AT YOUR SERVICE: XaaS Only 25 percent of responding SMBs said that they don’t want to disrupt their business by switching providers, leaving 75 percent that would turn to a provider offering better knowledge or higher levels of customer support. This is especially true considering that when SMBs select their primary providers/vendors based on the level of knowledge of technology and customer service and support, they are more likely to say that they’re getting good ROI from their business technology, showed the AppSmart findings. Looking at the scorecard as it stands now, about half of SMBs (51 percent) purchase their SaaS business software from vendors directly, growing slightly from the 49 percent that said they went straight to the vendors in 2017. However, technology advisors gained ground since the last survey, as well, with 28 percent of SMBs now turning to them for software versus 21 percent in 2017. ISPs/telcos slipped from 27 percent in 2017 to 20 percent in 2021. Software vendors likewise are doing the best job of communicating to customers and prospects about new products and services. Marketing communications from vendors effectively ties at the top with communications from industry organizations and IT professional organizations in terms of where SMBs hear about new SaaS solutions. The remaining top five sources feature another tie between IT trade publications and websites and colleagues in similar organizations, at 36 percent each. Technology advisors rank seventh (32 percent) out of nine sources while ISPs/telecom providers rank eighth (28 percent). Breaking down SMBs by size, the figures show that larger SMBs (101-250 employees) are much more likely to turn to a technology advisor, such as a VAR, MSP or other channel partner, for information on new SaaS solutions, at 44 percent compared to only 23 percent of small SMBs (1 to 10 employees) and 35 percent of medium SMBs (11-100 employees) who said the same. For SMBs that get their SaaS information from technology advisors, they are about equally likely to agree as disagree that they are getting good ROI (32 percent versus 29 percent), “which shows that messages emphasizing the value of solutions aren’t getting through to SMB targets,” said AppSmart researchers. The same applies to SMBs getting their information from ISPs/telecom companies, where they are split between agreeing (28 percent) and disagreeing (27 percent) that they see good ROI. Some small SMBs (15 percent) aren’t being reached by any of these sources. These SMBs are also significantly less likely to agree (only 5 percent) that they’re getting good ROI for their technology investments. Once an SMB prospect learns about a new solution, the factors most important to selecting an advisor or provider are pricing and overall cost savings (44 percent), easy-toaccess customer service (43 percent), industry knowledge (43 percent), “knowledge of business our size” (35 percent), the existence of useful selfservice tools (33 percent) and recommendations from a colleague or friend (29 percent). Location ranked last, “perhaps reflecting the shift to remote/hybrid work models and digital adoption,” said AppSmart. The Return The type of provider an SMB ultimately chooses has a direct impact on the type of return the business gets from its investment, the AppSmart and Wakefield figures suggest. After all, the vast majority of SMBs (84 percent) experience at least some difficulty in using new SaaS solutions. Most notable are difficulties surrounding maintenance Which of the factors are most important to you in selecting a technology advisor? Pricing and overall savings 44% Easy-to-access customer service 43% Knowledge of my industry 43% Knowledge of business our size 35% Offers useful self-service tools 33% Recommended by colleagues or friends 29% Local to my community 27% None of these are important 3% Source: Wakefield Research; AppSmart How do you generally hear about a SaaS solution? Professional organizations in our industry 38% Marketing communications from software vendors 37% Professional organizations for those working in IT 37% Trade publications or websites for IT professionals 36% Colleagues at similar organizations 36% Trade publications or websites for our industry 33% Our technology advisory service 32% Our telecom or internet provider 28% Other 1% I haven’t learned about new SaaS solutions through any of these sources 7% Source: Wakefield Research; AppSmart 22 CHANNELV ISION | JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022
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