While, in the past, MSPs sought to talk customers out of using Dropbox in place of more robust solutions, it seems that the company is poised to make a move into the enterprise realm. In fact, an article by Forbes claims that such a move is necessary if the company plans to hit the growth numbers investors have expected.   Continue Reading..

I read The Challenger Sale about a year ago and have been testing its principles and techniques whenever I can. I think the business-to-business sales methods taught in this book are the real deal and could have a significant impact on VAR organizations as they strive to be trusted advisors.  Continue Reading..

At the beginning of the month I attended SYNNEX' National Conference in Greenville, SC. I really enjoy this event because it's not focused on one vertical or type of solution. Rather, you get a chance to see and hear about everything from servers, printers, and tablets to healthcare, education, and government. For those VARs open-minded enough to be looking for the next big opportunity, the expo floor of this broad event is the place...  Continue Reading..

During Monday night’s Welcome Reception/Solutions Expo at the 2013 ScanSource Partner Conference, I had a conversation with a solutions provider and a vendor executive about financing the as-a-Service model. The VAR said selling Software-as-a-Service is a no-brainer, but hardware is a completely different story because financing that part of the deal still hasn’t taken shape. The VAR was hopeful because he felt distributors are...  Continue Reading..