Mobility Defined By Mary Rasmussen, Services and Channel Marketing Manager, USA.NET
It's no surprise that businesses of all sizes are actively seeking mobile messaging solutions. From small to mid-size to large enterprise, having access to key information anytime, anywhere is no longer a luxury, but a necessity to be competitive in today's business environment. Customers are more demanding. Deadlines are tighter. Expectations are higher. Executives and other team members within an organization can no longer afford to be tied to their desk, or be out of touch when out of the office. Staying connected and collaborating is the key to success for any business, making mobile messaging critical - and a great selling opportunity.
So how do you define "mobility" as a business communication methodology? Mobility is the ability to access key information such as email, contacts, the corporate directory, shared calendars and notes from a handheld wireless device (like a cell phone) or from an Internet-enabled computer other than your desktop such as a computer from an Internet cafe. The key differentiator for mobility is the support for two-way synchronization of data that pushes between alternate sources. For example, when I add a new contact to my personal address book using my Blackberry Smartphone, that information is synchronized to my desktop client - automatically. When I return to my office, that data is immediately accessible to me on my desktop client without any device docking or repetitive data entry.
Since mobility is tightly integrated to a customer's email solution, teaming with a hosted email provider is a surefire way to enter the mobility market, giving you revenue opportunities from selling mobile access and hosted email services.
From a customer perspective, the hosted model gives SMBs the ability to leverage a secure Fortune-50 infrastructure and benefit from top security for email and mobile functionality. A hosted provider applies security across the entire IT system; encompassing front-end devices such as wireless devices, and back-end processes and servers required to deliver email and other key information. Data is transmitted using encryption such as Triple-DES protocol.
The most common concern that is often voiced about mobile security is "a lost or stolen device." A hosting environment with 24-7 customer support can at any time issue a "remote kill" to a device. This disables the device, and removes the data - protecting intellectual property and limiting exposure created by unauthorized access. Depending on the device, you may even be able to execute a self-service remote kill from OWA (Outlook Web Access) - however a call to customer support is often the quickest solution. In addition to security, top hosted solutions also provide access to regulatory compliance tools needed by customers to satisfy Sarbanes Oxley, Gramm, Leach Bliley, HIPPA and other such policies.
There are numerous benefits that mobility brings, such as improved response times, better customer service and an enhanced work environment. However, the most prominent benefit, and a focus of the sales cycle, is productivity gains. An IPOS Reid study estimates that a mobile user recovers up to 1 hour of downtime per day. Over a year that translates to almost 250 hours per mobile employee of downtime that becomes productive work time.
A secure hosted mobile messaging solution enables VARs to offer a full suite of services at a fraction of the price of what it would cost SMB customers to provide these services themselves. With the proper support from the hosted messaging provider, this on-demand service can be seamlessly offered as a part of the VAR's product suite, requiring little effort on the part of their sales and operations departments or of their SMB customers.
Mary Rasmussen is services and channel marketing manager at USA.NET, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Perimeter eSecurity.
