The telecom landscape is constantly changing with new, more efficient technologies being introduced to the marketplace seemingly every day. The scalable access to cloud-based offerings, fast-expanding use of video beyond conferencing, and machine-to-machine communication (M2M) are just a few of the services changing the dynamics of telecom today. These offerings are redefining the essence of how businesses communicate both internally and externally.

Albert Einstein once said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. I’m guessing that he didn’t arrive at his famous E=mc² equation on the first try, and I’m sure he didn’t use the same steps each time he failed, expecting to get the right answer.

*This article was originally published on channelpartnersonline.

Cloud computing has been pitched hard to enterprises as a means to achieve a lower total cost of ownership and a higher ROI while still meeting IT service needs. What isn’t always factored in is in-house manpower savings — it’s an often overlooked benefit in the Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) justification equation.

Are you new to the telecom industry and unsure of the best way to include telecom services in your portfolio?

I recently represented TBI at the 2015 IT Expo in Miami. The event serves as a meeting place for companies from all sectors of the IT communications industry including service providers, VARs, resellers, developers, manufacturers, and more.

Did you miss yesterday’s TBI webinar? Here is a brief recap and direct link to the presentation.

In “IT Stress and Revenue Potential”, TBI Director of Sales Adam Knudsen and Sales Trainer Dave Landsberger discussed the advantages of offering managed services, or outsourced IT, and the solutions these services can provide.

In today’s world of technology, VARs are at risk. That’s what Ken Mercer explains in his article, “Cashing in on Convergence: A Survival Guide for VARs”, published on The VAR Guy, January 27th. Ken explains that it is no longer sufficient for VARs to sell from a single silo of products, whether hardware or software, as they have in the past.

*This article was originally published on CRN.com.

Large businesses — defined as those with 250+ employees, over 20 sites and a $50,000 spend on monthly recurring charges (MRC) — offer opportunities for big channel revenue rewards.

Did you miss yesterday’s TBI webinar? Here is a brief recap and link to the presentation.

In “Understanding your Prospects”, TBI Director of Sales Adam Knudsen and Sales Trainer Dave Landsberger discussed strategies agents can use when targeting prospective customers or introducing new services to their current customers.

What’s the square root of 347,890? What is the capital of New Zealand? How many nautical miles are between California and South Korea? What is your mother-in-law’s middle name?

Chances are most of you don’t know the answers to the questions above. I certainly don’t.

** This article was originally published on CRN.com.

The midsize business market – defined as those companies with 25-100 users, more than five corporate locations, and $5,000 in monthly recurring charges (MRC) – offers alluring opportunities for driving significant channel revenue growth in the years ahead.

Here we are: 2015. A new slate, a fresh start.

Closing the book on another year, not only is it human nature to look back at the past 12 months and measure your personal successes and setbacks, it’s also prudent business practice. The best way to set constructive and realistic goals for the new year is to take a good look at the past year.

One of the things we talk about often is how to help our agents become complete technology advisors to their customers. The idea is that when you sell just one product or service, you are inevitably leaving a significant chunk of change on the table. Whatever 'silo' you as an agent are primarily in - whether it's IT consulting, telecom sales, managed services, etc., with TBI as a Master Agent, you are capable of providing any of the other technology services that are outside your 'silo'. In fact, there is no reason you can't be providing your customer with all of his technology needs.

Just yesterday I was attempting to put together a Christmas list. I’m a voracious reader; I read every day for at least an hour, so my go-to gifts are always books. So last night I hopped on Amazon to look up some books that I may be interested in. The problem is, there are so many books on Amazon. So instead of randomly searching a novel in the literature canon or the flavor of the month young adult dystopian adventure novel, I went to the suggestion bar that said “Customers like you also bought…” and after scanning through about 5 pages I had a new book to add to my Christmas list.

The small and midsize business (SMB) market (1 to 99 employees) offers many opportunities for driving significant channel revenue growth in the coming years. The challenge for VARs is understanding that companies in this market have unique business requirements and technology needs that are sometimes overlooked.

Getting ready to pitch telecom? Finding the perfect phone and internet service for your customer is a no-brainer with these simple discovery questions:

Download "10 Telecom Questions to Ask Your SMB Customer".

Step One: Don't Dump the IT Director

** This is a partial recap of the fourth webinar in our convergence series, How to Sell Cloud as a Business Technology Adviser: Part 2. You can watch the whole recorded webinar here.

Many of our agents have been told by industry “experts” that in order to close a cloud deal with an enterprise company, they’ve got to jump over the IT director’s head and speak directly with the C-suite. While speaking to the C-suite is more often than not the end goal, we’ll argue that the IT director is still an extremely valuable relationship for you to cultivate.

** This is part two of “4 Steps to Building a Strong Partnership”. You can read part one here.

Partnerships are essential to any business in any industry. Our partners are the lifeblood of our own business and we would venture to say the same is true of you and your customers. As we discussed in part one of this series, the first two steps in building a strong partnership are Open Communication and Clear Expectations. Now, we’ll delve into the last 2 steps to making your good partnerships, great.

Partnerships are key to TBI – and to you

** This is part one of “4 Steps to Building a Strong Partnership”. You can read part two here.

Partnerships are essential to any business in any industry. Our partners are the lifeblood of our own business and we would venture to say the same is true of you and your customers. In this two-part series we’ll explore the four steps to building stable, successful, and mutually-profitable partnerships.

Whether it’s with another business, within your own organization, or with a customer, the relationships you create can be beneficial to you in both the short term and long term.

Last week, we hosted the third webinar in our bimonthly series focused on technology convergence and what it means to the channel community (watch the recorded webinar here).

In, “How to Sell Cloud as a Business Technology Adviser: Part 1”, TBI Director of Sales Adam Knudsen and Sales Trainer Dave Landsberger discussed how partners can serve their customers as a technology navigator, guiding them through the cloud landscape.

With cloud in particular, according to Knudsen and Landsberger, there are three things channel professionals must understand about their customers that will enable them to offer the strategic and consultative technology solutions that will set them apart from their competition: