cost.  CDW is well-known for being very competitive about HP pricing, but VARs are stating that at the end of the first quarter, CDW was pricing items such as HP Proliant servers and Imaging and Printing Group (IPG) products well below the cost of what they are paying distributors.  

An anonymous solution provider stated that one of his longest-standing HP accounts was relocating and needed to purchase new servers; CDW went below cost and stole the deal.  Many VARs are accusing CDW of padding margins, though so far spokespeople refused to discuss details about business relationships.  However, in written response to questions by CRN, Harry J. Harczak, Jr., executive vice president of CDW denied strongly that CDW has been passing along market development funds to customers.   

Recent 10-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission in Illinois announced that the ability to offer competitive prices by CDW was the result of low cost structure, distribution efficiency, diversification of product purchasing and other cost-reducing items.

VARs and solution providers have been charging CDW, with high HP volumes of getting more HP MDF and rebate money than others in order to price HP products and make a profit.  CDW reported selling $1.76 billion in HP products in 2006.  

While VARs have no issue with aggressive pricing, they claim that CDW’s HP pricing below their costs hurts customer relationships and will eventually affect HP’s own profits.  

Big Deal authorization lets HP VARs and solution providers offer products at reduced prices in order to win deals.  But it was not created in order to shift share from one HP solution provider to another HP VAR.  VARs claim that HP has lost margins on accounts already won as a result of these practices.

For more information on this story about VARs and solution providers, visit the attached link.

Blogged By:  Joshua Feinberg

Computer consulting research has probably made you feel overloaded with information.  What steps should you take when you are first starting a computer consulting business?

1.    Pick a Date

Pick a date for launching your computer consulting business and write it down.  Writing it down is critical because it gives you a tangible goal.  You will know how long you have to get the ball rolling and can keep a specific moment in mind when planning the different phases of your computer consulting business.  

2.    Narrow Down To-Do’s

Part of picking a date means narrowing down to-do lists and organizing tasks in a “Top 10” list.  Write down everything you think of and then narrow those items down to just the most important 10.   

Your list may include meeting with an accoutant, getting a business real estate license, opening up a distributor account, picking a company name, designing a business card, looking through insurance options, getting a website domain name and getting a voicemail business box.

There may initially be 30 or 40 things on your list.  Narrow it down to prepare to launch your computer consulting business.

3.    Order Your List

Once you are happy that you have the definite top 10, highlight them on paper and rank them chronologically.  You should only work on one or two per week.  You can do this exercise using Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word as well.  Just narrow your focus to the top 10 business tasks.   

4.    Develop a Timeline for the Start of Your Computer Consulting Business

If you are launching your computer consulting business five weeks from now and you have 10 things to do, pick two things to do each week.  When you put things in a specific timeframe, managing the launch of your computer consulting business becomes a lot more manageable.

Blogged By:  Joshua Feinberg

According to legal services company Software Freedom Law Centre (SFLC), computer business Microsoft is costing Windows users $20 per operating system installation in order to counteract patent infringement claims.  SFLC is calling the computer business’ fee a patent tax.  This is based on the amount of money Microsoft spent settling its lawsuits over the past three years.  This extra money also includes computer business legal fees during the same time period.  The total amount is divided by the estimated number of Windows installations.

SFLC estimated that the public nature of legal settlements, which include $1.5 billion to Alcatel-Lucent, $1.25 billion to Sun, $536 million to Novel and $440 million to Interust have cost the computer business $4.3 billion in the past three years.  This means that each installation of Windows products during the same period cost $21.50 additionally.  

SFLC admits that the total amount the computer business has paid over the past three years could actually be higher, since some settlements were not disclosed to the public.  On the flip side, the amount could be less because the money the computer business paid to Sun covered antitrust and not patent infringement costs.  

Competitor Linux, according to SFLC has a patent tax equal to $0 because it has not been found guilty of any patent infringement, despite accusations.  The firm Open Source Risk Management stated in 2004 that Linux had 287 patented technologies that were in question.     

Computer business Microsoft’s CEO Steve Ballmer claims that Linux has infringed upon intellectual property of Microsoft after finding out about an agreement made with Novell.  Computer business Microsoft and Novell agreed not to sue each other’s customers for patent infringement.  

For more information on this computer business story, visit the attached link.  

Added By:  Computer Consulting 101 Professional Kit

A successful IT marketing campaign can be greatly and inexpensively achieved with the help of direct mail postcards.  Direct mail postcards can help you identify your recipient and direct them to a seminar or other free event to gain their interest and hopefully their business.

Direct mail postcards are an excellent IT marketing strategy because you do not have to worry about them being thrown away unread.  Because they are already opened, they will be noticed.  Postcards are less expensive than other direct mail pieces, so you can save money in your IT marketing budget.

IT Marketing:  Direct Mail Postcards Have to Be Targeted

You don’t want to send the same message to 2,000 small businesses and hope to get their attention.  Target a specific group with which you have experience.  Your message in IT marketing as part of your direct mail postcards campaign has to be well-directed and has to tell recipients you have some expertise in their field.  

Direct Mail Postcards are Part of Relationship IT Marketing

Direct mail is not an attempt to make a sale.  You won’t be able to get anyone to sign anything based on a direct mail postcard because relationships take time to build and grow.

The point of IT marketing direct mail postcards is to get a response.  You want to garner interest in learning more so you can find the best prospects from the pool of respondents.

The next IT marketing step after direct mail postcards is to get prospects to come to seminars with other interested individuals or offer a free report or free needs analysis.

Time is Critical to IT Marketing

You need to create a sense of urgency as part of IT marketing or else people will file it away for a long time and maybe never even act.  Get people to like, know and trust you by initiating one-on-one contact or group contact that helps them see what you have to offer and what working with you is like.

Blogged By:  Joshua Feinberg

Last Wednesday, Adaptec began a new solution providers channel partner program designed to further the visibility and success of its Snap Server NAS line.  Vice President of the solution providers channel sales and marketing at Adaptec John Noellert stated the company’s Snap Server line has always had a strong presence for solution providers and hopes this new initiative will help make it even more visible.  

Noellert stated that previously Adaptec has not received the best field coverage in terms of deal registration programs that help solution providers.  He hopes this program will help partners achieve greater success with the line.  A formal channel program that serves Snap Server products is critical to ensure that solution providers understand the value of the products.  

The Snap Server line offers a special solution that works from entry-level to the higher-end because it uses one operating system.  According to solution providers, the products are also reasonably priced and reliable.   

Competitors such as Network Appliance sell storage appliances below $5,000, but these products ca end up costing $12,000 in the end because of software licenses and other features needed to run them.  Snap Server’s solutions are available fully loaded in the range of $2,500.   

Solution providers agree that formalizing a solution providers program is a smart move for Adaptec and are excited about the possibilities.  The program will be geared towards solution providers that have small and midsized enterprise storage solutions and those with experience in vertical markets.  

The Snap Server program has three levels:  solution provider; direct market partners; registered resellers.  The program for solution providers will offer the new feature of allowing an opportunity registration program for solution providers that will give discounts to VARs and new customers.

Blogged By:  Joshua Feinberg

If you own a computer consulting company you want to get the most out of you relationships with small businesses.  Virtual IT is your key to more business in computer consulting.

Virtual IT and Computer Consulting:  Most Companies Don’t Get IT

A lot of computer consulting business owners fall into the trap of getting too wrapped up in technology and not working enough with their small business clients.  This is the wrong way to look at virtual IT and will make your computer consulting business less viable long term. 

Recruiting and keeping small business clients is your first job in computer consulting, and keeping up with technological advancements should not be an obstacle to this end goal.

In computer consulting, you can’t be swayed by hardware, operating systems or applications.  Get into the business opportunities and how to solve your clients’ business problems using yourself as a virtual IT expert.

The Perfect Mix of Computer Consulting and Virtual IT

In order to make your computer consulting business work, you have to understand the true concept of virtual IT.  Virtual IT is what helps your company be an extension of small businesses.  Your computer consulting company ideally will become the outsourced IT department for your clients.  You will act as a CIO, CTO or IT manager for all small business clients.

Your virtual IT computer consulting business has to be ready to provide or arrange a complete solution that will include help desk, desktop support, network administration, engineering, security, training, etc.  Your clients deserve nothing less than a total virtual IT solution for their computer consulting dollars.

Blogged By:  Computer Consulting 101

Solution providers were recently pleased to hear that Microsoft is changing the way it provides them with updates about fixes and patches important to SQL Server customers.  

Starting on April 16, computer business Microsoft will launch its initial cumulative SQL Server update that will announce all database fixes and updates for the package at one time.  These updates for solution providers will be delivered every two months.  

According to Microsoft spokespeople, the company wanted to design updates every two months to add predictability for customers and solution providers, allowing them to choose their optimal production dates.  “Hot fixes” and patch delivery have been previously unpredictable and disorganized.  Microsoft hopes that this new system will help address urgent issues for solution providers in a more timely fashion and help them plan more efficiently.

Blogged By:  Joshua Feinberg

Part of becoming an IT specialist is finding the right niche.  But how can IT specialists create niches for themselves?

IT Specialists:  Horizontal Niche

As an IT specialist, you might discover that most of your clients’ main contacts are office managers and not in the same industry (referred to as a vertical niche).  If you find this happening, you can conduct a casual survey asking what their biggest IT concerns are as well as what they see as major business problems that you can help solve.  

This type of interaction with clients as IT specialists will help with client retention and also inform you about their perceptions of their businesses and IT needs. Knowing this information about your customers will help you hand craft a marketing pitch that will speak to other clients like them.  

The Knowledge of IT Specialists

You need to ask questions about your target market as IT specialists:

1.    Who are your targets?

2.    What are your targets reading?

3.    What trade publications, e-zines and newsletters are there for their particular industry?

4.    What local and regional conferences are targets attending?

5.    What trade groups have local chapters for your targets?

6.    Where do your targets hang out?

7.    What do your targets talk about and worry about?

Talk to your best clients to be an IT specialist that has more clients just like them.  You have probably already established personal relationships, so take clients out to breakfast, to lunch and tell them you want to become an IT specialist so you can ask them questions that will help you better understand their needs and wants and find the best fit for you in terms of new customers.

Added By:  Computer Consulting 101

Don’t set IT support rates too low, or you will have to work harder than you have to in order to keep your business running.  As a computer consulting professional, you need to make sure you don’t provide anything for free.  

IT Support:  Make a Profit

You should not run into a situation with IT support where your revenue comes incredibly close to expenses.  This type of situation can occur when you do work for free.  There should be a big discrepancy between your revenue and your expenses so you can get a profit and cover overhead.

Micro small businesses of certain types will look unfavorably at offering IT support rates that are acceptable, but there are plenty more that will be willing to pay $75 to $100 per hour or even more.  

In IT Support, Qualify Customers

You need to find the best IT support customers and qualify them so you are not wasting any time with those that will suck you dry of time and money.  These types of customers will stop you from finding the most profitable clients.

Don’t waste your time for a second on people that will take your time, energy and money when it comes to IT support.

Blogged By:  Computer Consulting Kit