Industry number crunchers estimate 30 to 40 percent of the SMB market runs Microsoft Windows XP and Office 2003. With Microsoft ending support for these products on April 8, there is a short but fantastic window of opportunity for information technology service providers (ITSPs) to build stronger relationships with clients and uncover new revenue opportunities.
Here are four ways to make this situation work in your favor:
1. Be Proactive. Whether you use spreadsheets to track client assets or use an IT business management app like Autotask in combination with a remote monitoring and management (RMM) tool, ITSPs should be able to determine if their clients or prospects use Windows XP devices, Office 2003 suites and other soon-to-be unsupported hardware or software. RMM tools can capture this data and synchronize it with an IT business management app and configuration items, producing reports to show clients where they need to upgrade.
2. Inform and Educate. After identifying clients with pending end-of-support (EOS) issues, engage in guerilla marketing campaigns to inform and educate your target base about their options. XP EOS means no more security or operating system updates from Microsoft, leaving an opening for hackers. Customers and prospects will likely have a lot of fear, uncertainty and doubt about security vulnerabilities, higher support costs and lack of support, which you can direct in a positive way to help them migrate from Windows XP. ITSPs can use the contact group manager in an IT business management app to email the target base and schedule follow-up actions.
3. Help Clients Migrate. ITSPs need to determine their XP EOS migration solution and go out and win new business. The typical XP replacement will consist of a Microsoft Windows 7 or 8 primary device, Office 365 and other upgraded line of business applications all deployed by the ITSP’s service delivery team.
You could also add recurring revenue from a variety of cloud services like Office 365, servers and desktops in the cloud and backup — a nice opportunity to build a profitable, long-term and recurring revenue stream. Maximize profitability by buying right and executing efficiently. Microsoft and other vendors offer incentive programs to buy from their distributor partners.
4. Foster Your Relationships. The Windows XP EOS deadline is an opportunity to get closer to clients and prospects and prove your worth. As a result, they will appreciate your efforts to minimize their security vulnerabilities and help them avoid major downtime. Simultaneously, your company will enjoy revenue from XP migration projects and recurring revenue from clients migrating to more current solutions.
Len DiCostanzo is the senior vice president of community and business development for Autotask.
