A worldwide survey from AMI suggests midmarket companies are taking a more formalized approach to IT purchasing decisions, while looking toward managed services and SAAS solutions.
An 11-country study by technology research firm AMI-Partners
found a drastic increase among small to medium-size businesses worldwide that
show very strong interest in managed services and software as a service, as
well as dramatic increases in SMBs' plans to outsource specific IT needs such
as storage, security and telecommunications.
The report found nearly 60 percent of SMBs worldwide are now interested in
managed services, representing an almost 100 percent increase from the previous
three months, and nearly 40 percent of SMBs are interested in SAAS. The study
also highlights changing dynamics in the way SMBs are making IT purchases. The
purchase process has become more formalized, and decision-making cycles have
been significantly extended compared with just three months ago. In addition,
key decision makers involved in IT purchasing are exuding even greater
influence of why, when and where IT purchases are made.
For example, the business decision makers (BDMs) are now playing an
increasingly important role in the first two stages of the purchase process:
assessing key business needs driving the IT purchase and deciding on the
specific brand of the IT product and/or service. Over the last 12 months the
influence of business decision makers (or owners and presidents) has increased
drastically. For example, in a fourth-quarter 2008 U.S.
study, approximately 31 percent of SMBs stated that their BDMs were involved in
"brand selection" while making an IT purchase. The most recent study found that
this number jumped to 83 percent.
The study found that most SMBs feel the economy is starting to stabilize;
however, businesses are still seeking ways to significantly reduce costs and
increase revenues. This includes exploring IT products and services that can
directly and immediately help ease exaggerated pain points like restricted cash
flow and limited access to credit.
"Solutions like SAAS and managed services offer flexible payment options and
usage-based models that are very attractive to SMBs right now, as they struggle
to overcome the credit crunch and very tight IT budgets," said AMI's
Vice President of Marketing Chad Thompson. "SMBs are re-evaluating the way
their businesses run on a number of fronts, including where and how they spend
money, how they drive revenues and how IT supports these goals."
Other changes in SMBs' IT perceptions and behaviors include their likelihood
to purchase specific IT categories like desktops, notebooks, servers, printers
and software. The study highlights the small percentage of SMBs that are "very
likely" to make a specific IT purchase in the next three months compared with
those "somewhat likely" to buy.
"What we are seeing quarter-over-quarter is that SMBs that say they are
-very likely' to make a purchase in the next three months tend to make that
purchase; however those that say they are -somewhat likely' will require a
clear and compelling reason to make the purchase," said Thompson. "The
-somewhat likely' group, or what we call the Fence Sitters, needs a sense of
urgency to drive that pent-up demand."
Nathan Eddy is Associate Editor, Midmarket, at eWEEK.com. Before joining eWEEK.com, Nate was a writer with ChannelWeb and he served as an editor at FierceMarkets. He is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
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