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One of the greatest advantages of selling managed IT services is the subscription-based revenue potential. Depending on the service offering and its cost structure, managed service providers (MSPs) stand to make comfortable, double-digit margins through a subscription model.
One area where the model has gone largely untapped is Managed Power Services, which involves remote monitoring and management of the power infrastructure at data centers, edge computing sites, and any other locations with uninterruptible power supplies (UPS). Although available in some form for years, Managed Power Services are still new to most IT partners, and as such, may well be the next best recurring-revenue opportunity for providers.
Why and how to deliver subscription-based Managed Power Services
Subscription-based services eliminate upfront capital expenditures, benefiting both the MSP and the end customer. The model lowers the cost of entry for customers while bringing predictable revenues and cash flow to the provider. Before the advent of recurring revenue models, providers often struggled through a feast-or-famine approach that could make it difficult to run the business and plan future investments.
To deliver Managed Power Services, providers can leverage a remote monitoring platform that provides visibility to multiple locations from a single pane of glass. That software platform can enable them to collect data from the UPS and physical infrastructure, derive insights about the environment’s health and performance, and make recommendations to customers to improve reliability and cost-effectiveness. In addition, these insights can also lead to sales leads when an MSP can let his or her customer know when a UPS battery is about to fail and needs replacement.
How do MSPs benefit?
By offering a subscription-based service that manages the power infrastructure, providers can add significant value for customers. Power backup is vital to modern IT environments, where real-time processing and analysis are becoming more prominent as the Internet of Things (IoT) and edge implementations take place. Customers can’t afford unplanned downtime and lost revenue. Providers that offer this service proactively prevent downtime and increase reliability at these mission-critical sites. Of course, this leads to satisfied customers who will appreciate offloading this function to focus on other core IT operations.
Subscription-based services are especially attractive to providers that run minimalist operations with a small staff. A provider without a network operations center or a large field service organization can benefit from partnering with a vendor that offers technical support as part of the subscription service. MSPs also can widen their geographic reach to serve customer locations outside their immediate area and add new accounts they would not be able to serve if it meant having to perform all services on site.
Other benefits to MSPs from offering subscription-based Managed Power Services include:
- Reduction of operational costs through remote management and automation
- Long-term customer engagement and loyalty
- Scalability and elasticity to dial the service up or down as needed
Multiple subscription options
MSPs looking to add a subscription-based Managed Power Services offering have several options when they leverage Schneider Electric’s EcoStruxureTM IT remote monitoring and management platform. They have the choice of doing it all themselves, letting Schneider handle everything on their behalf, or even something in between. IT Partners can explore the various options below or take a quiz to evaluate the best choice for their business.
Get started with subscription-based Managed Power Services
Considering how critical the power infrastructure is in any IT environment, adding subscription-based Managed Power Services is a no-brainer for MSPs. It means providing customers with added protection through ongoing infrastructure monitoring and management, which creates trust that partners can parlay into long-term relationships. Find out more about IT power management opportunities by accessing the visiting our IT power management site.
About the author
Larry Hann,
Director of Digital Service Programs, IT Channel
Larry is the Director of Digital Service Programs, IT Channel for APC, a flagship brand of Schneider Electric. He is responsible for developing the strategy and implementation of the APC Digital Services offers into partner managed services business practices. He has been with APC, a flagship brand of Schneider Electric, for over 20 years and during this time he has supported North American business relationships as manager for Tier 2 OEM partners and then the Tier 1 IT Distribution team. Additionally, Larry has held various positions with APC’s Government Channel Partners, Strategic Partners and National Account businesses. He holds a BMSE in Material Engineering from Virginia Tech and an MSE in Materials Science and Engineering from Clemson University.
